Lisa Bielawa - A Handful of World (2007)

Lisa Bielawa has been a presence on the new music scene as a vocal performer since the early '90s, and this Tzadik release of three of her compositions helps remedy the scarcity of her own works on disc. The pieces use the voice in three very different and unconventional configurations. Kafka Songs, a setting of seven texts from the writer's "Meditations," is scored for violin and voice, with both parts to be undertaken by the same performer. It's hard to imagine that there are many virtuoso violinists who also have a beautiful voice and virtuosic vocal abilities in new music techniques, but Carla Kihlstedt has the chops to pull the piece off with a flourish. Lamentations for a City is for chorus accompanied by a solo English horn, and uses texts by the prophet Jeremiah as well as contemporary news reports. (Surprisingly, this eccentric instrumentation is not unique; Roger Davidson's 1992 Missa Universalis IV uses the same combination.) Bielawa is fully successful in integrating the solo part into the choral textures, and the English horn's added voice of lament contributes substantially to the work's strength. Bielawa's writing is on par with that of the finest contemporary choral composers and her compelling sense of structure, and the emotional and musical momentum she builds into the 14-minute work are especially impressive. Cerddorion Vocal Ensemble, led by Kristina Boerger and accompanied by Jacqueline Leclair, performs with purity and passionate conviction. A Collective Cleansing, based on Aeschylus, is for multi-track voice with digital processing. Bielawa sings all the parts with a strong, focused, and lovely voice. The processing is mostly discreet; the music's effect is of a women's chorus with extraordinary powers, such as the ability to bend chords up until they disappear into the stratosphere. Here again, Bielawa's outstanding gifts as a choral composer are on display and make this a hugely effective and affecting work. These pieces make the listener eager to hear more of her striking and distinctive music. Tzadik's sound is immaculately clean and present.