It makes sense for Bridge to release a collection of George Crumb’s orchestral music drawn from its ongoing complete edition. The performances are all outstanding, the sonics are terrific, and music lovers who shy away from Crumb’s chamber works surely will find these pieces endlessly fascinating. None of them has been over-exposed on disc. Star-Child enjoys its first official recording (the premiere is tucked away in one of the New York Philharmonic’s limited-edition boxes), while A Haunted Landscape also is getting its first satisfactory CD outing. Indeed, the only problem is that Crumb has written so little music for full orchestra–which is not surprising given its logistical difficulties in performance, not to mention the composer’s love of hovering on the edge of silence. His is an intimate art, even if his command of color and sometimes primal violence make his rare orchestral excursions invariably fascinating. Hopefully, this disc will encourage collectors to sample more of his work in other media.
