Fans of Giacinto Scelsi’s myopic dementia should be thrilled with this CD–note-and-mood-perfect performances of music written during and about the Italian composer’s too-genuine insanity. Rather than use his compositions to work through his mental troubles, these pieces seem designed to bring you inside of them; this is not music for the easily frightened or faint of heart. From the opening moments of the String Quartet No. 4, which begins as tensely as possible and then gets even more tense, to the final orchestral shriek of Natura renovatur, this is potent stuff.
Each piece seems to be “about” a single concept: Elohim is about wild chromatic runs and is the work that most verges on being out of control; the Duo for Violine and Violoncello deals with sudden occurrences, such as night terrors; Anagamin toys with a single chord that gets bent, smashed, and twisted out of shape; Maknongan is a low, throaty unison for dark and moody strings. Klangforum Wien is in top shape here, under the fearless baton of Hans Zender, who is willing to take the players to the dark corners Scelsi occupies. This is the sort of music they were made to play and they do so with amazing accuracy and appropriately sheer-pitched terror. As is to be expected from the Kairos label, the sound quality is exquisite, capturing every nuance of this startling music.
