Nico Muhly’s Mothertongue
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You may have already heard composer Nico Muhly this year on All Is Well, Samamidon’s lovely reimaginings of immigrant folk songs. (If you haven’t, you should). Mothertongue, Muhly’s second album and first for Brassland (run by members of the National), is divided into three acts. First, Glassy Mothertongue features mezzo-soprano Abigail Fischer delivering a litany of barely intelligible voices—the aural equivalent of that green Matrix coding. The Wonders suite sets passages from The Travels of Sir John Mandeville to melody, dismantling the tune as it proceeds. Amidon shows up on the Only Tune suite, relating a murderous tale against Muhly’s refractive backdrop. Sure, it’s highly conceptual, but there are enough odd sounds and strange textures to make it accessible even to those who don’t usually venture into composer territory.
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A little bird Saturday 7 January 2012
Like your site. What timing. I found you in the Elle D. last night at the bookstore, Compelled by your museums of choice I llooked you up. What eye candy. I’m enjoying my ride inside. Poking around I pulled up the band the Split Enz song I walked away. And now I have a “Back in the day” for you. I met the band on a crazy night at a club in Illinois sometime back in the 1980s. (1982.83.84or 85) a little fuzzy now. We danced the night away to their magical songs. I met the groups promoter. He was working on a movie project,Poltergeist 2. We ended up at the Breckenridge in St Louis at the party and 2am throwing the frisbee on the parking lot, What a blast…thanks for the memory…indirectly or was it directly would you say?