Page 517 - Liverpool Philharmonic 22-23 Season Coverage Book

streamed concert with the Detroit Symphony during the Covid lockdown. In four concise
movements, Sierra offers a masterclass in how to write for massed strings. Snap pizzicati and
smoochy glissandi catch the ear in the opening “Ritmico”, and the final “Rapido” is brilliantly
handled by the Liverpool strings. This is a terrific work – and, again, the performance and
engineering is flawless.

th
Fandangos, composed in 2000, cleverly updates a harpsichord piece by the 18 century Spanish
composer Antonio Soler, and the closer is Sierra’s Symphony No. 6, conducted by Hindoyan at
his first RLPO concert as Music Director. Sierra’s symphony was conceived as an attempt to
create “a sonic representation of nature in a modern sense”. Which here includes music inspired
by frenetic urban life, followed by a sultry night piece and a visceral hurricane. A percussive
finale closes proceedings with a bang. The most enjoyable contemporary disc I’ve heard in ages.
Buy it.

Damir Imamović: The World and All That It Holds (Smithsonian Folkways Recordings)