John Palmer’s ‘without’ for solo violin appears on a recent release “Dots/Lines” by the Sapporo-born violinist Takao Hyakutome, alongside the likes of Yannis Kyriakides, Johan Svensson or Takashi Tokunaga. The piece, commissioned by Ensemble Omega and written for Utae Nakagawa in 2006, is inspired by the Japanese ‘ma’, exploring silence as a dynamic force coming from and ending into sound.
cherry blossom petals are falling
Beautiful like snowflakes.
The remaining rest do cling
Without knowing their destiny.
(traditional Zen saying)
Dots/Lines can be purchased on this link.
Second release, dedicated to celebrating 20 years of the Ensemble Plus, was produced and released by the ORF Austrian radio. Here the violist Andreas Ticozzi has recorded John’s ‘verso l’alto‘ for solo viola, after premiering the piece in May 2015 at the Voralberg Museum in Bregenz, Austria. The CD 20 Jahre Ensemble Plus 2016 can be purchased on this link.
Tags: Andreas Ticozzi, CD, Ensemble Plus, John Palmer, ORF, Takao Hyakutome