ALBERTO POSADAS (b.1967): Oscuro abismo de llanto y de ternura for Ensemble, Nebmaat for Quintet, Cripsis for Ensemble, Glossopoeia for 3 Dancers, 4 Musicians, Video and Electronics.

Description: As in the previous recordings of Posadas' works that we have offered, these pieces share common characteristics; complexity, inspiration drawn from (and techniques related to) various mathematical and physical processes (suggestive of Xenakis), and a concern for detailed, sonorous textures, suggestive of the French Spectralist school. Oscuro puts these devices to the service of a highly emotionally charged quasi-program, beginning in surging, magmatic fluidity, then crystallizing in striking textures in the work's later stages. Nebmaat is based on the composer's fascination with ancient architecture - in this case the intricate internal structures of an Egyptian tomb - with an air of mystery suggested by whispering multiphonics and extended playing techniques. Cripsis, the name implying something hidden or resembling something else, is a very spectralist-sounding essay in dense, shifting textures. As one might expect, computer-generated electronic sound manipulation is a natural fit for this composer, as demonstrated in Glossopœia (a multimedia work, of which obviously only the musical part is presented here). Here the mathematical structuring is derived from the analysis of plant growth, the results recalling the fractal textures of Posadas' quartets (08L115). Ensemble intercontemporain; François-Xavier Roth.