Boulez: Sur Incises; Messagesquisse; Anthemes 2 Jean-Guihen Queyras, cello/Hae-Sun Kang, violin/ Ensemble Interconemporain/Pierre Boulez (Deutsche Grammophon 289 463 475-2).(Review)

Boulez: Sur Incises; Messagesquisse; Anthemes 2 Jean-Guihen Queyras, cello/Hae-Sun Kang, violin/ Ensemble Interconemporain/Pierre Boulez (Deutsche Grammophon 289 463 475-2)

Those with no interest at all in contemporary music can skip to the next review. Those who are still with me are probably aware that although Pierre Boulez is probably most well known these days as a conductor, he is also a composer of considerable but controversial reputation. The music on this CD is not easy listening music, but it is not so forbidding that listeners should be afraid to give it a try. Sur Incises is a fascinating work for three pianos, three harps, vibraphone, marimba, and steel drums (not the little pan drums played in the islands, but honest-to-goodness steel drums). What is especially interesting about it is how it sounds essentially like a piece for one big piano rather than an ensemble piece, with all the instruments being played "pianistically." It's a long way from Chopin, but it has its own brand of whimsy. Messagesquisse is ...