Clair Obscur – Neue Philharmonie Westfalen: Cool Rhythm

Description

When black and white notes turn into sound …

The feeling when all of us play together and the notes in black and white turn into music is overwhelming. The sound is warm, full and intoxicating, sometimes almost inaudibly soft, sometimes brutally loud.

The Phantastische Zauberträume (fantastical magic dreams) by Siegfried Matthus offer particularly great variety. Sparklingly fast runs alternate with frozen moments, lyrical passages are contrasted with eruptive staccato orgies. To record this work is a real challenge.

Rhythm of the Americas by the American saxophonist and composer Bob Mintzer demands quite different abilities from the performers; the orchestra and we ourselves turn into a big band, we need jazz feeling, offbeats and a gigantic sound! Beside their solo projects all four members of the quartet also help out moreover regularly when saxophonists are required in Berlin orchestras like the Berlin Philharmonic. The clair-obscur Saxophone Quartet’s most recent distinctions were at the International ADMC Competition in Illzach in 2007, the Gaudeamus Music Competition in 2007 and the Friends’ Prize at the Jeunesses Musicales in 2008.