Modern and Contemporary

Robert LeMay: Works for Brass and Piano - Yoko Hirota; Brian Roberts; Iris Krizmanic; Cathy Stone; Jennifer Stephen

Robert LeMay – Works for Brass and Piano
Yoko Hirota; Brian Roberts; Iris Krizmanic; Cathy Stone; Jennifer Stephen
Navona Records nv6807 (navonarecords.com/catalog/nv6807)

Recordings such as AERIS ET SPIRITUS, featuring the music of the Sudbury-based composer Robert Lemay performed by an ensemble of solo piano with trumpet, trombone, tuba or French horn, demonstrate not only how musically satisfying unorthodox instrumental settings can be, but how much creativity and possibility there remains within the genre of new Canadian classical music.

The album, translated as “Cooper and Breath” features four original Lemay compositions that are all conversational in tone, highlighting beautifully performed and recorded exchanges between various brass instruments and the excellent piano work of Yoko Hirota. As articulated in the album’s accompanying notes, Lemay as composer was striving for duets with this collection (hence the aforementioned conversation analogy) rather than a work of brass with piano accompaniment. And although that difference may be subtle, this intention comes through on Breakpoint, for example, where Hirota’s piano chords and Brian Roberts’ high register trumpet work coalesce together not in the subservient relationship of soloist and accompanist, but rather uniting as a singular voice to collectively form a cohesive musical statement.

In Deep Down, a series of four short musical sketches for piano and Jennifer Stephen’s stentorian tuba, a third sound of the human voice is subtly introduced into the musical conversation. Perhaps this is the breath referenced in the album’s title? Perhaps these are the improvisatory sounds of a focussed performance? Whatever the case may be, this inclusion brings further levity, and more musicality and intrigue to an already excellent collection out now on Navona Records.

What Came Before Me Is Going After Me - Zihua Tan; No Hay Banda

What Came Before Me Is Going After Me
Zihua Tan; No Hay Banda
No Hay Discos NHD 006 (zihuatan.bandcamp.com/album/what-came-before-me-is-going-after-me)

Montreal-based Zihua Tan has won many awards for his compositions worldwide, and his background as a semiconductor engineer informs his experimental sound capture design and finely articulate compositional style.

His knowledge of amplification really shines on his debut album what came before me is going after me. Using a wide array of microphones, geophone, hydrophone and close-miking, Tan captures the finest nuances of tonalities and colours of even the most innocuous gestures, allowing his compositions to captivate without overpowering the instrumental delivery. This effect is mesmerizing and speaks to his musical philosophy of acoustic and electronic sounds being fluid and instruments being part of sonic possibilities rather than hierarchal forms as bases for sound.

Percussionist Noam Beirstone delivers remnants present with a delicate nuance and the recording beautifully captures the work. (A video of this performance is available online and is well worth seeing, refreshingly embracing Tan’s philosophy by focusing the cameras throughout the instruments rather than on the performer.)

The second piece is the titular what came before me is going after me, a dreamy textural work in collaboration with Montréal presenter-ensemble No Hay Banda, featuring the quintet of violin, cello, voice, percussion and ondes Martenot. A work that might stretch the uninitiated to unconventional vocal sounds, Tan creates a fascinating exploration of texture and non-hierarchy of instrumentation, allowing the players to use all ways of making sound, and the listener to embark on their own personal attention unmanipulated by volume excesses or preconceived values.

Much like the title of the work, (possibly a reference to Heraclitus, who reportedly said, “No man ever steps in the same river twice”) Tan’s creative compositions are a discovery of time and what was already there.

Nostos - Clio Theodoridis; Jonathan Nemtanu

Nostos
Clio Theodoridis; Jonathan Nemtanu
Leaf Music LM306 (leaf-music.lnk.to/lm306)

Clio Theodorisis was born in Athens and now performs and teaches saxophone with Quebec as her base. She has won several international awards, is an ambassador for Henri Selmer Paris and performs regularly with Jonathan Nemtanu in Duo Astor.

The liner notes for Nostos (expressing the return to one’s homeland after a long absence), state that this album’s works trace a “musical and personal odyssey. From Pedro Itturalde’s Suite Hellénique, rooted in Greek heritage, to the contemporary works of Canadian composer Mathieu Lussier, this recording tells our own story: a life between two worlds, between past and present.”

The album begins with the five-part Ocres rouges by the French clarinetist Alexis Ciesla which “draws inspiration from Klezmer landscapes and colours.” Its Andante - Meditativo movement is sparse and beautiful. The Allegro rythmico begins with some fine percussive saxophone pad work and then launches into several thrilling passages of fast fingers and minor scale runs. Fazil Say’s Suite for Alto Saxophone showcases the full range of Theodoridis’s technique and tone. The Andante movement is a highlight of the album as the saxophone is both delicate and forceful in its treatment of the gorgeous melodic twists and ascending lines.

Lussier’s Récit et lied, Op 31 begins with a long solo introduction that reminds us slightly of Prélude à l’après-midi d’un faune, but then moves into several other intriguing directions. The closing work, Suite Hellénique is a lively end to this diverse album.

The performances by Theodoridis and Nemtanu are masterful and inspired as they lead us through their journey across cultures and geography.

Listen to 'Nostos' Now in the Listening Room

In Praise of Insomnia - Andy Haas

In Praise of Insomnia
Andy Haas
Resonant Music 022 (andyhaas.bandcamp.com/album/in-praise-of-insomnia-2026)

New York city based Canadian experimental saxophonist Andy Haas is back with a solo release. Haas’ 12 short stereo studies here (roughly 29 minutes total) are manipulated live while he is combining the saxophone, circular breathing, and nano pulsar, an electro-harmonics electronics device. It was recorded on Winter Solstice, December 21, 2025. This is such original music with detailed live and electronic sounds which deserves countless repeated listening!

The second track Long Night of Omens opens with two held single sax notes at different pitches, until both start pulsating. This idea continues with two different note short ideas with almost tonal harmonies. Sudden held notes stop and close the movement. Experimental yet very accessible.

This Dark Land is a lower melody of held notes with some pitches slightly bent. Then comes a sax duet with slightly different sounds at once. An almost singalong melody now until a closing decrescendo leads to a held note stop. Track 10 Sleep Less has many musical moments like ascending/descending short melodic phrases, and repeated notes with minimalistic touches. The loud repeated notes are reminiscent of an alarm clock sounding when you can’t sleep. Squeeks and short melodies to closing are reminiscent of sleepless moments.

Haas’ musical ideas and performances here are so enchanting. He has taken troubling insomnia and musically elevated its effects with his uncomplicated live works, simultaneous layering sax playing with superimposed electronic additions in easy to listen to modern music.

Listen to 'In Praise of Insomnia' Now in the Listening Room

From the Soul - Frank Morelli; Wei-Yi Yang; Janna Baty; Callisto Quartet

From the Soul
Frank Morelli; Wei-Yi Yang; Janna Baty; Callisto Quartet
Musica Solis MS202602 (musicasolis.com/from-the-soul-frank-morelli)

From the Soul is a collection of five chamber pieces for bassoon, three with piano, one with mezzo-soprano and one with string quartet, recorded by the American bassoonist Frank Morelli. Morelli is one of the top teachers of bassoon in North America, having taught for many years at such places as Yale, Juilliard, and even at our own Glenn Gould School, and his playing credentials include groups like the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra and the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center. He’s a player in demand and you can hear why on this disc: lots of fluidity on the instrument, and lots of expression. Some listeners might find the vibrato excessive, but life is short and I’ll always support the goal of more expression, not less.

Morelli leads off the disc with Elegy for Innocence by Jeff Scott, an episodic and lyrical piece with some very pretty moments. The best music here comes from Wynton Marsalis and his 1999 jazz-infused piece Meeelaan written in three movements for bassoon and string quartet: some nice grooves, impressive turns of phrase and even some gritty moments where the normally mellow bassoon gets downright raunchy. My favourite piece on the album is Prayer, written in 2022 by Nirmali Fenn, in which the composer evokes the exotic sounds of the duduk, and the inside-the-piano effects are fascinating. The Callisto Quartet sounds cohesive and compelling on this disc, as does Morelli’s dramatic and expressive pianist Wei-Yi Yang.

Bow & Brush: 12 Scores of Nadina Tandy - Stefan Smulovitz

Bow & Brush – 12 Scores of Nadina Tandy
Stefan Smulovitz
Redshift Records TK548 (stefansmulovitz.ca)

Vancouver multi-instrumentalist and technology artist Stefan Smulovitz is known throughout the west-coast as a diverse musician, collaborator and organiser, and founder of the ensemble Eye of Newt, a group creating live scores to enduring movies. Inspired by a series of painted images from visual artist Nadina Tandy designed to be interpreted musically, Smulovitz has released his first album Bow & Brush: 12 Scores of Nadina Tandy. Using his diverse experiences as a multi-disciplinary artist, violist, sound artist, electronic creator and improvisor, as well as the creator of his own software Kenaxis, Smulovitz gathers together a full album from what was originally a single commission from Vancouver New Music’s One Page Scores program (visual artists were invited to create a one-page visual score to be interpreted by a partnered musician). Smulovitz went on to commission 11 further visual scores from Tandy to create this album.

Suffused with electronic extensions and additional soundscapes, Smulovitz expands his colours and expressions into multitudes of hues and textures from various sources: playing acoustic violin, viola and bass, with the addition of Dvina, Enner, Lyra, Noon, Perkons, Waterphone, gongs, and layers of electronic treatments and instruments. The result is a cinematic audioscape one might describe as “ambient grunge.” The album comes with a booklet of Vancouver-born Tandy’s abstract paintings, which may enhance the listening experience and are worthy on their own. My favourite track is Maple Seed Pods, a slow, grounded course of water drifting out to a wide expanse of light.