Igor Stravinsky: Late Works Album Review – Kudos to Ross for bringing this wonderful music to life | classical music

IIn his later years, Igor Stravinsky became fascinated with serialism, both as a means of distilling musical thought and as an intellectual and stylistic challenge for the composer entering his seventies and eighties. The results struck some contemporary listeners as austere, but there is a self-effacing purity and beauty in this complex and intellectual music that deserves a wider audience than ever before. Kudos, then, to conductor Daniel Reuss, whose precise and lively interpretations are bursting with color and light.

There are four main acts here. On Dylan Thomas’ Memoriam from 1954, this is an extended, emotional setting for the tenor solo of “Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night.” Threni, a multi-faceted thorn gem from 1958, lays out words from the Book of Elegies. The set is completed by haunting overtures and soaring religious anthems, from 1965 and 1966 respectively, interspersed with more concise pieces including the humble Lord’s Prayer and the intense, cerebral two-minute elegy for John F. Kennedy.

Noord Nederlands Orkest’s playing is fearlessly clear and pure, but it’s their distinctive Cappella Amsterdam vocals that really capture the ear, bringing this wonderful music to life. Modern acoustics make this new recording a major contender in a less crowded field.