Many Voices: Ensemble
Works by Abel Selaocoe, James MacMillan, Roderick Williams, Sonia Allori et al
Kaleidoscope Chamber Collective
NMC NMCDL3053 (digital) 37:13 mins
The flexible roster of musicians that comprise the Kaleidoscope Chamber Collective drive this project, though most of the ideas come from primary school children. The concept involved creating high-quality pieces for young musicians (Grades 2-6) to play within a school setting, and the results showcase themes that are audibly and obviously from the children. While in one sense there is nothing new in this collection, the difference is the deliberate use of a smaller ensemble; in this case, string and percussion instruments and the voice.
Most of these pieces work really well, though it occasionally feels as though the music is concentrated on sound effects, rather than coherent phrases that could be developed into something more exciting. There is always the danger after all that the freeing and rich imagination of children goes off on so many tangents that bringing the musical threads together becomes too disjointed. On that basis, the pieces that work most successfully are Aileen Sweeney’s The Corryvreckan Whirlpool, a delightful folk tune based on the mythical Scottish creature known as The Cailleach, and Tom Poster’s very pretty Lullaby and Waddle for Puffin. It’s worth noting that reproducing the latter without an excellent pianist could be challenging.
There were multiple other ideas on this recording that form a wonderful basis for creative ensemble music making, though it cannot be underestimated how playing and teaching all of this without musical specialists in our schools would be impossible. Anne Templer