On the evidence of
this CD, Douglas Bruce Johnson’s music
should be better known than it is, being
far more strongly characterful than
much contemporary music from the USA.
Johnson says: "Rooted in European
traditions, my music still sounds American.
... I do not adhere to any prevailing
school of compositional style, though
I freely acknowledge influences from
four 20th century ‘greats’: Berg, Bartók,
Britten and Copland". On this CD,
only the song-cycle sounds American
(very) to my mind; the other works strongly
suggest his European antecedents. Of
course, the picture is much more complicated
than ‘European versus American’ would
suggest; for example, Copland studied
in Paris with Boulanger and others.
He has written for
a variety of forces including chamber
choir (including two Spanish song-cycles),
saxophone quartet, cello and electronic
cello (‘Angels’, a score for three dancers
and video) and an opera is in the process
of composition. Apart from the works
on this CD, nothing else seems to have
been recorded.
The song-cycle "Songs
of Time, of Love, of Wonder" consists
of settings of three poems by May Sarton
(1912-1995), one by Emily Dickinson
(1830-1886) and a Latvian folk song.
May Sarton, apparently neglected by
the American literary establishment,
commands a strong readership in the
USA. The settings, syllabic against
pianistically interesting accompaniments,
are extremely suitable to the imagery
of the poems. Elizabeth Anker’s strong,
unfruity contralto is an ideal instrument,
her diction being some of the clearest
I have heard on record, making the absence
of texts no obstacle to understanding.
Johnson’s setting of Emily Dickinson’s
extraordinarily rhapsodic poem "The
Love a Life can show Below" (words
at http://www.americanpoems.com/poets/emilydickinson/10625
) is entirely appropriate as
is that of the Daina, an example of
the verse form genre of Latvian folk
songs.
Johnson’s piano work
"...at evening, in the shadow of the
volcano, they are dancing..." was premiered
by pianist Anthony De Bedts in recital
at the Schubertsaal in the Konzerthaus,
Vienna. In his short notes (augmented
on his website)
Johnson "invites the listener to
set the imagination free and to construct
a narrative — each one can have their
own version of the "story"
that the piece seems to tell."
The story progresses from a fierce opening
through a series of episodes, full of
pianistic incident and developing naturally
from each other, to a niente
conclusion. The concluding twilight
harmonies reminded me of Ligeti or Bartók’s
creatures of the night. This formidable
work is a fine addition to the repertoire
for virtuoso pianists and is brilliantly
performed here by its dedicatee.
The pieces for string
quartet share a common intensity and
strength of gesture. Johnson’s realisation
of Dante’s "Il terzodecimo canto",
written as a memorial to his father,
is a deeply serious piece that would
repay repeated listening. The stimulating
liner notes are augmented by a detailed
correspondence between the poem and
the music at http://www.trincoll.edu/~djohnso1/programnotes.html.
Finally, the splendid quartet of string
players give a fine account of two ‘seasonal’
essays composed in the Veneto in 1993
(echoes of Vivaldi), in the first some
very bleak sounds conjuring up the wintry
Italian countryside.
This fine disc provides
a welcome introduction to the music
of a lively-minded composer and is thoroughly
recommended.
Roger Blackburn
Elizabeth Anker (contralto) 
