Mary Ellen CHILDS (b. 1957)
Wreck (2009) [54:42]
Pat O’Keefe (clarinets); Laura Harada (violin); Michelle Kinney (cello);
Jacqueline Ultan (cello); Peter O’Gorman (percussion)
rec. August and December 2011, Wild Sound Studio, Minneapolis, MN.
INNOVA 844 [65:13]
Mary Ellen Childs’ music has appeared on the Innova label before, and
you can read a review of her Dream House here.
Wreck was written as a full-length dance piece for Carl Flink’s
Black Label Movement company. It “explores the depths of physical and
psychological endurance … [expressing] the ultimate question of how
we face death.” You can see a YouTube trailer for the production here.
This is undoubtedly very fine dance music, and the drums and driving energy
at the opening and further on make for something which lends itself perfectly
to dynamic movement. The piece is divided into ten movements, and there is
ample space for atmospheric sea-scape effects, improvisatory sounding playing,
and wide contrasts of texture and sonority.
There can be problems with this kind of applied music collection, and Wreck
doesn’t entirely escape mildly irritating elements. The rather earnestly
struck cymbals of the Wreck Theme no doubt add to the scenic seascape
on stage, but do us few favours here. There are rhythmic movements such as
The Lake which have terrific energy, but are musically rather thin
and don’t really reward repeated listening, unless you fancy dancing
around a bit.
There are some fascinating moments however. The upward glissandi of The
Box make for an intriguingly disturbing experience which perhaps harks
back to the drowning of Wozzeck. I like the ‘theme’ music
in its Duet for Wreck manifestation and the more composed-sounding
material is pretty durable and often has considerable dramatic impact. My
favourite moments are the infinite soundscapes of the final The Abyss,
and in particular the tintinnabulations of Spirit Duet but then, I
was always a sucker for bells.
It all depends on what kind of narrative or effect you’re seeking, and
such pieces are always a collaboration so no doubt everyone was happy with
what they were given. I would personally have gone for a less fragmented set
of more extended arcs rather than a collection of vignettes, but maybe that’s
just me. Such a vast subject seems to demand a more durable shape: perhaps
two ‘acts’ of contrasting atmosphere but related in a shared power
which turns the audience into more than mere spectators, exposing our collective
mortality as a thing of puny vulnerability. Oh well, today in 2013 it’s
an oblivious and media-anaesthetized zap culture not the scary voyage on which
mankind was embarking in 1913. This CD is provided in a slim card foldout
which carries skimpy but sufficient information. Recording quality is excellent.
Dominy Clements
Intriguing, but a bit of a patchwork.
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