David Joseph | Through Tropical Stars
Chamber Music by David Joseph
Move MD 3467
The works on this CD are by a composer who is now 70 but these compositions are from a much earlier time in his life and span the years when David Joseph was 23 through to being 37. An astonishing talent when so young and already a mature and intriguing musical voice by his mid-thirties David Joseph should be lauded as one of our major composers.
The flute duet Through Tropical Stars is an astonishing work for a 23 year old and all the more so for being written in 1977. Joseph has a vivid imagination and the skill to write a work that is bursting with energy and still he finds time to be lyrical. Indeed, it is this composer’s lyricism that is evident in the 5 works presented here. Another work from the year after Sonata for Clarinet and 2 Percussionists is an absolute ripper! Here we hear a composer brimming with ideas and exploring music with a virtuosic approach. Joseph references music from the early to mid 20th century and fashions it into his own voice.
Both these works have stunning performances that bring the music alive. Zdenek Bruderhans and Jennifer Newsome in the flute duet dazzle whilst the clarinettist Nigel Sabin and percussionists Ian Cleworth and Michael Howell take your breath away in the Sonata for Clarinet and 2 Percussionists.
The CD opens with a delightful performance by the Seymour Group of Concertino for flute, viola, and percussion. The Seymour Group back then was a superstar ensemble of Christine Draeger, John Gould, Ian Cleworth and Graeme Leak. The youthful angst might be gone in this work from a decade later but the intensity and energy remains and this remains true of the String Trio no. 2, probably the most forbidding and gritty work on the CD and nevertheless, totally captivating. A little breath of fresh air, indeed, a little gem is The Afternoon for piano trio. Barely three and half minutes it finishes just as it seems to be settling in for the long haul.
There seems to be something about Melbourne and its capacity to nurture composers of incredible technique and musical vision. A while back I wrote for this site reviews of the amazing Johanna Selleck vocal and chamber ensemble CD, Becoming, and also a review of the stellar Luz Meridional (Southern Light) the CD of piano works by Andrián Pertout and now I add David Joseph to this list of composers who deserve to be at the collective forefront of music organisations when selecting repertoire for the national stage. They are that rare breed, composers who have something to say, and they do it with originality and style.
