Second Inversion hosts share a favorite selection from their weekly playlist. Tune in on Friday, January 26 to hear these pieces and plenty of other new and unusual music from all corners of the classical genre!
Adam Maness: “Shibuya” (Self-Released)
Performed by the 442s
The title of this piece grabbed my attention because it’s a name I’ve read in Haruki Murakami’s novels and short stories—most recently 1Q84, where one of the characters, Aomame, climbs down an emergency staircase from a freeway to escape a traffic jam, where she’s been sitting for ages in a taxi. As she leaves, the taxi driver tells her to remember that “things are not what they seem,” and then she begins her decent into Shibuya, Tokyo. While I’ve never been to Shibuya, the 442s (who took their name from the standard orchestral tuning of 442 hertz) and composer Adam Maness have added another layer to my imagination of what the place is like. Plus, that glockenspiel with the plucked strings kills me. Good stuff! – Dacia Clay
Tune in to Second Inversion in the 2pm hour today to hear this piece.
Dawn of Midi: Io (Thirsty Ear)
I’m starting to think that I will never tire of Dawn of Midi’s 2013 album Dysnomia. Exemplifying an extremely high standard of acoustic performance, this album is some of the best trance-y music anywhere, for my money. Io, in particular, is a fantastic track. Satisfying grooves give way to complex rhythms and unexpected tones that draw you in as they zone you out. – Seth Tompkins
Tune in to Second Inversion in the 4pm hour today to hear this piece.
Gabriel Kahane: “Parts of Speech” (StorySound Records)
Kahane’s second album Where are the Arms seems aesthetically drawn to building bridges and blurring boundaries between indie rock and classical musis. His catchy pop song “Parts of Speech” highlights the everlasting theme of unrequited love with rhythmic sophistication and something distinctly Nirvana-meets-the-Killers. Kahane’s drawling voice on the driving melody punctuated by some clever rhyme schemes makes the humanness of his songwriting relatable to the casual listener while simultaneously transfixing to the poetically and musically trained ear. – Micaela Pearson
Tune in to Second Inversion in the 7pm hour today to hear this piece.
Ben Lukas Boysen: “Golden Times 2” (Erased Tapes)
Soundscaper Ben Lukas Boysen’s “Golden Times 2” is a slow burn with a wistful, pensive core. Sleepy static and repetitious programmed piano are the jumping off point for a piece that builds as cello and drums join in the tremulous, lush unfolding of an arrangement that offers beautiful gestures of emotion rather than a blatant brandish of it. Swathe yourself in the coziest blanket and sink into Boysen’s graceful melodic minimalism. – Rachele Hales
Tune in to Second Inversion in the 9pm hour today to hear this piece.
Third Coast’s film score is inspired by and interspersed with music by Philip Glass and Jacob Druckman, along with traditional music of the Shona people of Zimbabwe. All of the music in the score is inspired by water, with Third Coast performing an entire ocean of sounds ranging from pitched desk bells to skittering wood blocks, ceramic tiles, bowls of water, and one particularly special instrument: the mbira.
“In our day and age it’s important that classical music is not seen as an aged art form that is reserved for people who occupy a certain stereotype: white, affluent, elderly,” said SMCO Music Director Geoffrey Larson. “Gabriela Lena Frank’s music makes a compelling statement that this genre belongs to all people and cultures, and is alive with great variety and diversity.”