JOBY TALBOT

JOBY TALBOT
THE DYING SWAN (2002)
256 KBPS

Jody Talbot, British pop and soundtrack composer, has produced a series of intimate pieces that are quietly and profoundly emotional. I have found listening to these to be one of the most contemplatively inspiring sets of music I have ever heard. There is much to consider here. The influences from the minimalist and post-modern schools are clear, yet Talbot brings in a painful subcontext that leads one to reflection. It's a bit like looking at a zen garden and then realizing that there is an orange blossom opening up. At times there is that John Barry like feel of cinemascope that is broad, yet somehow reigned in to focus on a particular mode or scale, perhaps in the order of Gavin Bryars. When the music does this it is at its most compelling. This is the work that an ensemble like Orchestra 2001 might take up: at once modern and ageless, intelligent and spiritual, passionate and sublime. This is absolutely worth investigating.

1. '...Similarities Between Diverse Things...'
2. Blue Cell, For Saxophone Quartet
3. Minus 15000, For String Quintet, Vibraphone & Bassoon
4. String Quartet No. 1
The Dying Swan, Suite For Piano Trio
5. Part 1
6. Part 2
7. Part 3
8. 6/11/98 For Solo Piano
9. Falling, For Electric Cello
10. String Quartet No. 2