Risto-matti Marin - Whittall: Leaves Of Grass (CD)

Release Date: 01/01/11

Opinion may be divided, even polarised, on the quality of Walt Whitman's poetry, but there will likely be little argume

Opinion may be divided, even polarised, on the quality of Walt Whitman's poetry, but there will likely be little argument over these 12 Preludes based on his best-known collection, Leaves of Grass. They're by Canadian-born, Finland-based composer Matthew Whittall, making his monographic debut with this beautifully recorded hybrid SACD. What a debut it is: Whittall's Leaves of Grass is a stunning work. One of its greatest assets is the structural and harmonic simplicity of much of the music: steeped in an easy Satiesque indolence of what are at times almost minimalist proportions, Whittall somehow fashions the material into one deeply evocative experience after another.