Surfacing only infrequently on disc since the heyday of
minimalism
in the 1980s,
Daniel Lentz
contributed this lush, beautiful, mostly
electronic
tone poem to
Cold Blue Music
's enterprising CD-single series in 2004. Opening with a sheen of pitch-drifting
sound, the 15-minute piece soon becomes an elegy for
Marty Walker
's sometimes arpeggiated clarinet and a mixture of acoustic and
strings, simulated chimes, and other digitally-created sounds. Except for a minute-long outburst of
Lentz
's more typical motor rhythms mid-way through the piece, all is peaceful and highly
romantic
in mood and texture, with only a hint of unease in the harmonies. Though perhaps intended as
ambient
music,
's piece offers more for the attentive listener than most in this genre. ~ Richard S. Ginell