A rich and complex body of artistry, the album traces Bryce’s journey as a composer and showcases the interchange between classical music and European American avant-garde works for strings.
The album features a selection of Dessner’s most significant string compositions:
Aheym: Dessner’s original decade-old composition for the Kronos Quartet is being
released for the first time in an orchestral version. A masterpiece fraught with emotions,
the piece bristles with energy and brute force that encapsulates Dessner’s musicTenebre: This piece, which has been reworked into an enrapturing orchestral work
featuring the vocals of the exceptionally talent Moses Sumney, offers listeners a
deeply spiritual and ethereal experienceLacrimae: Dessner’s first composition for string orchestra is an enlightening ode to the
musical worlds of the Renaissance Musician John Dowland and Bartók’s DivertimentoSkrik: As Dessner’s latest work, this is the premiere recording of the piece, which was
previously co-commissioned by Steve Reich and Carnegie Hall for the composer’s 80th birthday.
Bryce Dessner and Ensemble Resonanz talk about the release of “Tenebre”
Dessner and Ensemble Resonanz met for the first time in the Elbphilharmonie, where the Orchestra’s extreme, adventurous and experimental approach appealed to Dessner
'When I first heard Ensemble Resonanz perform my music, it felt right to make a recording with them. To be honest, the energy and precision of the group was somewhat shocking. It‘s like there‘s a fierceness to the sound, while retaining its depth' – Bryce Dessner
Bryce Dessner (b. 1976)
Bryce Dessner is one of the most sought-after American composers in contemporary music. He has won Grammy Awards as a classical composer and with the band The National, of which he is founding member, guitarist, arranger and co-principal song-writer. He is commissioned to write for the world’s leading ensembles, from Orchestre de Paris to the Los Angeles Philharmonic. Meanwhile he is a high-profile presence in film score composition, with credits including Alejandro González Iñárritu’s The Revenant - for which he was Grammy and Golden Globe nominated. The breadth and level of Dessner’s creative output is remarkable.
