Brooklyn Raga Massive: Terry Riley In C
Author: Daniel Spicer
View record and artist detailsRecord and Artist Details
Musicians: |
Andrew Schantz (v) |
Label: |
Northern Spy |
Magazine Review Date: |
Dec/Jan/2017/2018 |
Catalogue Number: |
NS094 |
RecordDate: |
11 January 2017 |
Terry Riley’s landmark of minimalist composition, In C, has been tackled in a number of different ways since its initial unveiling in 1964 – from numerous orchestral settings to the scorched psychedelic madness of Japanese out-rock collective Acid Mothers Temple. Now, from Brooklyn, comes an interpretation that nods to Riley’s own later devotion to Hindustani singer Pandit Pran Nath and North Indian classical music. A brief, languidly uncoiling alap – or introductory improvisation – is followed by just over an hour of Riley’s overlapping melodic cells performed largely on traditional Indian instruments. The piece is rendered fairly faithfully, revealing the genius of Riley’s original conception: even in this entirely novel sound world, the eternally spooling, trance-inducing simplicity of In C is utterly unmistakeable. That said, there are moments throughout when the ensemble loosens just enough to let an individual instrumental personality through, as when a soaring bansuri flute emerges, imparting a mystical tinge, or a violin solo arises from the relentless cycles, conjuring some of the otherworldliness of John McLaughlin’s classic of Indo-jazz, My Goal’s Beyond.

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