Prism Quartet - Animal, Vegetable, Mineral (2019) [Hi-Res]

The PRISM Quartet’s ambitious program of commissioning and championing new works for saxophone has produced some wonderful, unexpected connections between pieces and composers. The opening work on this album, Emma O’Halloran’s “Night Music,” and the closing piece, “Cha” by Julia Wolfe, come from composers of different generations and different countries. But both, in their own ways, were inspired by the rhythms of Latin music. O’Halloran’s piece and Kristin Kuster’s “Red Pine” are both examples of tone painting; Wolfe’s “Cha” and Anna Weesner’s “Vamp” both have family stories behind them. And Steven Mackey’s piece, which gives this collection its title, connects the entire project with music that, in the composer's words, are "about the sound of 'stuff' - flesh, wood and metal, Animal, Vegetable, Mineral."

PRISM Quartet:
Timothy McAllister, soprano saxophone
Zachary Shemon, alto saxophone
Matthew Levy, tenor saxophone
Taimur Sullivan, baritone saxophone