Of all the single‑composer CDs on my shelf, hardchamber is easily the most eclectic collection of pieces. All works are by Thomas Reiner, a man with an impressive range of interests, and with publications in techno music, dance parties, DJ culture, and a book entitled Semiotics of Musical Time.

The disc opens with Highett Pointillism, version 2 one of the CD’s more demanding works to listen to. An abstract atonal work for flute, bass clarinet and piano (one of the more common high‑modernist instrumental combinations) it is a lively and rhythmically complex work.

The composer has stated his wish that the CD be a ‘sensuous encounter with sound’ and with the second track, Fleeting, for solo soprano clarinet, this is easily accomplished. This is an lithe and expressive piece which makes good use of the Eb instrument. The sound quality is exceptional, and I found myself turning up the volume to hear the fine details of the instrument’s timbres.

The following piece, duet/trio for drums, bass and CD, was entirely unexpected in its thorough engagement with popular electronic music forms. Perhaps then it was just as well that the volume was already high, for this surely is the best was to appreciate this composition! Whilst my tastes find the lack of rhythmic complexity relative to other works on the disc uninteresting and too simplistically repetitive with not enough variation, it is the harsh juxtaposition of styles that this track creates which demand to be contemplated. What position within the new music and electronic communities does this composer occupy that he has such facility in two fields which are frequently cited as contradictory? And, more immediately, where does that place me, the auditor?

To drive home the point Oblique, for solo flute, immediately follows. This is one of the CD’s most interesting pieces. Formally it contrasts two single‑breath phrases each of which repeats the essential contour of the previous phrase. Yet there is always enough change to maintain interest. The level of craft necessary for this balance to be maintained is impressive, more noticeable what one would expect from a composer in a modernist tradition. One is more used to thinking about the overt manufacturing of the electronic sound‑world of duet/trio, but why think of a non‑electronic work differently?

Listening to this music is a sensuous experience, but there are also contradictory elements that constantly question and provoke. For example, the pristine and immediate sound quality is present for all but Septet, the recording of which captures much of the room’s acoustic, giving it an unfocused, distanced feel. These kinds of techniques of distanciation are found throughout the CD, and create a critical space between the music and the listener.

The reason that this disc works is that the composer is so thoughtful. Perhaps sometimes too obviously so. But, nevertheless, listening to it is a rewarding experience, and one that demands to be repeated again and again.

© 2005 Michael Hooper