Gorgeousness and Gorgeosity
Lindberg's Clarinet Concerto (to be performed by the New York Philharmonic in the 2009-2010 season) is a luscious, lyrical marvel, simultaneously utterly contemporary and utterly approachable. Sure, being of the moment, Lindberg presses the clarinet to the technical limits of what it can do: there are passages in which it screeches and squeals or sounds like an asthmatic goat swallowing a vacuum cleaner, but those really are only fleeting moments out of the larger whole. Mostly, there is nothing more "revolutionary" here than is to be found in Debussy -- and if that's still The Revolution,let us have more of it! Ol' Claude may be the best touchstone for this work: if you are partial to Debussy at his brawniest and least fey, this Concerto is absolutely for you. Clarinetist Kari Kriikku, not incidentally, is a stone marvel, not to be missed. He shows to excellent advantage in the accompanying ensemble pieces, but absolutely Owns the Concerto.
