Lenguas de Fuego is an Arts Council funded commission.
Though Kevin Volans has said he chose the title for its rhythm, we might also want to note its meaning, as ‘tongues of fire’, with reference to the dramatic moment recorded in the Acts of the Apostles, when the twelve were gathered in the same room and suddenly had such emanations hovering on their heads. Strangeness, similarity and, indeed, hovering are written into the music, which proceeds in two broad arcs.
The first, hesitant, has spikes and repetitions, which it alternates and combines. Repeating patterns emerge to dance, but soon subside into the expectancy. The opening is revisited, but goes another way. Moments of rotating continuity and of quietly radiating stillness are later discovered, but any kind of definition is sooner or later drawn back into possibility.
Around the sixteen-minute mark, the music thins to a thread, until a gentle rocking from the cello sets it in motion again, now much more decisively. The spikes are still there, even the same spikes, and so are the points of radiant stillness, but contained within, and contributing to, an ongoing dance – one whose up-down figures might indeed be heard as tongues of fire. There is a spacier middle section, and then the dance picks up again to reach a higher temperature before winding down. (Paul Griffiths, 2021)
Chords with spacious resonance are dwelt upon, with every material given its chance to pass the listener by in an easy-going procession. There is no formal necessity; they seem to cohabit quite peaceably. When describing Feldman in 2006, Volans argued that a climate of macho competition prevailed among minimal composers, stating that ‘I suppose what I’m also trying to point to is the idea of overcoming tes- tosterone. You don’t have to prove anything.’4 This sense of enjoyment and ease comes across in this music. It is this that can add to the free- dom and joy of Volans’ work, though less amic- able interactions might be required for listeners requiring a greater sense of urgency.
Neil T. Smith Tempo
Volume 76 - Issue 299 - January 2022
credits
released June 2, 2021
Mia Cooper, Violin; Anna Cashell, Violin; Joachim Roewer, Viola; William Butt, Cello; Silvija Scerbaviciute, Flute; Brian Dungan, Percussion; Andrew Synnott, Conductor.
Recorded in Windmill Lane Studios Dublin March 2021
Recording Engineer: Debbie Smith
Producer : Simon Kiln
Executive Producer: Eamonn Quinn
Artwork : Edel Rodriguez
I would say the Louth CMS is particularly significant because of the dedication, love and devotion that drives Eamonn Quinn
to seek out special musicians to bring to his corner of the world. These choices are made on musical worth regardless of their commercial potential. It is these kind of risks that keep music alive. Composer – Terry Riley...more
supported by 13 fans who also own “Lenguas de Fuego”
Another part of this project's extensive dedication to the works of the truly great Julius Eastman, whose legend and status as one of America's major composers grows expidentially with the passing of each and every year. Gavin Hellyer
Argentine composer and guitarist Francisco del Pino achieves a stunning art-song hybrid on the first album to be released under his own name. Bandcamp Album of the Day May 19, 2021
supported by 13 fans who also own “Lenguas de Fuego”
I saw them perform for free in Bryant Park in NYC; I had no idea who they were; boy was I pleased. By the way, Attacca is a musical term that means to literally attack a note. dlummox