Contemporary composer Mark Abel’s seventh album on the Delos label, titled 4.4.2, will be released on Feb. 13.
As with some of his previous albums, it contains compositions for different instruments and different combinations of instruments, including a song cycle. In fact, there are four compositions each for two musicians, hence the title 4.4.2. Abel has compiled an impressive group to interpret his works.
The album begins with a song cycle titled As the World Turns, which, you guessed it, comes from the soap opera of the same name. Each of the four songs represents an intimate look into the life of one person and is sung gloriously by Swiss-Canadian mezzo-soprano Simone McIntosh, a 2023 Cardiff Singer of the World finalist, with sensitive accompaniment by pianist Michael McMahon. The songs are melody rich and tell a story we can all relate to. Together, the four songs — Rising High, Might Makes Right, Oh, What a Glorious Thing and Counting the Years — seem to follow a love affair — from the woman’s perspective — from the beginning when the future looks so bright to the break-up when she ends up alone again. Abel wrote the lyrics as well, which are evocatively poetic. McIntosh sings effortlessly, and together she and McMahon bring Abel’s text and music to life.
Samantha Sketches for flute/piccolo and piano is a three-movement work that takes the listener on a journey from the dreamy (in the first movement — “Best of Intentions” — played on the flute) to the playful (in the second movement — “Skyward” — played on the piccolo) to the pressing (in the third movement — “An Urgent Matter” — back to the flute). Abel was inspired to write this after hearing American flutist Alice K. Dade perform, and it is she who performs on the album along with Lithuanian pianist Ieva Jokubaviciute. Abel deftly interweaves the two instruments with moments of surprising harmonic resolution. And, once again, the performers are at the top of their game.
My favorite work on the album is the third, Symbiotica, uniquely scored for solo violin and organ. It was inspired by Frank Martin’s Sonata da Chiesa for organ and viola d’amore. Korean-American violinist Jennifer Choi takes the lead role, and the organ part is played surprisingly and extremely well by the composer himself. In this two-movement work, Abel makes the violin and organ sound like they’ve always been played together, hence the title Symbiotica. In fact, the organ’s part is more like a symphonic accompaniment, and Abel plumbs the depths of its sound palette to complement the extraordinary violin part performed exquisitely by Choi. One can hear at times Abel’s skills as a former rock producer; there are rock-like rhythms and chord changes sprinkled throughout.
The album’s finale is a two-movement work for cello and piano, titled A Door Opens and rendered by acclaimed cellist Jonah Kim and pianist Keisuke Nakagoshi. Kim is no stranger to Abel’s music, having performed it on Kim’s own album, Approaching Autumn, and with his Trio Barclay on Abel’s previous album, Spectrum, and it shows here. Kim knows what Abel is getting at, and he expresses it with sensitivity and urgency. Together, Kim and Nakagoshi play seamlessly.
A Door Opens — and indeed all the compositions on 4.4.2 — shows how comfortable Abel is writing for these instruments. The cello writing is superb, giving the player the opportunity to show the instrument’s extraordinary range,and the interplay between cello and piano is as natural as two people having a conversation.
On 4.4.2, Abel has once again shown why he is that rare contemporary composer, writing accessible music full of melodic lyricism woven into an intimate fabric of exploration. Abel’s music is eminently listenable, and one will want to play this album repeatedly, discovering new textures each time.
—Henry Schlinger, Culture Spot