For anyone who would like a brief (54 minutes) conducted tour of some of the most exciting, colourful and skilfully made contemporary American chamber music, this CD, produced through Indiana University, would make a superb addition to any collection. Its title arises from the varied influences that its featured composers have used in the making of their pieces, and two of them are première recordings. Perry Goldstein's Motherless Child Variations for saxophone quartet make their starting point with the negro spiritual 'Sometimes I feel like a motherless child' and flow through with consummate structural and inventive artistry to a dreamlike solo ending, ten minutes of pleasure appreciating not least the expertise with which he handles the instrumental textures. The other premier is that of the well made Three Etudes for clarinet and piano by Robert Gibson. The influence here is technical brilliance as demonstrated in the impressive range of concert studies from Chopin to Ligeti. After a sinuous first and a peaceful folksy second, the third study is a jazzy tour de force for both instruments. Two of the other three pieces may be more familiar -- Petroushskates, a lovely homage to Stravinsky by Joan Tower with, in this version, an added percussion part by Allen Otte, and Michael Torke's July for saxophone quartet played (as is the Goldstein piece) superbly by the Aurelia Quartet. Lu Pei's Song of Consonance, a substantial 17' piece, is his reaction to the 9/11 tragedy in New York and is a musical account of his dreams of peace. It is a work of both energy and tenderness, and brings together East and West in its fascinating instrumentation, the p'i-p'a and erh-hu (plucked and bowed strings respectively) from China and our familiar piano trio. It is a sound world of vigour with curious echoes of Messiaen in an extraordinary context and peacefulness in which the players are required to sing too, joining an ancient Chinese melody. A captivating piece on a equally enthralling CD, the only downside being its complete lack of tracking information -- Lu Pei is divided into ten unnamed tracks, but finding that out is guesswork!

Influence provides exciting music by living composers that is fun and invigorating, but also thoughtful and reflective. New Dynamic Records has embarked on a mission that will reinvigorate our artistic landscape and remind us that music is about the new, not the old.

"The idea behind Influence, the debut release from Indiana University Southeast’s imprint New Dynamic Records, is to enunciate the outside influences weighing on composers who take creative, unique approaches to an old, old form. Ostensibly, it will also introduce the music-buying public to forms that aren’t typically bought the way you get your Ryan Adams CDs, by songwriters who aren’t Ryan Adams. The album opens with the marvelous “Motherless Child Variations,” based on the traditional spiritual, which Richie Havens performed with unnatural zeal and beauty at Woodstock back before PCs. This version never loses the recognizable line, swelling and swaying through on saxophones to an almost whimsical baritone sax backbeat. “Xiang He Ge/Song of Consonance” was composed by the internationally renowned Lu Pei, in part as a response to 9/11; more specifically, though, the piece represents his ideal for peace, a confection of the Western avant-garde and Confucianism’s ideas of natural harmony. Through jumpy, staccato string chops, the piece moves into a slow, unpretentious rumination, closing with scarcely detectable vocal undertones in the Chinese tradition. Start to finish, this album breathes and constricts, serving as both a tangible inroad for the uninitiated and a pleasant detour for more fervent classicalists." (4/12/06)

"Influence includes works by Joan Tower, Michael Torke, Perry Goldstein, Robert Gibson, and Lu Pei, that were "influenced" by an outside source. For example, Goldenstein's Motherless Child Variations was influenced by Lithuanian folksongs and Joan Tower's Petrouskates displays a light touch of Celtic sea shanties. (Okay, okay, I jest.) The recording is a splendid introduction to the work of five contemporary composers, some of them the usual suspects, but also a couple of promising fresh faces. Lu Pei's 9/11-influenced Xian He Ge/Song of Consonance reveals a distinct and intriguing musical voice that makes you want to hear more. The performances--by the Aurelia Saxophone Quartet, Eighth Blackbird Ensemble and the Amelia Piano Trio--are all first-rate and the sound quality is exceptional." 3/14/06