The life and work of Swiss composer Anders Eliasson (Borlänge, 1947), the rightful heir to Allan Pettersson, has traced a long and winding course since his days as a child trumpeter leading his own jazz band. In Stockholm (1966-1972), he was studying harmony and counterpoint with his mentor Valdemar Söderholm and composition with Ingvar Lindholm and György Ligeti when he produced the first of his catalogued works – ‘In medias‘, for solo violin – dated 1970. From this point on, his compositions, including symphonies and chamber works such as those chosen for this recording, along with numerous pieces for solo instrument and orchestra, like his ‘Disegno‘ per trombone, a fixture in the programs of Christian Lindberg, have been directed by illustrious conductors like Herbert Blomstedt, who premiered ‘Canto del Vagabondo‘ in 1980.

‘Desert Point‘, the 1981 work which opens this record and was premiered one year later in Växjö, is the starting point for a journey through different densities of sound that shows us Eliasson in all his rich possibilities. A path that takes us from the taut reiterative obsession of the opening theme to the more classical approach taken in 2001’s ‘Sinfonía per Archi‘, a recurrent challenge for contemporary chamber ensembles. And in the central space, intersecting with both, the restrained intensity of ‘Ostácoli‘, composed in 1987, the year his First Symphony has its world premiere.

Performances by:
Arcos Chamber Orchestra

Conductor:
John-Edward Nelly

Contents:

CD Audio
1. Desert Point (12:42) 1. Desert Point (12:42)
2. Ostácoli (15:05)
3. Sinfonia per archi (38:05)

Total time: 66:18