KEY POINTS:
These days the contemporary ensemble 175 East does its thing under a catchy byline, "Organised Sound from Organised Labour" - a phrase that evokes the committed camaraderie of collectives from the WPA projects of 1930s America to Cornelius Cardew's Scratch Orchestra of the 70s.
James Gardner and his 175 East musicians have the same dedication to their brand of music, making their first Auckland appearance for some time at The Basement.
Walls which once echoed to Shane Bosher's productions now looked down on clarinettist Gretchen Dunsmore, firing off the concert with Peter Maxwell Davies' The Seven Brightnesses, a brittle, virtuoso beauty with moments of fleeting voluptuousness.
Elliott Carter's Con Leggerezza Pensosa deals in complex, characterful gestures, given their best by Andrew Uren, Johnny Chang and Katherine Hebley; the "lightness of thought" that the work's title describes was reflected in the shifting relationships from player to player, and engaging volleys of pizzicato.
Anthony Gilbert's York Surprise brought up the issue of whether multiphonics can be more of a distraction that they are worth. However, the main thrust came from the interplay of long, curling lines led by Ingrid Culliford's mellifluous alto flute and moments of supine, beating dissonance.
Matthew Shlomowitz's Slow Flipping Harmony for the full quintet was all tremulous harmony and frail, feathery wails while Bryn Harrison's haunting A Tangled Garden had its lines loping ever upwards in search of elusive resolution.
Michael Finnissy's N blurred improvised and notated sounds. Four players at corners of the stage seemed to create chordal pillars on which silky melodies would inevitably be slung.
The wild frenzy of Spanish composer Gabriel Erkoreka's Rabel had the feeling of a finale to it, but its gentle Largo section revealed the sort of ensemble skills and tonal finesse that these musicians have been perfecting.
What: 175 East
Where: The Basement
Reviewer: William Dart
