BREATH

When Albert Roussel wrote his Divertissement op. 6 for wind quintet and piano, his sole intention was to entertain. This fabulously humorous piece takes its energy from lively rhythms and a brilliant, colourful instrumentation. The same applies to György Ligeti’s energetic Bagatelles for wind quintet, a piece that he developed from minimalistic experiments in sound and rhythm, and that was meant to »build new music from nothing«, as he describes it. The British actress, violinist, pianist, singer and composer Madeleine Dring wrote a charming and spirited trio: an imaginary scene for three instruments with lively dialogues, nostalgic flashbacks and a spectacular outro of latin dance rhythms. A similarly sweeping Tarantella concludes Ludwig Thuille’s Sextet op. 6 in which Baroque dance music receives a neoclassical makeover.