The Secret Chord

Through the eighteenth century, the clavichord was a highly favored instrument for personal music making. Musicians loved it because they could play with dynamics (shades of soft to loud) and even voice chords (play each note in the chord with varying amounts of strength to "color" the chord). While the harpsichord was a louder instrument and more suitable for public performance, the strings were plucked and there was no way to play with different dynamics. The artist could change the effects to give the illusion of dynamics, but it was a psychological manipulation. With the clavichord, the force of pressure on the key directly levered the tangent into the string with that same force and that created the dynamic. Musicians treasured its subtlety and responsiveness to even the softest breath of a note.

Released shortly after the composer's 60th birthday, this album from The Zoo Duet presents works that deserve to be better known. Taking a line for a second walk is vintage Nyman, conceived originally as an orchestral work for Houston Ballet in 1966 and transcribed for two amplified pianos without any loss of its hypnotic intensity. Water Dances began life as music for Peter Greenaway's film Making A Splash and receives its premiere recording in its five-movement form on this disc. (Music Week)