Arditti 4

A series of touching photographs, probably dating from around 1930, show the young Maderna, or Brunetto as he was called then, the child prodigy violinist. As a member of the Happy Grossato Company, he played mainly dance music in the coffee houses and restaurants of Venice. He also performed solo concertos with classical orchestras, and before long had exchanged his bow for the conductor's baton. In 1927, he directed the orchestra of La Scala for the first time, aged only seven.

from the CD booklet

Tomás Marco was born in Madrid in 1942. He studied violin and composition as a boy, continuing his musical training while also undertaking a degree in law. Marco has written six operas, a ballet, nine symphonies and choral and chamber music, as well as works in other genres. He currently devotes his time exclusively to composing and writing about music. In November 2002 he received the Spanish National Prize for his body of work, and in 2003 was awarded the Madrid Regional Council’s Music Prize.

Henri Dutilleux's "Ainsi la nuit" (1976) is a modern classic, and it's easy to see why. This is a work that parodoxically combines impressionist lushness and total transparency, surface attractiveness and deep mystery. Ravel meets Bartok? The work is in seven movements, which each have their own particular concern, though there are "parenthetical" moments that interlink the entire piece. "Nocturne 1" is a mysterious static soundscape periodically fractured by outbursts………

Christopher Culver @ amazon.com