***** Concertos from a modern master

RUDER Transfigurations1. A Movable Concerto2. Concerto For Harpsichord and Symphony Orchestra3  1Michala Petri (rec); 1,2Andris Veismanis (cond); 1,2Kremerata Baltica; 2Peter Navarro-Alonso (org); 3Mahan Esfahani (hpd); 3Leif Segerstam (cond); 3Aarhus SO  OUR RECORDINGS 8.226937 (59:01)

The propulsive music chugs and grooves right out of the gate. Not since Ligeti’s Continuum has a piece for harpsichord rocked quite this hard, but the last movement of Poul Ruders’ Harpsichord Concerto travels a lot more terrain than that, as does everything on Our Recordings’ new Ruders portrait disc. Each piece traverses areas combining color and strength as surely as it demonstrates the composer’s continued vitality.
We are given three recent concertos, Transfigurations (2022), A Movable Concerto (2023) and Concerto for Harpsichord and Symphony Orchestra (2019.) Just as each of these diverse offerings inhabits a disparate instrumental space, there’s no easily classifying Ruders’ work. He’s been compared to Hindemith, certainly an observation justified by his nearly though never quite tonal harmonic language, but beneath the forward motion lurks something idyllic, almost pastoral. Beyond that, at key moments, lies a saucy sense of humor, the proverbial raspberries in effect on more than one occasion. Listen to the opening movement of A Movable Concerto, which bears the subtitle Five Short Pieces for Positive Organ, to get an idea of the concentric worlds he conjures. The first several seconds slide gradually into a “major” section of repetition, bridging the gap between Stravinsky and something akin to the repetitions in Beethoven’s sixth symphony. Everything’s beautifully distilled and gelling quite nicely, even organically, until a bit of atonal Poulenc snark sweeps the board. Organist Peter Navarro-Alonso has the perfect measure of these adjacent dichotomies, and his performance is a joy from start to finish. Contrast all that with the absolutely exquisite second movement, a developing sheen of sonoric organ texture and the multihued brilliance of Kremerata Baltica. Who would imbue the Messiaenic melody emerging at 3:12 with more depth of feeling?
Kremerata Baltica also graces Transfigurations with its presence, both concertos more than ably conducted by Andris Veismanis. Subtitled A Double Portrait for Recorder Solo and String Orchestra, it conjures shades of Beethoven’s final piano sonata in the way energy flows by contrast from moment to moment and Stravinsky’s violin concerto in that a similar chord begins both movements. Michala Petri needs no introduction in these pages, and her counterpoint with the strings, not to mention the energy she brings to it, is a noteworthy feature of the second movement which also boasts some rather extraordinary affects. Is that voice Petri adds to her recorder arsenal? Ruders can say what he likes in his notes about leaving aside spiritual mumbo-jumbo when giving the piece its title, but this is some of the most moving, even transcendent, music I’ve heard from him.
Doubtless, Mahan Esfahani will also be a familiar name, even to those unsympathetic to the harpsichord, and they should give this concerto a spin. With the Aarhus Symphony conducted by the late Leif Segerstam, he’s in superb company. Post-Brahmsian alternations usher in the monodic opening, but of course, impermanence is integral to Ruders’ vision, so in comes that “rock and roll” propulsion. Segerstam’s sonic architecture is in full swing, as evidenced by the ascending chords slowly escalating from 1:44 before they drop off without ceremony. Even better are the orchestral interludes later in the movement, superbly nuanced and ably captured, especially for a live recording. The last of the three movements must be heard to be believed as orchestral blocks of sound and that rocking rhythm joust and tumble until the final swooping ascents and collapse.
Leaving aside a few production anomalies in the harpsichord concerto, this is yet another expertly produced disc, no surprise from a label whose catalogue is loaded with them. Whatever Ruders’ multifaceted relationship to music history might entail, his music is always wonderfully constructed and loads of fun. Marc Medwin, July 31th - 2026