bee sage (2024)
Duo Gross & Schouten
Katharina Gross cello & Fie Schouten clarinets
music by
Kaija Saariaho, Doina Rotaru, Rozalie Hirs, Tolga Tüzün, Dimitris Andrikopoulos
label Attacca 2024171
for journalists: please send an email to info@bassclarinet.nl
Buy physical copy of the CD:
https://attacca.nl/product/schouten-gross-bee-sage/
Borrow from Muziekweb (NL)
Stream & download via Bandcamp:
Opus Klassiek, Siebe Riedstra January 2025 (in Dutch)
Het duo Gross & Schouten levert met dit recital een schitterende prestatie, niet alleen door de verbluffende virtuositeit en het unieke repertoire. Hun onvoorwaardelijke inzet wordt gesecondeerd door het idealisme van het brein achter het eenmanslabel Attacca, Sieuwert Verster, en een werkelijk ongeëvenaarde opnamekwaliteit. Prachtige foto’s ook, en als extra vindt u op YouTube een teaser van dit intrigerende album.
With this recital, the duo Gross & Schouten deliver a brilliant performance, not only because of their stunning virtuosity and unique repertoire. Their unconditional commitment is seconded by the idealism of the brains behind the one-man label Attacca, Sieuwert Verster, and a truly unrivalled recording quality. Wonderful photos too, and as an extra, you can find a teaser of this intriguing album on YouTube.
English translation review (14.2.2025, NRC, Joep Stapel)
“Growling, squeaking, humming and singing, Gross and Schouten impress with five listening rituals for cello and bass clarinet. All but ‘Oi kuu’ by Kaija Saariaho were written for the duo. Title piece ‘Bee Sage’ by Rozalie Hirs is exemplary: it creates an original, uncompromisingly beautiful sound world, both raw and lyrical, groping and unhurried.”
1 Kaija Saariaho: Oi kuu (1990) 8:01
violoncello, bass clarinet
2 Doina Rotaru: Masks (1989/2024) 16:10
violoncello, clarinet, small percussion
3 Rozalie Hirs: Bee sage (2023) 14:02
violoncello, (contra)bass clarinet
4 Tolga Tüzün: Dyssynchrony (2023) 10:34
violoncello, bass clarinet
5 Dimitris Andrikopoulos: “When you see…” (2023) 10:58
violoncello, bass clarinet
total: 59:47
In their first duo album bee sage, Katharina Gross and Fie Schouten immerse themselves with dedication in the special aesthetics of the works composed for them. The listener gets to feel and hear a contrasting program up close.
In his work, Dimitris Andrikopoulos explores the boundaries of the audible. The work begins with a fascinating silence, which transforms into restlessness as the piece progresses and finally escalates into an explosive outburst. Doina Rotaru’s Masks also has the two musicians play small percussion instruments, which stimulates a varied, lively dialog between the musicians and their instruments. The work of Istanbul-based composer Tolga Tüzün likes to experiment with spatial concepts. In his exciting compositional style, rhythmic overlays, microtonal progressions and contrasting individual chords and tones collide. The new works by spectral composer Rozalie Hirs and the fragile sound world of Kaija Saariaho captivate with their extraordinary poetry, which can be experienced almost meditatively by the listener thanks to the extremely subtle sounds on both instruments, thus transporting them to another atmosphere/dimension.
Fie Schouten & Katharina Gross, October 2024
credits
recording, mix, master Arjan van Asselt
recorded in July 2024 at Het Witte Kerkje Simonshaven
picture cover Melanja Palitta
Idea & realization Duo Gross & Schouten, Sieuwert Verster
kindly supported by Sena Muziekproductiefonds