Harrington, David: Procession

Trying to define it's own space, Procession is a hybrid that throws a longing glance at some New Music aesthetics while seeming to reach for the intimate scale of the chamber orchestra – in this case a one-man band playing piano, 'cello, flute, clarinet, trumpet and drums. The technical challenges seem obvious enough, and Harrington deserves an appropriate level of respect just for pulling this off. It's no simple matter to score these pieces and then manage to play all the parts without the music coming off as completely rigid – rote in interpretation and execution. Thanks then for his ear, timing and – just guessing here –- a decent DAW.

As definite as Harrington is about his goal of combining classical and progressive inflections, the music remains somewhat indefinite. There seem to be stretches that point to Nino Rota and his Fellini Clarinets. There also seem to be stretches that recall the likes of The Cinematic Orchestra and Rachel's, at least in their more circumspect moments. There is nothing that intimates the stylistically heroic classical/rock cross-referencing pulled off by God Speed You Black Emperor, Explosions in the Sky, or Do Make Say Think. But while these ensembles derive from either a rock or an art music tradition that deliberately inverts and subverts typical forms and traditions, Harrington's references to the avant garde, exploratory, experimental are still timid, and not really enough to get past what proves to be some fairly familiar sounding terrain.

Procession is a fine example of immense technical skill that has, for the time being, outstripped its corresponding creative impulse. We should eagerly await what comes next.

Track Listing
1) Serenity
2) Twilight's Edge
3) Moon Over Brown Street
4) Attack of the Twelve-Tone Rows
5) Shapeshifter
6) The Fire Within
7) In Excelsis

Added: December 31st 2006
Reviewer: Kerry Leimer
Score:
Related Link: More Information
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Language: english

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