Secret Memories - Kurtag, Scelsi, Lera Auerbach etc.

Dan Styffe is lead double-bass with the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra and considered to be one of foremost players of the instrument amongst his generation. His new release for Simax contains solo material by Kurtág, Scelsi, Lera Auerbach, Teppo Hauta-Aho, and Bernard Salles, duos for violin and double bass by Per Norgard and Olav Anton Thommessen, and the world premiere recording of Rolf Martinsson's Concerto No. 1, in which the Oslo Philharmonic is conducted by Jukka-Pekka Saraste. Violinist Peter Herresthal also contributes to a remarkable disc.

The music of internationally renowned Swedish composer Rolf Martinsson is characterised by a powerful stylistic awareness and exceptional musical craftsmanship. Recently the Clarinet Concerto that he wrote for Martin Fröst has received great praise. In his Concerto for double-bass he not only wrote specifically for Dan Styffe, but also for the Gaspar de Salo instrument from around 1580 which he plays.

Dan Styffe is also joined by highly rated violinist Peter Herresthal on two works for violin and double-bass, Olav Anton Thommessen's Lyrical Duet, and Per Nørgård's melodic fragments Secret Voices, a work originally written for viola with the title "La melodia segreta", in an arrangement by the cellist Jakob Kullberg. Six of the works on this release are for solo double-bass. Lera Auerbah's beautiful Memory of a Tango, Giacinto Scelsi's meditative Mantram and Kurtág's poetic Message are outstanding examples of this. The pieces by Teppo Hauta-aho and Bernard Salles also display the more virtuoso aspects of modern double-bass playing.

Personnel: Dan Styffe (double bass), Peter Herresthal (violin), Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra, Jukka-Pekka Saraste (conductor)