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Music Reviews : American Chamber Music in Santa Monica

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On Saturday’s program at the Santa Monica Museum of Art, the New CalArts Twentieth Century Players again made an earnest case for a half-dozen dubious “masterworks.”

Yet this second program in the series offered a chance to sample some little-known but worthy examples of American chamber music. One found much to enjoy in Paul Bowles’ sometimes busy, often jazzy Concerto for Two Pianos, Winds and Percussion (1947). The “Galop” literally exploded with rollicking good humor, and the seven performers (pianists Bryan Pezzone and Gaylord Mowrey, oboist Allan Vogel, clarinetist William Powell, trumpeter Craig Simmons and percussionists Matt Bornong and Adam Levenson) obviously shared in the fun.

In his Suite for Soprano and Flute (1937) and “Hast Never Come to Thee an Hour” (1989), both handsomely delivered by soprano Susan Judy and flutist Rachel Rudich, composer Otto Luening speaks directly and concisely, effectively integrating an intriguing admixture of styles.

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Surprisingly, the same composer’s “Potawatomi Legends” for chamber orchestra (1980) exhibited neither the succinctness nor the originality of the flute-and-soprano works. Some attractive moments notwithstanding, the eight-movement ramble is a rather ingenuous pastiche of Coplandisms, Stravinskyisms and elements of Native American music. The ensemble, conducted by Paul Vorwerk, gave its admirable best effort.

Two forgettable works completed the program: Marion Bauer’s Sonata for clarinet and piano and Henry Cowell’s “Toccanta” for soprano, flute, cello and piano.

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