Probing the Depths of the Avant-Garde

Like a couple of deep-sea divers in a musical Marianas Trench, double bassist Stefano Scodanibbio and cellist Rohan de Saram explored the lower reaches of the avant-garde in a Monday Evening Concert at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.

It was weird and wonderful down there, full of alien and lugubrious sounds, slow-moving and ornately fantastical. The pieces themselves could be gelatinous in form or crystal-clear.

Alfred Schnittke’s duet “Hymnus II” made the strongest impression with its well-ordered and concise discourse. A series of transformations raises its simple materials from earth to sky, dramatic import, as always with this composer, hanging over the entire process.

Giacinto Scelsi’s “Et Maintenant C’est a Vous de Jouer” describes a shorter journey made in microtonal increments, cellist and bassist slogging and tugging to gain a mere inch. In contrast, Scodanibbio’s own “Geografia Amorosa,” for bass alone, is a snazzy, rhythmic soft shoe. Using the bow to brush, slap and jab at his bass in various places, he turned it into a delicate, nuanced percussion instrument.

Next to it, Scodanibbio’s duet “Western Lands” seemed a complete waste of time, nothing but improvisatory noodles drawn with a dull pencil. Xenakis’ cello solo “Kottos” grinds, skids and wails, then pursues a rhythmic impulse, and shifts gears engagingly. In the duet “Yuunohui’nahui’yei,” Julio Estrada makes snippets of chaos. Procedure: Splash notes, allow to dry, repeat--and repeat.

Scodanibbio and De Saram (a member of the Arditti String Quartet) appeared unperturbed by everything thrown their way, performing with a nonchalance that belied the technical difficulties of this repertory.