Crumb: Makrokosmos I, II & III "Music for a Summer Evening"

Featuring

Yoshiko Shimizu
Natsumi Shimizu
Rupert Struber
George Crumb

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Composer's Artistic Vision

Many of Crumb's works include programmatic, symbolic, mystical, and theatrical elements, which are reflected in his meticulously notated scores.

Compositional Technique

Makrokosmos Volumes I and II are structured with 12 pieces each, grouped into three parts of four, and each piece is associated with a sign of the zodiac.

Composition History

The Makrokosmos trilogy, consisting of Volumes I, II, and Music for a Summer Evening (Makrokosmos III), is regarded by George Crumb as a unified set of works.

Composer's Artistic Vision

Crumb's music often combines contrasting styles, drawing from Western art music, hymns, folk music, and non-Western traditions.

Composer Biography

George Crumb, born in 1929, is an American composer who won a GRAMMY® Award in 2001 and the Pulitzer Prize in Music in 1968.

Performer Biography

Pianist Yoshiko Shimizu was so captivated by George Crumb's Makrokosmos I in college that she moved to America to study with David Burge, the pianist to whom the work is dedicated.

Recording & Production

This recording of Makrokosmos III is the first to be performed by only two musicians, with Yoshiko Shimizu playing both piano parts and Rupert Struber all percussion parts, using multi-tracking.