PACIFKA RONDO-FOUR PIECES FOR HARP-TWO PIECES FOR PSALTERY
Lou Harrison’s music reflects a lifelong fascination with cross‑cultural sound worlds, blending Western classical traditions with Asian and Pacific influences. Pacifika Rondo stands as one of his most vibrant orchestral statements, celebrating the cultures of the Pacific Rim through color, rhythm, and ceremonial energy. The Four Pieces for Harp and Two Pieces for Psaltery highlight Harrison’s intimate, handcrafted approach to timbre, featuring instruments built or adapted by the composer and his collaborators. PHCD 118 presents these works in vivid performances that illuminate Harrison’s unique East–West musical vision.
Oakland Youth Orchestra Pacifika Rondo
Robert Hughes, conductor
Beverly Bellows, harp Four Pieces for Harp
Two Pieces for Psaltery
William Bouton, violin Music for Violin with Various Instruments
William Colvig, sheng and fang-hsiang
It’s about time that Harrison’s uniquely beautiful oeuvre is starting to get the attention that it surely deserves. After all, where else can we find a voice in contemporary music so immediately attractive, original, and completely uninhibited? The major work here is “Pacifika Rondo”, for a typically Harrisonian combination of far eastern and western instruments, with the emphasis on the percussion section. The music mixes all sorts of styles as it travels around the Pacific rim, and even contemplates The Bomb in a twisted atonal idiom. It’s both humorous and disturbing at once. The other instrumental pieces are all attractive essays in Harrison’s contemplative vein. Performance and sonic values are quite high. In sum, a worthy addition to this composer’s growing discography. May it continue to increase.
David Hurwitz: Fanfare Magazine
