Bartok / Duo Della Luna - Mangetsu [CD]

Duo della Luna (Susan Botti, soprano/composer; Airi Yoshioka, violin) releases "Mangetsu," centered around the multi-movement title piece that Botti wrote that catalyzed the duo's formation. Botti's sensual setting of otherworldly texts is contrasted with her inventive arrangement of Bartok's famous violin duos that excavate original folk song texts. Kaija Saariaho's "Changing Light" and Linda Dusman's "Triptych of Gossips" round out this collection that explores the intimacy of the voice/violin duo through text settings that prioritize narrative shape and point to the timeless link between song and text in folkloric traditions. As solo artists, Susan and Airi have devoted their musical careers to new music. After performing together in various chamber settings, Airi commissioned Susan to write a work for just voice and violin, resulting in Botti's Mangetsu. Realizing that there was a special spark when the music was stripped down to just their two voices intertwined, they formed Duo della Luna to explore this further. The duo has performed in the US, Canada and Italy. Given the unusual vocal/instrumental combination, it was natural that their individual devotion to contemporary works would continue as a duo. Their repertoire celebrates the natural world, myth, story-telling, and folk songs... for their universal, timeless messages.