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Thematic series

  • CD/Digital releasesFree musicThematic series

    Berglind Tómasdóttir – Icelandic Flute Music

    by 5:4 January 28, 2021 • 05:00
    January 28, 2021 • 05:00

    For the last two years, in the final week of January i’ve been heading off to Iceland for the annual Dark Music Days festival. Like pretty much all festivals at the moment, DMD has been postponed for a few months, but as a small consolation i’m going to conclude this …

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  • CD/Digital releasesFree musicThematic series

    Sandra Boss – Luft

    by 5:4 January 25, 2021 • 05:00
    January 25, 2021 • 05:00

    As i’m sure i’ve lamented previously, the organ is a bit of a neglected instrument in the world of new music. No doubt that’s due in part to its historical associations and also the site-specific nature of so many of them, but all the same, considering the range, power and …

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  • CD/Digital releasesFree musicThematic series

    Christina Vantzou – Nº2 Remixes

    by 5:4 January 21, 2021 • 05:00
    January 21, 2021 • 05:00

    There have been numerous occasions when i’ve previously written about and celebrated the art of the remix. Remixes were an integral part of my developing musical taste and understanding at the start of, and throughout, my teens: i got into the habit of buying both the 7-inch and 12-inch versions …

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  • CD/Digital releasesFree musicThematic series

    Nikita Golyshev – 15 Songs from Glass, Oil and Other Sources

    by 5:4 January 18, 2021 • 11:18
    January 18, 2021 • 11:18

    NB. At the time when this article was published i only had access to the lossy version of this album; this situation has now changed – click here for an update. [February 2022] We tend to assume nowadays that, once something is put online, it’ll never disappear. But in the …

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  • CD/Digital releasesFree musicThematic series

    Brothomstates – ReKobn-Tich-Ey

    by 5:4 January 13, 2021 • 10:06
    January 13, 2021 • 10:06

    Three years ago, i featured in my ‘Free internet music’ series a new release from Finnish musician Lassi Nikko, aka Brothomstates, who had surprised everyone at the end of 2017 by suddenly putting out a new 13-minute track after over a decade and a half of silence. In the final …

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  • CD/Digital releasesFree musicThematic series

    Chelsea Wolfe – Folkadelphia Session 5/31/2014

    by 5:4 January 11, 2021 • 10:40
    January 11, 2021 • 10:40

    Among my favourite singer-songwriters is Chelsea Wolfe. To spend time with her albums – the last two of which featured in my Best Albums of the Year lists: Birth of Violence in 2019 and Hiss Spun in 2017 – is to become immersed in uniquely spine-tingling worlds of dark lyricism, …

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  • CD/Digital releasesFree musicThematic series

    Nhung Nguyen – Oblivion

    by 5:4 January 8, 2021 • 05:00
    January 8, 2021 • 05:00

    Last July, i included in my Isolation Mixtape N an excerpt from Oblivion, a 12-minute work by Vietnamese sound artist Nhung Nguyen. In its entirety it’s an impressive and strikingly beautiful piece, one that sets up an interesting relationship between its various elements. Or is it a relationship at all? …

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  • CD/Digital releasesFree musicThematic series

    Andrew Leslie Hooker – Trinity; Florida

    by 5:4 January 6, 2021 • 12:11
    January 6, 2021 • 12:11

    As has been the custom on 5:4 in recent years, i’m starting 2021 with the financial aftermath of the holiday season in mind, exploring some of the more interesting music freely available online. It’s important to stress that, just because it’s available free, doesn’t mean you can’t choose to pay an …

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  • FestiveThematic series

    Lauri Jõeleht – Cantus angelorum

    by 5:4 December 25, 2019 • 05:00
    December 25, 2019 • 05:00

    Happy Holidays to you all! To conclude my week-long sojourn into the start of winter, i’m returning to the Estonian trio Una Corda – comprising harp, harpsichord and kannel – for a performance of a piece that i think is perfect for the festive season and especially Christmas Day itself: …

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  • Thematic series

    Éliane Radigue – Occam XVII

    by 5:4 December 24, 2019 • 05:00
    December 24, 2019 • 05:00

    For the penultimate work in my week-long journey into winter, i’m again turning away from festive music to a piece that continues my preoccupation with the season’s prevailing darkness. Not that the work in question, Éliane Radigue‘s Occam XVII for double bass, has darkness as its theme; her Occam series …

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  • FestivePremièresThematic series

    Karen Tanaka – Sleep Deeply

    by 5:4 December 23, 2019 • 05:00
    December 23, 2019 • 05:00

    While i can take or leave most Christmas music, i have a real soft spot for lullaby works setting texts that either allude to or directly address the sleeping infant Jesus. It’s a nice counterpoint to the shouty-shouty zeal that permeates a great deal of festive musical fare, but more …

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  • PremièresThematic series

    Maria Kõrvits – Darkness and Deeper Dark (World Première)

    by 5:4 December 22, 2019 • 05:00
    December 22, 2019 • 05:00

    This morning (at 4:19am to be precise) saw the winter solstice, making this the northern hemisphere’s shortest day and the start of not only the season of winter but also a host of traditional festive periods. Being the day when we’re dominated most by night, it’s an ideal moment to …

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  • FestiveThematic series

    Howard Skempton – The Wells Service

    by 5:4 December 21, 2019 • 05:00
    December 21, 2019 • 05:00

    The pair of canticles used in a traditional Anglican choral evensong service effectively straddle the Christmas story, the Magnificat pointing towards it, the Nunc dimittis referring back to it. Their use in this service means that there must be literally thousands of settings of them, though, no doubt fuelled by …

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  • PremièresThematic series

    Age Veeroos – Külmking (World Première)

    by 5:4 December 20, 2019 • 05:00
    December 20, 2019 • 05:00

    It’s nice, sometimes, when a composition isn’t concerned with layers of complexity and subtext, but instead focuses on a single idea. So as the days grow increasingly cold (here in the UK, at least), it seems an ideal time to explore one of Age Veeroos‘ latest works, the title of …

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  • FestivePremièresThematic series

    Tõnis Kaumann – Ave maris stella (World Première)

    by 5:4 December 19, 2019 • 05:00
    December 19, 2019 • 05:00

    During my week-long journey into winter, i’ll be veering back and forth between sacred and secular music. When i first heard Tõnis Kaumann‘s setting of the Marian hymn Ave maris stella at the World Music Days earlier this year, i have to admit it didn’t make a huge impression on …

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  • CD/Digital releasesFestiveThematic series

    London Choral Sinfonia – O Holy Night

    by 5:4 December 18, 2019 • 05:00
    December 18, 2019 • 05:00

    The solstice and the season of winter are fast approaching, so over the next week as we transition through i’m going to explore music that taps into some of the aspects of this remarkable time of year. By that i don’t just mean ‘Christmas music’ – which, let’s face it, …

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  • CD/Digital releasesFree musicThematic series

    Wixel – 2009 Project

    by 5:4 January 26, 2019 • 06:00
    January 26, 2019 • 06:00

    Wim Maesschalk, better known as Wixel, is a Belgian musician who originally set up the label Slaapwel Records, the aim of which, as that name implies, is to provide “music to fall asleep to”. In a way that tells you all you need to know about Wixel, though his music is capable …

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  • CD/Digital releasesFree musicThematic series

    Zbigniew Karkowski – Live in Lyon; UEXKULL

    by 5:4 January 24, 2019 • 06:00
    January 24, 2019 • 06:00

    One of my absolute favourites at the most extreme end of pretty much all musical continua is Polish composer Zbigniew Karkowski. Karkowski died just over five years ago, and digesting his legacy is something i’ve been attempting to do since his passing. While there are plenty of available recordings of his …

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  • CD/Digital releasesFree musicThematic series

    The Missing Ensemble – Hidden Doors; Zeropolis

    by 5:4 January 21, 2019 • 16:23
    January 21, 2019 • 16:23

    The Missing Ensemble was a US trio comprising Daniel De Los Santos, John Sellekaers and Mathias Delplanque, who together released two albums around 13 years ago. i forget where the recommendation to listen to their music came from all those years ago, but i do remember that one of the things …

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  • CD/Digital releasesFree musicThematic series

    Access to Arasaka

    by 5:4 January 17, 2019 • 14:44
    January 17, 2019 • 14:44

    NB. At the time when this article was published the Access to Arasaka back catalogue was only available in low-resolution lossy files; this situation has now changed – click here for an update. [June 2021] Apologies for the silence on 5:4 for the last couple of weeks, but i’ve been …

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5:4
  • About
    • Other writings
  • Patrons
  • The Lists
    • Listening History
    • Complete List of Ratings
    • Compositions explored on 5:4
    • Albums and EPs reviewed on 5:4
    • Festivals reviewed on 5:4
    • Best Albums of the Years
    • The Proms premières – Poll results
  • The Dialogues
  • Mixtapes
    • Mixtapes
    • The Isolation Mixtapes
    • Mystery Mixtapes
    • Podcasts
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