Canto Ostinato

“… All in all, this is mesmerizing and expressive music. The recorded sound is excellent, transparently capturing the warmth and delicacy of Holt’s musical textures.”

Artistic Quality 8       Sound Quality 9

“… In contrast to Canto Ostinato’s clear-cut key center and minimalist character, Una Musique Blanche is more ambiguous from the standpoint of tonality. The piece basically encompasses a single unison line in 16th notes brilliantly tossed back and forth among four distinct orchestral ensembles respectively made up of keyboards, percussion instruments, winds, and brass. These ensembles consistently interact with two string groups. The continuous shifts between solo and tutti passages from section to section keep you guessing and keep you interested. By contrast Centrifuga represents “maximal minimalism”, where only four tones combine and overlap in elaborately-calculated rhythmic configurations shared among four instrumental groups. Amazingly, the work never sounds static over the course of its 49-minute duration, due to the extraordinary variety of timbre and pacing that Ten Holt achieves…”