Colin Piper
Colin Piper's percussion colours chamber and orchestral scores with bite and space: Westlake's bright rhythmic drive, Lentz's star-cluster hush on cymbals, prepared-piano grit beside Synergy, and a conductor's hand when a full orchestra needs shaping.
On Westlake chamber works he locks percussion to bass clarinet and mixed forces in dancing, elated patterns that stay fresh and listener-friendly. With Synergy and Dave Samuels he supplies prepared piano across Australian scores by Edwards and Sculthorpe, Cage's First Construction, and Samuels's own reconstructions. As percussionist on Georges Lentz's Caeli enarrant IV he sets four cymbals against string quartet, tracing galaxies and nebulae in long suspended gestures; the companion prepared-piano piece asks the same patience with resonance and silence. He also leads the Sydney Symphony through Sandra France's Heritage Overture, its driving ostinati, dramatic percussion and folk-tune colour needing clean orchestral edge.
Performing as Synergy Percussion
Marimbas lock and skins crackle as Synergy Percussion drives Edwards's Dragonfly Dance, Westlake's Kalabash and Malachite Glass, and Pratt's hocketing Fantasy. Australian percussion writing at full tilt.
Synergy With Samuels
This CD grew from a concert collaboration between Australia’s best-known percussion quartet and America’s finest vibraphonist, Dave Samuels. Together they cook up a storm.
Colin Piper also appears on
Sandra France: Fluctuating States of Calm
Chamber music by Sandra France, performed by musicians largely based in Canberra. Sandy lived and worked there with a distinctive lyrical voice; this disc offers a clear introduction to writing that deserves a wider hearing.
Pratt's Alchemy
Percussion compositions by Daryl Pratt, one of Australia’s finest vibraphonists in classical and jazz settings, and a sought-after general percussionist.
Onomatopoeia
Long-awaited performances of Nigel Westlake’s most acclaimed chamber works, with outstanding Australian players. One of Tall Poppies’ most successful releases.
"Caeli enarrant..." IV & V
Georges Lentz, then a violinist in the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, had already won the Paul Lowin Award for Orchestral Composition for another work in this series. His music draws on astronomy and carries a vast sense of space.
