Martin Iddon — Naiads
Naiads features five examples of atmospherically taut, and often brooding-to-uneasy modern chamber works from Leeds-based composer Martin Iddon. The works featured are all played with wonderful depth, flair and moody clarity by the respected modern ensemble Apartment House.
This is a CD release, and it appears on the wholly consistent modern classic/ modern composition label Another Timbre. The disc comes presented in the labels house style minimal white gatefold- with the cover picture being of a pound, where you can just make out fish between the weed & murk. The release takes its title & theme from the word for freshwater nymphs in Greek mythology. As with all of Another Timbre titles, this can be purchased directly from the label just here.
Martin Iddon has been active since the early 2010s, and this is his third release. With the other two were 2014 Pneuma, and 2021 Sapindales which was a collaboration between him and Canadian clarinet player Heather Roche. Both of these were put out by Another Timbre.
The pieces here date from between 2012 and 2017 and have runtimes between seven and eighteen minutes a piece. We open with the lulling -yet- malevolently swarming brood of “Crinaeae” which is built around a mix of gloomily hoovering string and horn work, creepy percussion that moves between chilling knocks & music box unease, and eerie piano key flourishers. As we move on, we have the fragile tolling ‘n’ starkly fraught simmer of “Limnades” which is for piano, cello, and vibraphone.
In the album's second half, we find the flighty ‘n’ fiddling discord of “Potamides”. The piece is for paino, three string players, two wind players, and a percussionist. And it manages to nicely sit between detailed- yet reward fraught-ness, and playful unease. And the album is finished off with the wheezing, scape, and knock of “Eleionomae” which is for piano, violin, cello, bass clarinet and flute.
Naiads is a wonderful atmospheric example of modern chamber composition. Each of the five pieces have their own identities, yet as a whole the album works within both its sonic flow & overarching theme. Really another excellent release from the folks at Another Timbre, and I’ll most certainly be keeping an eye out for Mr Iddon's work in the future.