Mico Nonet - The Marmalade Balloon
SKU
MN1001
Really excellent debut release by a quintet of young, mostly classically trained players on viola, cello, french horn, oboe and synthesizer. This manages to combine elements of contemporary classical and minimalism with electronic music in a very organic and natural way. It feels completely right and doesn't feel at all forced or like the parts are uncomfortably grafted together. Their blurb says "A minimalist layer of ambient analog synthesizers with cello, viola, French horn and oboe performed by members of The Philadelphia Orchestra and Berlin Philharmonic", and while I can't argue with that, it also doesn't adequately convey the quiet beauty and charm of this disc. If you can enjoy elegantly low-key music (think: Harold Budd, Terry Riley, some New Albion releases), then this will (quietly) knock your socks off!