“[Lisa Moore is] the best kind of contemporary classical musician, one so fearsomely game that she inspires composers to offer her their most wildly unplayable ideas. She can play them all.”— Pitchfork Pianist

Lisa Moore completes her 3-EP series with Stainless Staining, featuring compositions by Irish composer Donnacha Dennehy. Commissioned by Lisa Moore with funds provided by the Arts Council of Ireland, the title track, Stainless Staining was written for piano and soundtrack. Donnacha Dennehy is the founder of Dublin’s renowned new music group, Crash Ensemble. He was recently appointed a Global Scholar at Princeton University and received rave reviews for his 2011 recording Grá Agus Bás.

REVIEWS:

Stainless Staining…seizes the ear…Dennehey creates sonorities at once glistening and hypnotic.

In Reservoir…[e]very moment is suffused with delicate or dramatic propulsion, reflecting the urgency of the aquatic imagery. Lisa Moore…plays both works with mesmerising command of Dennehy’s simmering soundscapes and finely graded dynamic palette.

-- Gramophone (Donald Rosenberg)

The title track is scored for piano and pre-recorded samples of piano played conventionally and inside the instrument, and its premise is the rhythmically pulsing, gradual accumulation of overtones based on a single pitch. Ultimately over 100 overtones are in play, creating densely chromatic, micro-tonal textures. Its steady beat and harmonic stasis make it reminiscent of some strains of American minimalism of the last third of the 20th century, but that doesn’t detract from its energetic immediacy. The second track, Reservoir, is scored for solo piano, and was inspired by a video by Bill Viola of a man being slowly submerged in water. It’s a lovely, evocative Impressionist/post-minimalist piece that’s suggestive of aqueous landscapes. Moore is a persuasive, poetic interpreter of Dennehy’s appealing music, and this attractive CD should be of strong interest to fans of new music, especially new music for piano.

-- Allmusic.com

One of the most compelling elements of Stainless Staining is the fantastic pairing of pianist Lisa Moore and composer Donnacha Dennehy. Moore[’s]…performance on this CD is breathtaking. Her energy, virtuosity, and exquisite musicality is perfectly suited to the Dennehy’s music. Both pieces are extremely effective and beautifully played. You cannot ask for more.

-- I Care If You Listen