LYS

Inspired by the subtle shades and endless possibilities of light, violinist Mari Samuelsen turns to impressionistic works by women composers—many written specially for this album. Post-classical piano star Meredi describes the life-giving force of light itself in the shimmering “White Flowers Take Their Bath”, while Laura Masotto’s portrait of dawn “Sol Levante”—a showcase for Samuelsen’s soaring tone—begins its journey with a harmonic nod to Ravel’s Daphnis et Chloé before building to a dazzling climax. Clarice Jensen marries ancient and modern in her beautiful variation on a Hildegard von Bingen chant, the music gradually refracting and fragmenting like rays through a prism. With music by Anna Meredith, Caroline Shaw, Lera Auerbach and Dobrinka Tabakova, Samuelsen’s album is as much an A to Z of contemporary composing talent as it is a spellbinding kaleidoscope of musical colour.