Sam Lazaro Bros (1984)

Jürg Frey (b. 1953) — Sam Lazaro Bros (1984) for organ

“Sam Lazaro Bros” (1984) is Frey’s earliest published composition. Unlike many of his later works, there is no silence, but rather an unbroken chain of largely non-functional triadic harmonies that progress very gradually. The sonic result almost evokes some very extended, transmogrified Renaissance motet. (Many of Frey's works of this period were untitled. The title of this piece is simply name of the brand of music notebook—from a particular music dealer—in which the piece was written.)

Swiss composer and clarinetist Jürg Frey (b. 1953) was educated at the Geneva Conservatory. He has developed his own musical style that sits at an intersection of contemporary music and sound art. His music employs wide, quiet soundscapes and is marked by an elementary non-extravagance of sound, a sensibility for the qualities of the material, and precision of compositional approach. He is a member of the Wandelweiser Group, a collective of composers and performers for whom “the evaluation and integration of silence(s) is important, rather than an ongoing carpet of never-ending sounds.” Frey’s music has been performed and recorded throughout the world and he has been a visiting composer at Universität der Künste Berlin, the Universität Dortmund, Northwestern University, and CalArts.

Published by Edition Wandelweiser