This is certainly one of the most enjoyable recent releases of Glass's music. There is something fresh about both works, though the Glass fingerprints naturally also abound. The Piano Concerto No 2 takes its cue from the exploits of Lewis and Clark, who made the first overland expedition in the US in 1804-6, and the first movement is suitably epic in its feeling (something at which Glass is very good), with much expansive, dark-hued writing. The second has a hauntingly beautiful contribution from a Native American flute, something so riveting (especially in the hands of R Carlos Nakai) that one wishes Glass would write an entire work for the instrument. Only in the third movement does there seem to be too much archetypal Glassian triumphalism; but even here, when the 'slipped' variation technique of the second section begins, one's attention is held very firmly by the strangeness of the result. Paul Barnes is a shining soloist.
The harpsichord offers different challenges, but Glass seems to relish those, too; this concerto, with its more transparent orchestration, occasionally exotically Eastern flourishes, baroquisms and frequently unexpected harmonic moves, works an almost alchemical magic with the composer's familiar simple arpeggiated material. The third movement blasts off like a rocket. Soloist Jillon Stoppels Dupree notes that she rarely steps outside the world of the Baroque but that she was 'entranced' by the work when she came to work on it. Entrancing is a pretty good description of her performance, too. Both concertos are splendidly accompanied by the Northwest Chamber Orchestra under Ralf Gothóni, and recorded sound is full without being over-resonant.