The centrepoint of this ‘quasi-concept’ album is Cooman’s dramatic and richly textured Fourth Symphony which like the album is titled “Liminal”. The word liminal means ‘on the edge’ or ‘on the brink of change’ and Cooman is seeing this as applying to the Earth, which even before mankind was always on the brink of massive climate change, and also to all the modern cultures with their fragile connections. The work is written for full orchestra and two harps, one of which is tuned down by a microtone, which adds an extra tension to the work.

This is a mini-album (or ‘super-EP’) at mid-price, and the Symphony is part of a triptych, including as a prelude the orchestral work ‘Shoreline Rune’ and as a postlude the organ work ‘Prism’ which is played by Erik Simmons on the organ of Martinikerk, Doesburg, in the Netherlands.

This is a superb addition to the modern symphonic repertoire by one of America’s most prolific and highly regarded composers.