The Ligeti Project II: Lontano / Atmosphères / Apparitions / San Francisco Polyphony / Concert Românesc - Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra / Jonathan Nott

The five extraordinary works on this disc will captivate Ligeti fans and entrance even those who don't know his music. The focus in Lontano on refined tonal colors makes it one of the most elegant pieces in the modernist canon. Atmosphères is more static, holding interest through subtle changes in color and dynamics. Apparitions was Ligeti's first success in the West after his escape from Hungary during the 1956 Soviet invasion. It's a ghostly two-movement work. The first, Lento, is creepy in a dynamically subdued way. The second, Agitato, surprises in its violence, the orchestral crashes fulfilling the fears embodied in the Lento movement.

San Francisco Polyphony, from 1974, is the most recent Ligeti composition on the disc, and it packs more into its 12-plus minutes than many full-evening works. It teems with dense orchestral figures and dynamic contrasts. Under its colorful façade, the work demonstrates how uncompromising modern music can enchant both ear and mind. It should become a concert staple as we move deeper into the 21st century. Finally, an early 1951 work, Concert Românesc, harks back to Bartók's transformations of folk material. Rich in color and vitality, its four movements are full of the dissonances of village bands and melodies rooted in Romanian folk music and in Ligeti's fertile, sympathetic imagination. The playing of the Berlin Philharmonic under conductor Jonathan Nott is outstanding, as is the engineering. --Dan Davis