ROBERT HALL LEWIS: “Destini,” “Osservazioni II,” “Atto,”...

ROBERT HALL LEWIS: “Destini,” “Osservazioni II,” “Atto,” “Moto,” Concerto for String Orchestra, Trumpets, Keyboard and Harp. Philharmonia Orchestra conducted by Raymond Premru and Robert Hall Lewis. CRI CD 569. This recording comes hermetically sealed from an audience: 75 brain-numbing minutes of orchestral music composed with grants, recorded with grants, by a recording company that exists through grants. Lewis writes maximalist music, bristling with complex, innovative textures, which requires, at times, two conductors to keep it in line. Lewis is a master of orchestration, but his music becomes intellectually overbearing after a time, barraging the ear with huge amounts of musical information at a constant, unfriendly rate without much point. The Philharmonia, incidentally, performs splendidly under the conductor’s baton.