Anna Clyne: SHORTHAND

For contemporary composers, getting their music recorded and released into the public arena can be prohibitively difficult. Anna Clyne, however, is the exception who proves the rule. SHORTHAND, her new release for Sony Classical, is the fourth all-Clyne album to be released, and is boosted by the all-star soloist line-up appearing on it. Cellist Yo-Yo Ma, mandolinist Avi Avital and violinists Pekka Kuusisto and Colin Jacobsen all have solo spots, working alongside cutting-edge New York orchestra The Knights under the baton of Eric Jacobsen. It speaks volumes of Clyne’s reputation as a composer that the cream of today’s instrumental crop are keen to play her music. “It’s such a joy and honour to work with these extraordinary soloists,” she tells Apple Music Classical. All four pieces on the album, including the elegaic and dramatic title track Shorthand, are scored for strings, a medium close to Clyne’s heart. “I love writing for strings—the cello is my main instrument, so it’s something that I’m very comfortable doing,” she explains. Knowing in advance which soloist will premiere a particular piece is another major factor in how Clyne sets about writing it. “I’m a very collaborative composer, and I can’t help but be informed by the person I’m writing for. It’s a part of the process I really love,” she reveals. “When I was writing Three Sisters for Avi Avital, he showed me some of the techniques that are idiosyncratic to the mandolin. Once I had written it, I sent it to him and received feedback.” The symbiosis between Clyne and Avital is clearly audible in the concluding movement of Three Sisters, where nimble dance rhythms ricochet from soloist to orchestra and back again. Pekka Kuusisto and Colin Jacobsen are the featured soloists for Prince of Clouds, a piece dating from 2012. “I love folk music, and when I was writing Prince of Clouds I put in a lot of double-stops and syncopated rhythms,” says Clyne. “And while Pekka and Colin are extraordinary virtuoso cla