Selected Reviews
TÁROGATÓ CONSTRUCTIONS
ICON
"Eerie, haunting, dreamlike, at times night- marish—and highly recommended." - Mark Keresman
I CARE IF YOU LISTEN 2018
Tárogató Constructions offers the fruits of Lamneck’s sustained collaborations with composers who have invented responsive sonic environments in which she may improvise. Each of these “musical worlds” showcases both Lamneck’s command of the tárogató and its composer’s command of live DSP, and there’s much to envy. Colin Holter
EVENTS DANCING
Le Monde, Paris
"C'est “Fierce Singleness” de Robert Cogan qui m'a le plus frappé: il est rare c'entendre un solo de clarinette qui soit bien plus que cela, qui chante, qui vive, qui accroche l'auditeur de cette façon.
DUO for clarinet and piano
The Clarinet Magazine, March 2018
“Lamneck has an exceedingly expressive approach to the clarinet and her color palette is limitless. She easily navigates the technical challenges in the work and never loses sight of the musical intention.”
See full article here.
WINDS OF THE HEART
Supermizzi
“..ciò che conta E l’emozione che la musica riesce a dare e c’e da dire che l’incontro e stato senz’altro foriero di buoni frutti. Il suono davvero particolare di entrambi gli strumenti riesce nell’intento di creare una dimensione assai suggestive. ..sempre evocative”
[“ ..what is important is the emotion that this music transmits and to say the least this encounter was abundantly fruitful. The very particular sound of both of these Instruments manages to create a sound dimension incredibly suggestive and always evocative”] 2011
STATO LIQUIDO
Percorsi Musicali, 2018
“…the symbiosis succeeds because the apprehensive-compulsive climate of music is well constructed.”
CIGAR SMOKE
New Music Connoisseur
“Esther Lamneck is one of the greatest clarinetists alive. That her name is not a household item is probably the result of her intense dedication to exploring the newest music of the most complex character, rather than the conventional repertoire, and her dedication to teaching new generations of students (at NYU) to play contemporary music.
The Clarinet Magazine
Her new CD on the Innova label, Cigar Smoke (Innova 673), brilliantly demonstrates her mastery of all aspects of clarinet technique in the musical context of solo clarinet and electronic/computer music. Ms. Lamneck was responsible for the creation of this music and gives amazing performances of all the works.”
TORNADO PROJECT
Clarinet Magazine, September 2016
“The performances of Lamneck and McNutt are truly world class. They each have a unique, attractive sonority with an incredibly diverse palette of tone color. Their mastery of the full gamut of extended techniques is astounding, including improvisation with these techniques.”
Computer Music Journal Vol. 40, 2016
“Elizabeth McNutt and Esther Lamneck have put together some masterful and creative performances here, which is to be expected from instrumentalists of their world-class caliber.”
See full article here.
Klang new music weekly
“I have to say I was really blown away by this CD. I've been a long-time fan of Elizabeth McNutt's playing and have also followed the music of Pinkston, May and Lyon on various other recordings. Being a composer of electroacoustic myself I was very excited for this to be my first review from Parma, and I strongly recommend that anyone who is even mildly interested in experimental electroacoustic music should run, don't walk, and get a copy. The CD is just under an hour of some of the most engaging interactive electroacoustic chamber music I've heard, and the performances by McNutt and Lamneck are nothing short of spectacular. The two perform together effortlessly with exemplary interaction whether the music is fully notated or highly improvised.”
See full article here.
COMPOSER IN THE COMPUTER AGE
Fanfare Magazine
"Le Tracce Di Kronos " James Dashow "...Dashow's Traces of Kronos, achieves its peculiar magic in allowing us to relish the aptness of Esther Lamneck's superb clarinet in its jeweler's computer generated setting..."
Computer Music Journal
“truly virtuosic playing” “Music for Clarinet and ISPW” Cort Lippe
Computer Music Journal
Lawrence Fritts’ Musicometry II
“A virtuosic piece in every sense, “To, from, and for Esther Lamneck,” for clarinet, live and pre-recorded/processed [sounds], presents Ms. Lamneck at her best: the consummate improviser, fast and furiously filling every electric moment with hundreds of notes. What a performer!”
The New York Times
“Douglas Dunn’s Cocca Mocca started well on Friday night…..
Musical togetherness was established at the outset of the piece in a collaborative score … played by Bill Cole, Esther Lamneck, Warren Smith and a group called Gamelan Son of Lion.”
Computer Music Journal
“The program’s first piece, ¡Tárogató! for tárogató and octophonic computer music, was brilliantly performed by its commissioner, Esther Lamneck, whose compelling presence and flawless performance captivated the audience, setting the stage for the rest of the concert. ” Volume 36, Number 1, Spring 2012
The Washington Post
“The clarinet can do almost anything in the hands of an expert like Esther Lamneck. Her recital.. paired the versatility of her instrument with performance as unrestrained in imagination as it was astounding in technique”…vvvvv
PHENOMENON OF THREES
The Clarinet magazine
“This compact disc is a significant contribution to the world of clarinet music. The performances of all three members of this ensemble are impressive and highly artistic, and it is hoped that they will continue to expand the repertoire of this neglected ensemble”. 2010
Sequenza 21
“The performances on this disc are first rate. The ensemble has a wonderful sense of blend and a smooth rich sound overall. The cohesiveness in their playing makes every piece shine, shimmer and sparkle regardless of compositional language. I can’t wait to hear more from them.” 2009
GENOA SOUND CARDS
kathodik.it
“ci sarà un motivo se l’attenzione che Genoa Sound Cards ha ricevuto E stata cospicua, seminando buoni frutti- se lo meritano senz’altro”
[“there is a reason if the attention that Genoa Sound Cards has received is conspicuous, sowing good fruits- certainly they deserve it”] 2008
Il Manifesto
“Echi, crudezze di suono e improvvise dolcezze danzanti, saette serpentine e sapori meditati: dove l'ambiente, attorno, reagisce con grazia o con ferocia. Si resta estasiati, alla fne, come a esser stati portati in giro da una coppia di sciamani della musica. Accluso un videoclip di Roberto Merani.”
[Echoes, rawness of sound and sudden dancing sweetness, coils of lightning and pondered favors: where the surrounding environment, reacts with grace or with ferocity. One remains ecstatic, at the end,
as if having been carried about by a couple of musical magicians. Included is a video clip by Roberto Merano] 2007
Cadence
“Lamneck and Lugo are fine musicians and they are great at listening and responding to one another, so their music is tonal and very melodic. But what makes Genoa Sound Card's special is the way the duo uses and responds to the shifting aural environments around them. Worth searching out.” 2008
M.etropolis
Genoa Sound Cards. “Sounds are like dancing souls in these deeply experienced promenades through Genoa places and rows and docks and voices… ”
"Breath of Water" Mara Helmuth and Esther Lamneck
OPEN SPACE MAGAZINE: THINGS THAT MATTER. (8/12/21)
The NYCEMF never fails to deliver many of the newest and most innovative creations in electroacoustic music to its audiences, but occasionally the listener encounters a piece that is so stunning and immediate in its effect that it merits special distinction. Such a piece is "Breath of Water," co-composed by Mara Helmuth and Esther Lamneck, a fixed media work for electronically generated sound, composed by Mara Helmuth, and clarinet, performed and co-composed by Esther Lamneck. From the very first sound the listener's attention is riveted by the complex, bubbling, highly active sounds produced by a perfect integration of the electronics with the clarinet.…. Sylvia Pengilly
Open Space Magazine; THINGS THAT MATTER https://the-open-space.org/issue-21/
INTENTIONS
“tirando fuori dai loro strumenti un feeling insolito per questo tipo di incisioni, al di la delle tecniche usate: respirazione circolare, corde della chitarra graffate o percosse, tutti procedimenti ormai che hanno fanno parte di un vero e proprio linguaggio, usato per esprimere dei sentimenti, per un dialogo fra le voci quasi umane del clarinetto e del tárogató e la chitarra, che ansima e cigola per stare al passo, per mostrare la propria anima oltre i rumori elettrici. Un procedimento creativo che funziona, in cui le possibilità degli strumenti raggiungono nuovi confini aprendo strade nuove per musicisti ed ascoltatori.”
[“ pulling from their instruments a feeling quite unusual for this type of recording; besides the extended technics utilized: circular breathing, scratched or percussive chords on the guitar, everything proceeds as if part of a real and proper language, used to express ones feelings, for a dialogue between the almost human voice of the clarinet and the tárogató and the guitar, that pants and creaks to keep up with the pace, to reveal ones own spirit beyond the electronic noises. A creative unfolding that functions, in which the possibilities of the instruments reach new borders opening new roads for musicians and listeners alike”] 2008
Gerlando Gatto
“Nonostante la non facilita dell’ascolto, si percepisce un’interazione tra i due assolutamente perfetta che sfocia in una creatività che mai conosce momenti di stanca, all’insegna di una forza improvvisava scaturente da una profonda conoscenza della materia trattata.”
[“not withstanding the complexity of the music, one perceives an absolutely perfect interaction between the two, which flows into tireless creativity, the unexpected force which arises from a profound understanding of the material performed”] 2008
Il Tirreno
“In trenta brevi frammenti, i suoni, affidati all’ispirazione dei due musicisti, dialogano magnificamente, creando momenti di particolare suggestione. Lontano dai cliche e influenzata dal semplice fluire della vita dei protagonisti, la musica di Intentions regala, ma solo a chi e capace di intenderle, intense emozioni.”
[in thirty brief fragments, the sounds created from the inspiration of the two musicians, dialogue magnificently, creating moments of unusual enchantment. Far from the cliche and influenced simply by the flow of the life of the performers, the music of Intensions is a gift, to him who is able to understand it, of intense emotions.] 2008
M.etropolis
Intentions “The release of their Amirani cd “Intentions” proves that they are not only two wonderful musicians, but they even belong to a generation of creative artists, that open doors for new fresh ways of Improvisation. ” John Rottiers, Antwerp, Belgium. See the full article here.