MICHAIL TRAVLOS has been, since his earlier searches for expressiveness, interested in “recycling” some of his original music, adding new expansion elements, so as to give birth to a new musical “child” emanating from its original musical sources. His music characterizes within a modern context, both atonal, tonal and melodic. It can be lyrical, aggressive, playful or stringent. His ideas are original and engaging on many levels; furthermore his idiomatic writing for strings, chamber ensembles or symphony orchestra are very effective.
The composer brings in an incessant “coloristic” development where melodic figures struggle to have a fully lyrical moment. Some movements are mercurial shifts of mood and colour, ceaselessly restless, though sometimes playful, so that the performers inhabit those many moods – one senses the performer’s conviction and enthusiasm for this music in performing it, which is energetic, fulsome, and highly refined. In this excellent release, soloists, performers and conductor work hand-in-glove to produce an outstanding performance.
The seventh album by Michail Travlos is dedicated solely to his own chamber music (except Aventures Coloristiques written for two flutes and string orchestra), a follow-up to the award-winning albums PROGRESSIONS (ICMA nomination 2018, Gold Medal at the Global Music Awards, Academia Music Award, Clouzine International Music Award etc.), NIGHT VISIONS and TWENTY ONE CONCERT STUDIES for piano (Academia Music Awards - Music Award of Excellence 2021, Global Music Award, Clouzine International Music Awards, 2022), PATCHWORKS (Global Music Award - Outstanding Achievement, 2023) GREEK POLISH DREAMSCAPES (Clouzine International Music Awards for the Best Contemporary Classical Album, 2024, Global Music Award - Outstanding Achievement) and DISTANT MEMORIES.
Aventures Coloristiques (2024) for two flutes and string orchestra, a dedication to the ΔiavloΣ Δuo (Iwona Glinka and Ewelina Zawiślak), was composed in December 2024. It is a technically demanding piece, both for the flutists as well as the string orchestra.
It was performed and recorded by the The Lviv National Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Roman Kreslenko on February 2-3, 2025.