Focus Wind Quintet / Robert Groslot - GROSLOT / DESIMPELAERE / SWERTS / VAN CAMP / HUYLEBROECK:Hidden Facts

Hidden Factts is a wonderful disc of Flemish music for various woodwind combinations written by the likes of Robert Groslot, Erik Desimpelaere, Piet Swerts, Bram Van Camp and Jan Huylebroeck.Robert Groslot's Hibernaculum (2015) begins almost cinematically. Theflute and the clarinet swiftly transport us to an idyllic landscape with theircompelling melodic dialogue, in which they are subsequently joined by theoboe, bassoon, and horn.The engraving on copper made in 1590 entitled Canticum Canticorum containsthe music of a motet by Andreas Pevernage from Harelbeek; this engravingforms the subject of Les cinq Motets d'Mirage (2010) by Erik Desimpelaere.Unlike the two previous works, Piet Swerts' Interaction (2015) was not inspiredby a non-musical concept. It is abstract music that researches the interactionbetween a wind quintet and a piano by means of the music itself.Bram Van Camp's fascination for audibly distinct layers of sound that developindependently of each other lies at the heart of his Hidden Facts (2004).Although there are dozens of layers concealed within this composition, theuse of only five instruments means that they can never all sound at once. Aparticular layer can remain inaudible for an indefinite period, but will thenresurface at other moments; it has never completely disappeared from sight.