Born in Casablanca, of Gibraltarian, Andalusian and Sephardic-Jewish parentage, and with British nationality, Maurice Ohana grew up in Morocco before moving to Paris to study architecture, soon switching to music, studying at the Scholar Cantorum (where Satie studied) and later in Rome under Alfred Casella. His vision of modernism is no less visceral than that of Boulez and Stockhausen but, consequent to his rich background, incorporates a far wider range of influences, picking traces from the culture and history of the lands of his upbringing. This results in music both more inviting, and less predictable.
I first came across Ohana via his percussion work “4 Etudes Choreographiques” on Phillips France’s “Prospective 21′ Siecle”, that dazzling silver-sleeved vinyl series devoted to modernist electronic and avant-garde music. This survey of his music for guitar, mostly the newly created ten string, offers an even greater degree of invention, Ohana approaching the instrument with all the wonderment of a kid in a brand new, never-before-seen candy store.
“Tiento” of 1957, the only piece here written for six strings, offers a suitably challenging introduction, sparse atonal passages establishing an air of unhurried, yet confused, calm before being destroyed by fierce chord bursts. Here the reference to flamenco is fleetingly evident, but it’s quickly subsumed by other ideas. “Sie le jour parait…” (1963-4) is dedicated to Debussy’s Preludes, and Ohana clouds his chromatic figures in a similarly wispy air of impressionism, but again these act as components of much larger, more complex picture. “Cadran Lunair” of 1981-2 sharpens these already filigree details, the slower passages appear more sublime, their disruption more severe, like Takemitsu tackled by Webern. Glissandi is produced by scraping a wooden board along the strings, as are sharp pings, like from a bow and arrow, resonant percussive taps from the guitar’s body, and almost groovy passages of loping, striding runs. This display of technique and instrumental potential is never an end in itself, taking place within a clearly defined structure, each element a clear and refined statement. British guitarist Graham Anthony Devine handles these details expertly, his performance of these fantastic works truly impressive.
Joshua Meggitt
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