GRAMOPHONE EDITORIAL REVIEW MARCH 1999 EDITION PHILIP SHEPPARD 'The Glass Cathedral' Philip Sheppard (vc) BLUE SNOW BSNCD1 Debut solo records usually default to one of two categories: 1. Breathtaking but vacuous dislplays of virtuosity; 2. Gorgeous but empty digital fantasies. You can guess at once that Philip Sheppard's approach doesn't fit the first category - the booklet is almost too reticent about the performer's name - and suspicions of the second category fade quickly. Yes, it uses overdubbing; yes it features a new digital and acoustic five string cello. But the pieces use state-of-the-art technology without being overwhelmed by it. In any case, Sheppard restricted himself to the sounds made on the instrument, as opposed to using it as a MIDI controller. Maybe the programmatic nature of the venture also helps Sheppard to avoid conventional pitfalls. 'Harrison's Chronometer' is a soundscape of a voyage to Lisbon; The Glass cathedral depicts 'an impossible space' and sent me back to my LP collection to compare Bryars's 'Sinking of the Titanic' on Obscure. Like that piece, 'The Glass Cathedral' always avoids narcosis, whilst dealing with drones and generally slow changes (except once or twice when Sheppard dumps a huge string section right in your lap after a lull). He's very committed to improvisation, but I'm not sure how much it could figure in a piece involving 44 cello overdubs. Whatever the case, it works beautifully. 'Harrison's Chronometer' uses a wider vocabulary, drawing on creaks and what sounds like whalesong. It's gripping music - much more than a soundtrack for an imaginary movie - and it reclaims for string players those long drones and chords that 'ambient' musicians couldn't function without. Because the disc is, in effect, an EP it's not going to seriously dent most punter's budgets. BLUE SNOW is a new independent label run in true improvised music fashion by Sheppard himself. If all the releases are up to this standard, Sheppard (glimpsed recently with The Smith Quartet, Pulp and Terry Riley) has nothing to worry about. STEVE BERESFORD "Philip Sheppard" <[log in to unmask]>