Juno to Jupiter

After releasing the choral symphony in 2001, composer and multi-instrumentalist went on a recording hiatus for 15 years. He issued soundtracks for the films and , but no solo albums. The composer returned with 2016's conceptual , based on the ESA (European Space Agency) mission that landed a probe on the comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. Five years on, returns to ' career-long obsession with space exploration. The album is inspired by NASA's launch of space probe Juno to Jupiter in 2011 -- now extended until 2025 -- to explore the planet's atmosphere, undersurface, and many moons. "Atlas' Push" samples various sounds from the launch event amid massive ambient textures. "Inside Our Perspectives" offers sweeping layers of electronics, percussion, loops, and orchestral sounds in pulsed and plotted cadences that alternately evoke , , and mid-period . "Out in Space" recalls the score with cascading synths, open-toned brass and winds, tympani, and analog electronics. ' only accompanist on the date is operatic soprano . She plays the voice of mythological Greek goddess Juno (aka Hera) as she pierces the clouds concealing Jupiter (aka Zeus). "Juno's Quiet Determination" features a subdued, wordless vocal chorus stitched inseparably to restrained, painterly instrumentation, but eventually reaches a dramatic conclusion to introduce the symphonically dynamic "Jupiter's Intuition." "Space's Mystery Road" commences with a snare shuffle as strings, analog synths, and helicopter sounds emerge under an acoustic piano to deliver a noirish theme with seemingly sinister intent. "Juno's Tender Call" is a ghostly yet deeply moving interlude that features 's gorgeous soprano wordlessly singing above chamber strings and woodwinds, harp, and sweeping piano. "Juno's Ethereal Breeze" offers her multi-tracked vocals as a chorale. They emerge from ether amid space blips, alien sounds, a droning cello, and a lone sequencer as the tension of the unknown meets awe and wonder. Her full operatic power is realized on "Hera/Juno: Queen of the Gods." It commences with sparse, plucked harp sounds, in call-and-response with a taut ambient backdrop that slips in amid reverbed strings, piano, and synth. When she sings, the heavens open and pathos, desire, and longing pour out. Dissonance entwines with majesty on "Zeus Almighty," offering a processional atmosphere and dramatic tone clusters. They are expanded upon with other sonorities in "Jupiter Rex," as choral voices wind around bells, chimes, rumbling drums, dissonant winds, brass, and strings. Order is restored by an acoustic piano and harp in "Juno's Accomplishments"; they prepare a pillowy sonic ground for 's transcendent singing. "In Serenitatem" makes use of reverbed a cappella choral voices wordlessly reflecting the vast, empty reaches of space before bells and electronics join them in closing. , like , is a major late-career work from . It is carefully articulated and deeply illustrative of both its subject matter -- the loneliness and grandeur of space travel -- and its metaphorical referents in Greek mythology. ~ Thom Jurek