I CARE IF YOU LISTEN: 2018 Contemporary Classical Music Albums: Editor’s Picks
I CARE IF YOU LISTEN: 2018 Contemporary Classical Music Albums: Editor’s Picks
BY AMANDA COOK
THE HANDS FREE
”The Hands Free is an acoustic band comprised of composer/performers James Moore (guitar/banjo), Caroline Shaw (violin), Nathan Koci (accordion) and Eleonore Oppenheim (bass). Their self-titled debut album (New Amsterdam Records) features works that explore contemporary classical, folk, and improvisatory idioms.
The offerings on The Hands Free are loosely strung together by the overall aesthetic of an impromptu jam session, with individual tracks ranging from exuberant reels (‘Kellam’s Reel/Rusty Gully’) to angular, conversational bursts (‘Yes or No’) to tender solos suspended in time (‘It’s She’). The result is an eclectic and whimsical release that allows the listener a glimpse into the joyful after-hours music making of this wildly talented quartet.”