A buoyant work written for harpist Marcia Dickstein, commissioned by the Debussy Trio.
Conceived structurally in a traditional A-B-A format, the work is bound together by rhythmic permutations of a five-note motive, the first of which is heard at the onset of the piece.
Grammy-winner Lucas Richman has worked with harpist Marcia Dickstein from the very nascent days of his hugely successful compositional career. He has a sixth sense for the many qualities available on the harp—from percussive rhythmic to lullaby lyrical to colorful rippling surface—upon which the violist David Walther and flutist Angela Wiegand can sing and dance. His work Apertif opens the album. It alludes to the very utilitarian needs of the trio for a new work that can slip gently between main courses, much like a palette cleanser, and can, quite frankly, find its way into any program in about any setting.”