Music for Violin & Piano

“I’m not interested in musical emotion… I don’t have any interest in drama – in fact, I do everything I can to avoid it. I’m seeking a more basic level of perception, rather than taste and judgement. (I’ve done some pieces with ugly sounds. Ugly sounds can be useful too.)” …Shape, balance, reference, distance, equilibrium, symmetry, contrast, form. These are the particulars of a creative approach that reconstructs its own relationship to the traditional values of classicism, one which brings a mathematical conscience to free will, explores the transformation from conception to perception, and celebrates the dialectical tension that results. This is James Tenney’s music. – Art Lange

What the critics say:

“…the sound is excellent, and the performances committed to the nth degree…this is music of real depth and strength. It rewards with repeated encounters…” – Robert Carl, Fanfare

1. Ergodos II with Instrumental Responses

2. 3 Pages in the Shape of a Pear

3. Diaphonic Toccata

4. Chorale

5. Koan

6. Diaphonic Trio