Zwischen Den Zeilen is a CD EP collecting four works for flute written between 1987 and 1996 by
Lesley Olson, an American-born composer and flutist now living in Germany. These pieces call for multiple flutes and electro-acoustic treatments to create aerial works. On "Signs of Life,"
Olson uses percussive playing and breathing in the flute -- a beautiful combination. "Mutatis Mutandis 7" relies on the acoustics of the instrument, opposing long soft background notes with foreground trills.
Olson's music is not based on her technical capabilities, a mere exposition of virtuosity, but is anchored in sound texture and acoustic exploration of the instrument. "Body Harmony" best exemplifies her approach: multi-tracked long microtonal notes leaping over each other, creating acoustic sine waves. These are very subtle pieces. First released in 1996,
Zwischen Den Zeilen was reissued in 1999 as part of the limited-edition Berslton/NURNICHTNUR box set First Four. ~ François Couture