A Thousand Thoughts, whose title comes from the traditional Swedish melody that opens the program, is not a release of new material but a compilation of prior
Kronos Quartet performances that draw on international materials. They go back as far as 1989, but the majority come from after 2000, when this aspect of the group's repertoire has become more important. As such, your reaction to them may well depend on whether you think this kind of experiment represents a laudable curiosity or a drive-by approach to world music. Even the detractors, though, would do well to note the following positives. The
Kronos Quartet have been highly influential in this regard, as they have in so many others, and it's due to their efforts that it's commonplace nowadays to hear tango music (as you do here) or something similar in a string quartet recital. The
Kronos do not simply rely on standards that fit the quartet medium but often feature representatives of the ethnic traditions involved, pushing themselves a bit to enter into exotic sound worlds. (Especially successful in this regard is the concluding version of "Danny Boy," sung by the late Texas country singer and yodeler
Don Walser, the so-called
Pavarotti of the Plains; this version was available on one of
Walser's albums, but is not exactly a common item.) The sound engineering associated with
the Kronos has always been high-class, and this collection of live and studio tracks recorded over almost a 25-year period holds together as a unit quite well. Likewise, the quartet itself has maintained a consistent sound over the several changes in personnel represented here. This has the potential to serve as a good sampler for those interested in the ethnomusicological side of contemporary chamber music. ~ James Manheim