I’m fond of Natasha Barrett. Her electroacoustic compositions have bite, subtlety, and depth. Her art is serious but welcoming. Bouteilles de Klein is her second album for empreintes DIGITALes. It is a 2-DVD set (stereo and surround mixes, high fidelity), 140 minutes of concert works and sound installations. The installations disc (the second) is nice but less captivating than the concert works disc which holds lots of highlights. I’d be hard press to choose a favorite between the recomposed field recordings of Microclimates III-VI and the orgiastic electroacoustics of Avoid Being Eaten by Mimicking Other Less Palatable Species (ABEMOLPAS) (now there’s a program of sonic mimicry!). Heartily recommended.

On March 10, 2010 empreintes DIGITALes will release a triplet of discs — 2 new releases, and 1 reissue — by exceptional women composers.

• Ingrid Drese collects all of her acousmatic work in high definition sound: Interstices.
• Natasha Barrett presents a vast musical terrain of concert pieces and installation work in high definition stereo and “Surround” on 2 discs: Bouteilles de Klein.
• The original 1996 release by Hildegard Westerkamp became out of print… to be quickly reissued: Transformations (same music; new box).

The 15th Other Minds Festival will take place on March 4 - 6, 2010 at the San Francisco Jewish Community Center. It is on March 5 that Natasha Barrett will diffuse her works Mobilis in Mobili (available on the disc Bouteilles de Klein in production), and Kernel Expansion.