Genre-bending composer and musician Chilly Gonzales has created some of his most memorable music by cross-breeding classical and pop forms, and he presents the results of one of his most intriguing experiments yet with his 2015 album
Chambers. Recorded in collaboration with German string ensemble the Kaiser Quartett,
Chambers reimagines popular melodic constructs of contemporary pop music in the style of chamber music: "Prelude to a Feud" is an homage to Daft Punk filtered through Bach, "Sample This" takes the pulse of Southern hip-hop and translates it for strings, and "The Difference" takes familiar elements from pop and classical themes and defies the listener to tell which is which. Also including a vocal track from Gonzales, "Myth Me,"
Chambers is at once playful, challenging, and full of charm, an ambitious work that suggests the centuries that divide chamber music and radio-ready pop are not as far apart as some imagine. ~ Mark Deming