Architectonics VI (1992) sounds like one of those titles that are too good to resist, and it's to the credit of Erkki-Sven Tüür that he admits as much in the brief interview in the booklet to this beguiling disc. Tüür's piece isn't especially architectonic in construction, but it's well put together and effective on its own terms. Passion and Illusion, both for string orchestra and composed in 1993, are closer in spirit to the prevailing 'New Simplicity' of current East Baltic composition. Passion, indeed, is occasionally reminiscent of Tüür's better-known compatriot, Arvo Pärt, although the brief Illusion has a curiously English feel to it. The title track, Crystallisatio (1995), is scored for three flutes, bells, string orchestra and live electronics and is somewhat more demanding in scope. It's here that Tüür's synthesis of minimalism with serial techniques is heard most eloquently; not wholly achieved, perhaps, but fascinating in application.
By far the biggest piece is the Requiem (1992-3), in memory of the conductor Peeter Lilje. It's a deeply felt, half-hour-long setting of the Mass for the Dead, and is of markedly different character to the other pieces here. This is a handsomely produced, thought-provoking release. If you want to hear up-to-the-minute new music that won't sear the ears off your head, do try it.