Eric Whitacre Essentials

Eric Whitacre went to uni unable to read music and exited in 1995 prepared to begin a skyward career as a composer of gripping, kaleidoscopic works. His 2010 breakout LP, Light & Gold, was full of shimmering, subtle dissonances and brilliant clusters that sounded equal parts György Ligeti, Arvo Pärt and Monteverdi (“Lux Aurumque”, “Leonardo Dreams of His Flying Machine”). Whether producing colourful arrangements of dark pop songs (“Hurt”) or cycles of bucolic troubadour repertoire (5 Hebrew Love Songs), Whitacre's precision is virtually unparalleled.