Ahn Trio: Lullaby for My Favorite Insomniac

Album Review

Sisters Lucia, Angella, and Maria Ahn continue to support their favorite composers on their fifth album, Lullaby for My Favorite Insomniac. Kenji Bunch wrote the title piece along with several others, and familiar names such as Michael Nyman, Ronn Yedidia, and Astor Piazzolla also contribute. The Ahns also make another pass at the David Bowie hit "This Is Not America," which appeared previously on Ahn-Plugged. But the most interesting selections are the unfamiliar ones. Bunch gives them an arrangement of Rodgers & Hart's "My Funny Valentine" that is practically unrecognizable until the violin takes up the melody; it sounds like what might happen if Piazzolla met Richard Rodgers. And the sisters collaborate with singer/songwriter Susie Suh on "All I Want," her throaty, disembodied alto voice emphasizing the melancholy tone. As this suggests, the Ahn Trio is anything but traditional, and the performances have bits of electronic processing here and there, while still keeping them in the classical crossover realm. When the initial 12 tracks are finished and the four concluding remixes kick in, however, all bets are off. Tao of Sound, DJ Spooky, Superdrive, and Ra.D add percussion, edit, and rap over earlier tracks, taking the Ahn Trio from the concert hall to the dancehall. Traditionalists might be aghast, but this is a typical move for the young, eclectic performers