This CD contains six composition by the Icelandic composer Haukur Tómasson. Three of the pieces, Spiral, Octette and Quartet II are performed by the CAPUT ensemble. Other pieces on the CD are Strati and Offspring for orchestra and a duo for flute and harpsichord.

The music:
Spírall was commissioned by CAPUT and Skálholt Summer Concerts in 1992. The piece has a chaconne-like form: a series of 12 pitches is repeated with slight variations over and over again, and that long row is then used as a base for the composition. Sometimes the material is exposed in a chordlike manner letting the harmonic parameter dominate the music (the arrangement of the pitches into chords being done by ear); at other times the instruments move around these chords lika a cat around hot porridge.

Octette was composed in the summer of 1987 for the CAPUT ensemble. The work has six connected sections, and the group is often diveided into four duos: flute and clarinet, horn and saxophone, viola and cello and finally piano and percussion. Instead of polyphony in the traditional sense, there are created a few simultaineous processes each of which has its own velocity and goal.

Quartet II was composed in California in 1989 for clarinet, violin, cello and piano. The work is based on a simple melody which undergoes constant metamorphoses and finally changes into chordal material. This evolution takes place slowly, wherefore contrasts are not prominent in the piece.

The performers:
Spírall: Kolbeinn Bjarnasson and Arna Kristín Einarsdóttir flute, Peter Tompkins oboe, Guðni Franzson clarinet, Sigurður Þorbergsson trombone, Eggert Pálsson percussion, Guðrún Óskarsdóttir harpsichord, Zbigniew Dubik and Hildigunnur Halldórsdóttir violin, Guðmundur Kristmundsson viola, Bryndís Halla Gylfadóttir and Sigurður Halldórsson cello, and Valur Pálsson double bass. Conductor Guðmundur Óli Gunnarsson.

Octette: Kolbeinn Bjarnasson, Guðni Franzson klarinett, Sigurður Flosason saxófón, Emil Friðfinnsson horn, Pétur Grétarsson slagverk, Snorri Sigfús Birgisson píanó, Helga Þórarinsdóttir víóla, Sigurður Halldórsson selló. Conductor Guðmundur Óli Gunnarsson.

Quartet II: Guðni Franzson clarinet, Bryndís Pálsdóttir violin, Bryndís Halla Gylfadóttir cello og Daníel Þorsteinsson piano.

The composer:
Haukur Tómasson (Iceland 1960) received his masters degree from the University of California, San Diego. Besides a large body of chamber music, Tómasson´s work includes six orchestral pieces, three concertos and the opera Gudruns 4th Song. His compositions Spírall and Concerto for Violin and Chamber Ensemble were nominated for the Nordic Council´s Music Prize in 1996 and 2000 respectively, and his orchestral piece Strati won the Icelandic National Broadcasting System Music Prize in 1993. Other prizes include the 1996 Bröste Optimistic Prize and the 1998 Icelandic Music Award for Gudrun´s 4th Song. His composition Saga (Fabella) for ensemble won the State Radio's 70th anniversary competition in 2000.