Steve Mackey’s “Red Wood” takes root, so to speak, in the way trees pass life-giving materials underground to sustain the health of the forest. A double concerto for Mackey on electric guitar, violinist and Delirium leader Etienne Gara and strings, it also reflects on the equally impressive phenomenon of fairy rings, the name for the redwoods growing in circles that are sustained by the roots of fallen trees.
In a beautifully conceived score that flows with a kind of natural ease, the guitar electrifies acoustic strings while somehow sharing kinship. Whether or not one hears trees in this, and I didn’t, is hardly the point. Mackey celebrates how trees make him feel and makes you want to feel that way too.
– By LA Times