“Gradually the movements transform, starting out as archaic and oddly fascinating in the grey-blue light and becoming increasingly elaborate, until the dancing is done on pointe and finally the evolutionary change finds its culmination with a range of figures being raised up to lofty heights. After the artifice of ballet as an art form was abandoned in favour of naturalness in ‘Esplanade’, Essakow reclaims it in a new context as an achievement which seems to come from our subconscious: let there be dance! Even if some moments seem excessively laden with meaning, the overall arc is a successful one. ‘Tenebre’ with its sounds by Bryce Dessner hesitating to feel out the space may not be a perfect work but it is an extremely exciting one.”
Stefan Schmöe, Online Music Magazine, 31st May2016