I​ wanted to like this. After 3 tries, I started to.

After being somewhat disappointed with this ensemble’s previous disc (Beethoven and Berwald Septets), I decided to give them another chance with this newest release on the BIS label. They play music completely unknown to me so I was eager to explore.
 
While I had issues with the violin playing in their earlier release, on this current program, it's with the clarinet playing. When did Michael Collins develop such a bright, edgy tone? I certainly never heard this on his Chandos discs. And I don’t ever recall hearing a BIS recording - ever - that was in the slightest bright and edgy. But that is exactly what we have here - even on SACD.
 
In the first two works on the program, Howard Ferguson’s Octet and the Bliss Quintet, the clarinet is prominently balanced as if these are clarinet concertos. He’s given a bold, forward placement in the mix and afforded a bright edge. In addition, the strings sound thinner than they should, exacerbating the brightness. Worse, the group is presented with a flat perspective with each instrument vying for attention in a bold, forward manner. The results are often clamorous - the very opposite of alluring. 

I don’t know if it was the irritating sound or unappealing music (or both), but I didn’t enjoy either of these pieces the first time through. So I decided to set this aside and come back to it a few days later for another attempt. I came away with similar impressions, but matters were a bit more favorable this time around. I recognized that the Ferguson has some real potential, and perhaps with more pleasant sound, might be quite rewarding. And if one can listen past the edgy violin and clarinet, there is some delightfully characterful playing throughout the group. 

The Bliss too became more appealing - rhapsodic, with some early 20th-Century Impressionism within its rich scoring. And there is a passage near the end where Collins plays with a delicate pianissimo way up high, which is actually quite lovely. If only the group had played softly more often. As it is, there is a pervading touch of aggressiveness throughout which the piece doesn't deserve.

Trying this disc on a different SACD player with a good set of headphones, I quickly realized it's not just the clarinet given the forward edge, but also the first violin adding its own. The combination of the two is quite overwhelming. And the noisiness of the acoustic actually became worse.
 
The third work on the program, the Serenade (Octet) by Robin Holloway, is decidedly more contemporary and sparsely scored. It’s slightly better recorded too. The lower strings gain some body, adding a bit of warmth, and the clarinet and violin are more naturally balanced (though the flat, forward perspective remains). Nevertheless, this is still not a great piece of music, and the unskillful orchestration does it no favors. Holloway quite ill-advisedly writes exposed passages for the clarinet in the extreme highest register (we're talking notes above high G). Mr. Collins does his best to accommodate the composer’s preposterous demands, but it sounds absolutely excruciating, despite the slightly softer recording perspective. 

Going back to the entire program on a 3rd day, for one last try before writing this review, I found myself adjusting to the boldness of the sound and appreciating all three works much more than before. While my criticisms still apply, I was finally able to listen through them and simply enjoy the music more. 
 
About this recording, the booklet reveals that the first two pieces were recorded two years earlier (in 2021), with a different sound engineer, than the Holloway (2023). That's interesting. And curiously, just as I noted in this group’s previous release, these newer recordings weren’t made in their namesake Wigmore Hall either. This time they’re in the Menuhin Hall, Surrey, England. I simply can’t imagine why this group doesn’t record in their own hall, especially when the Menuhin Hall is so unflattering to their sound (at least as recorded here).
 
This release took some perseverance (and more than a bit of tolerance) to enjoy. At first I was skeptical of the music itself; then critical of the playing. But in the end, I've concluded it's the BIS engineers who must shoulder much of the blame. I'm baffled how (or why) they managed to make this sound like it does. 

If you are a clarinet player interested in hearing Michael Collins play lots of high notes, then this recording may be enticing. However, if you want to sit back and enjoy some really good chamber music and relish consummate ensemble playing in state-of-the-art recorded sound, then this disc will be a bit of a challenge. But rewards can be found with repeated listening.