The title roughly translatable as "conjunction", Psyzygysm is an exhilarating chamber concerto which brings together an eclectic ensemble in support of the mallet percussion soloist. Psathas' preoccupation with jazz and traditional music is synthesised in this work into an explosive, headlong rush.The piano, double bass and drum kit work together like the rhythm section of a jazz combo, the winds and string quartet feature wailing, Middle-Eastern-inspired melodies and the percussion quartet create a musical and visual focus to the piece that locks all the elements together.
From a review of the work's premiere in the Evening Post, 13 March 2002: "The star of the evening was Pedro Carneiro, astonishing Portuguese marimbist, in John Psathas's Psyzygysm, a tour de force from any point of view. It is genuine music, climaxes built from music rather than mere crescendos. The imaginative inclusion of Carolyn Mills' harp was just one evidence that real musical impulses, materials and structure were in use; both its excitement and its quiet were in place. Psathas's work alone would have done me: the audience applauded long and hard."
John Psathas is a New Zealand freelance composer and teacher who, at a relatively early stage in his career, has established an international profile and receives regular commissions from organisations both in New Zealand and overseas. His works are championed around the world by a growing number of leading international artists, one of the most consistent of whom has been the Scottish percussionist Evelyn Glennie. Initially making a name for himself as a composer of high-energy percussion music, more recently the composer has concentrated on a series of larger-scale concertante works. A major career highlight to date has been the commission to compose the ceremonial music for the opening and closing of the 2004 Athens Olympic Games. In 2005 John Psathas was created an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit for his services to music.
