Jean Françaix wrote in an accessible, attractive style that often led listeners and commentators to ignore the depth and originality present in much of his music. The light, witty character of Françaix's music has caused some to dismiss it as frivolous. Others have decried the fact that his style remained static throughout his life. In reality, he had found all he needed and achieved his mature voice immediately. His orchestrations are always clear and sparkling, his forms precise and neo-Classical, his emotions reserved. Watch a performance of the first movement of Jean Francaix's Double Concerto for Flute, Clarinet and Orchestra (1991) . . . it's one of this week's FEATURED NEW MUSIC VIDEOS.

François Bayle, composer, theorist, pioneer in electronic music, coined the term acousmatic to designate music that does not result from a physical source. His works have been performed worldwide, and as director of Groupe de Recherches Musicales from 1975 to 1997, he presided over a major program of research, publications, concert production, and CD, DVD, and book publication. In 1974, he created the Acousmonium, a loudspeaker orchestra. Writing about Bayle's Morceaux de Ciels (1996) Gerard Denizeau muses, "One of the remarkable features of this magnificent piece lies in the fact that it often moves in four-track blocks; and always, initially, in pairs. As a result, the listener, aware of an overall sound over four poles, finds himself with no alternative but to mentally reduce to one source the turbulent sounds he hears on four tracks. François Bayle may be compared to a watercolorist who provides an infinite number of nuances but refuses, in the midst of his experimentation, to set things down in a definitive state." Listen to François Bayle's Morceaux de Ciels . . . it's our FEATURED SOUND ART for the week.

John Psathas, as well as being one of a few New Zealand composers who have made a mark on the international scene, is now also widely considered one of the three most important living composers of the Greek Diaspora. Raised in Taumaranui and Napier, Psathas is the son of Greek immigrant parents who arrived in New Zealand in the early 1960s. His music has been commissioned and performed by many great musicians and orchestras around the world. These include Michael Brecker, Dame Evelyn Glennie, Michael Houstoun, Joshua Redman, The New Zealand String Quartet, Federico Mondelci, The New Zealand Trio, Pedro Carneiro, the Takacs Quartet, The Netherlands Blazers Ensemble, the Halle Orchestra, the Royal Philharmonic, the Melbourne Symphony, the BBC Scottish Symphony, the NZSO, and many others. Listen to a performance John Psathas' Summary of the Human Presence (2011) . . . it's our BANG, CLANG and BEAT for the week..