Abaton shows off Swiss pianist/composer Sylvie Courvoisier's brand of contemporary chamber music. The album title serves not only as the title of one of her compositions, but also as the name of the ensemble for which it was written -- a trio consisting of Courvoisier, violinist Mark Feldman and cellist Erik Friedlander.

Courvoisier's music is an interesting blend of various classical traditions of the 20/21 era. You may detect elements of modernism and post-modernism, of course, but also snatches of antecedents such as Shostakovich and Schoenberg. Courvoisier's work focuses on building relatively complex structures out of very limited means; several of her pieces -- "Ianicum", Orodruin" and "Abaton" -- start with a very small number of pitches articulated. Single notes sound in the piano's bass register, and are taken up by the cello. Eventually, bell-like melodies toll in the piano's treble range, and are grabbed by Feldman's fiddle.

Over time, these are registrally doubled and elaborated into larger collections -- most often altered, quasi-tonal scales. However, these key-related artifacts are obscured by a liberal peppering of dissonance from Courvoisier and company. Expectations of resolution are confounded again and again until the final, usually pensive, closure.

The scoring is occasionally a bit eccentric -- rife with octave doublings of complex angular melodies (a curiosity in a work for such a small ensemble) -- but the pieces seem to have an interior working logic, and stake out their own distinct sonic territory.

The second disc is filled with improvisations by the Abaton trio. While these pieces have their charms, I didn't find them to be as inspired as Courvoisier's compositions, particularly in the area of harmony. The improvisations too often seem to get stuck on or around C, without being minimal enough in conception to justify their reiterations. That said, Courvoisier and Abaton clearly have something individual to say, and that is most encouraging.