East ⇄ West explores the creative flow between diverse musical cultures and traditions. Samir Fezjić and Vojislav Ivanović write from Sarajevo, a city long defined by its interwoven cultures. Nebojsa Macura is a Serbian American composer whose trio was commissioned and premiered by Suzanne Snizek. Two Jewish composers whose lives were uprooted by the Second World War are also featured: Pál Hermann, deported from France and murdered in 1944, and Mieczysław Weinberg, who fled east from Warsaw into Russia and survived to become one of the century’s most significant composers.
Flutist Suzanne Snizek and pianist Alexandria Le are joined by clarinetist David Boutin-Bourque, violist Joanna Hood and guitarist Alexander Dunn. The Ivanović arrangement was among the last recordings Dr. Dunn made before his death in 2024.
TRACKS
1. Samir Fezjić: Balkan Madness 5:08
2. Nebojsa Macura: Six-Year Interlude 9:13
3. Pál Hermann: Four Epigrammes, I. Allegro 1:07
4. Pál Hermann: Four Epigrammes, II. Andante in modo Arabo 1:59
5. Pál Hermann: Four Epigrammes, III. Allegro assai 0:53
6. Pál Hermann: Four Epigrammes, IV. Allegro ma non troppo 1:25
7. Vojislav Ivanović: Kad ja podjoh na Bembašu 3:54
8. Mieczysław Weinberg: Sonata for Clarinet and Piano, Op. 28, I. Allegro 6:03
9. Mieczysław Weinberg: Sonata for Clarinet and Piano, Op. 28, II. Allegretto 7:56
10. Mieczysław Weinberg: Sonata for Clarinet and Piano, Op. 28, III. Adagio 6:11
CREDITS
Suzanne Snizek, flute and alto flute
Alexandria Le, piano
David Boutin-Bourque, clarinet
Alexander Dunn, guitar
Joanna Hood, viola
Kirk McNally, Recording Engineer
Cover art by Lucy Formato
East ⇄ West is available from
TK599 © ℗ 2026 Suzanne Snizek and Alexandria Le
All rights reserved / Tous droits réservés
Release date: October 31, 2026
PROGRAM NOTES
1. Balkan Madness by Samir Fezjić
Balkan Madness by contemporary composer Samir Fezjić is an intense and virtuosic whirl of colour, passion and energy. A compelling blend of jazz and classical styles, this work for solo piano captures the ear and lingers in the memory long after its final dramatic notes. Fezjić is a composer and performer living in Sarajevo, a historical city renowned for its interwoven cultures, and we are grateful to be able to include this stunning work on this album.
Performed by pianist Alexandria Le
2. Six-Year Interlude by Nebojsa Macura
Six-Year Interlude is a contemplative and expressive trio originally scored for flute, viola and piano. This work by the contemporary Serbian American composer Nebojsa Macura was commissioned and premiered in 2011 by flutist Suzanne Snizek. The 2018 Cuatro Puntos Award winner in the Zvi Zeitlin Memorial International Composer’s Competition, this piece has since been rescored for and performed by multiple alternative instrumentations. A striking blend of new (e.g., hand-plucking of the piano strings) and traditional (tonal beauty), this sensitive and evocative piece is becoming an audience favourite.
Performed by flutist Suzanne Snizek, violist Joanna Hood and pianist Alexandria Le
3 to 6. Four Epigrammes by Pál Hermann
Pál Hermann (1903-1944) was an accomplished Hungarian Jewish cellist and composer. Following his studies at the famed Franz Liszt Academy, Pál gave many important early performances of new music including the Schoenberg Sonata for Cello and the Kodály Duo for violin and cello (with violinist Székely). Pál taught cello and composition at the Musikschule Paul Hindemith Neukölln until 1934. Despite the tense political atmosphere (or perhaps as relief from it?), Pál’s lighthearted and utterly charming Four Epigrammes for solo piano seems untouched by the difficulties of the era. This four-movement work was written in the fateful year of 1932; Pál finally left Germany for Brussels in 1934. After personal tragedy, dislocation and hiding, he was deported from the Drancy camp to Auschwitz and then Lithuania, where he was presumably murdered.
Performed by pianist Alexandria Le
7. Kad ja podjoh na Bembašu, arranged by Vojislav Ivanović
Kad ja podjoh na Bembašu, a well-known Bosnian folk song, is here imaginatively arranged for alto flute, flute and guitar by the gifted contemporary composer and guitarist Vojislav Ivanović. Ivanović is currently a Full Professor of Guitar at the University of Sarajevo-East and an active performer, composer and teacher.
This recording features the inimitable guitarist Dr. Alexander Dunn (1955-2024) and was one of Dr. Dunn’s last musical projects. This little gem is a lovely memento of time spent with a gifted and highly intuitive musical partner and an unforgettable human being. Rest in peace, Alex.
Performed by flutist Suzanne Snizek and guitarist Alexander Dunn
8 to 10. Sonata for Clarinet and Piano, Op. 28 by Mieczysław Weinberg
Mieczysław Weinberg (1919-1996) was a Jewish composer born in Poland. With the Nazi invasion of Warsaw, Weinberg fled eastward to Russia where he ultimately attracted the admiration and friendship of composer Dmitri Shostakovich.
Weinberg was a prolific and highly accomplished composer, leaving behind a vast catalogue of works including 22 symphonies, 17 string quartets, and the acclaimed opera masterpiece The Passenger. Although many factors (including antisemitism and political interference) caused a delay in widespread recognition, today Weinberg is increasingly considered one of the most important composers of the 20th century. The highly expressive Sonata for Clarinet and Piano, Op. 28 provides an opportunity to hear this uniquely compelling compositional voice.
Performed by clarinetist David Boutin-Bourque and pianist Alexandria Le
