Customer Reviews

Dream Catchers

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I am a huge fan of the Klavier Wind Recording project and this is one of the best CDs yet released. There is a nice balance of works here that center around a common theme. From the bright sound of the Galbraith work to the dark and ponderous "From a Dark Millenium" by Joseph Schwantner, this CD has much to offer its listeners. I am always amazed at the fact that these are college level musicians and not professionals. Everything is technically precise and at the same time very musical and the recording is clear and very well balanced. This is can said for all of the recordings in the series as well. I wish Corporon and Klavier all the luck and hope they continue to deliver such high quality music.

The Klavier Wind Recording Project, already preparing to release its twenty-second and twenty-third discs this autumn, has produced a wonderful collection of contemporary music for band in addition to identifying several important pieces of the standard repetoire. This particular 1998 release, while full of interesting music, likely only holds appeal for the so-called "band aficionado." The selections on here constitute one of the darker Klavier releases to date, containing music of a somewhat more somber nature.

Opening with Carnegie Mellon-based composer Nancy Galbraith's brighly orchestrated work about mischievous elfin beings, "Danza de los Duendes" provides an excellent opener somewhat reminiscent of John Adam's writing. From there, the title track, Walter Mays' 1996 award-winning "Dreamcatcher" follows. The work, dealing with the Ojibwa belief about the nature of good and bad dreams features quotations of an actual Ojibwa folk tune in many of its melodic motives. Leslie Bassett's 1985 commission to compose a lullaby specifically for band, in particular, for the the conductor's newborn daughter, Leslie, utilizes the composer's "trademark compositional technique." More specifically, a non-serialized twelve-tone method. While the only other Bassett work that I am personally familiar with is his trombone quartet (although he has written a considerable body of music, including the Pulitzer Prize-winning "Variations for Orchestra"), I still remain unimpressed with the very brief "Lullaby for Kirsten" despite repeated hearings.

Another Pulitzer Prize-winner, Eastman-faculty member Joseph Schwantner, and his ethreal "From a Dark Millenium" provides one of the true high points on this album, although I must agree with a previous review about its disappointing sonics. As in his other two works for wind ensemble (also available from Klavier), the piano contributes a very interesting timbre to the already varied band palette. David Gillingham's 1996 "Waking Angels," inspired by Olga Broumas poem on AIDS, "emanates the mysteriousness, pain, and ruthlessness of the disease...through the imagery of music." Prefaced by Will Thompson's "Softly and Tenderly, Jesus is Calling" (of which Gillingham derives some melodic motiff), the work is very interesting and wholly satisfying. Gillingham, currently on the faculty at Central Michigan, is enjoying growing popularity for many of his band works. To conclude this disc, German-composer Rolf Rudin's two-part "Der Traum de Oenghus," based on an Irish fairy tale dealing with nightly visions and dementia (in keeping with the overall theme), with its shimmering introduction, violent (and sometimes martial) middle sections, and quiet closing pages provides a very satisfying finish to this Klavier disc.

The North Texas Wind Symphony under Corporn turns in polished performances, at times full of warthm and brilliance. Technically clean and with good intonation, this disc highlights exceptional wind band literature that would otherwise wait years to be recorded. Recommended for serious band enthusiasts or those simply interested in finding band music of a less "oom-pa" oriented nature.

I am a huge fan of the Klavier Wind Recording project and this is one of the best CDs yet released. There is a nice balance of works here that center around a common theme. From the bright sound of the Galbraith work to the dark and ponderous "From a Dark Millenium" by Joseph Schwantner, this CD has much to offer its listeners. I am always amazed at the fact that these are college level musicians and not professionals. Everything is technically precise and at the same time very musical and the recording is clear and very well balanced. This is can said for all of the recordings in the series as well. I wish Corporon and Klavier all the luck and hope they continue to deliver such high quality music.

Once again, Corporon's integrity shines through with this effort, a worthy addition to his numerous wind symphony recordings. I must disagree with the criticism of the Schwanter in the previous review. From a Dark Millenium is not titled "For Percussion" like the other mentioned piece. The balance is probably intended to make sure that every line in the music is heard. It is still loud enough to shake the trunk of my car. Overall, the recording deserves much accolade.

I bought this CD because it is the only commercial recording of Schwantner's "From a dark millennium," and while the recording is fine and dandy on its own merits, I was disappointed to find that either the percussion-heavy middle section either didn't record well or was toned down by the conductor. That's the most powerful section of the piece when done right ("right" meaning with the percussion so loud that tiles are falling off of the ceiling), and it's too bad that the only commercial recording (and the only likely commercial recording to exist for awhile) doesn't capture that, unlike the recording of Schwantner's Concerto for Percussion & Orchestra.

This is a very professional group that makes consistently superb recordings. As a student I had the opportunity to participate in a few music clinics with Eugene Corporon and they were always wonderful experiences. I absolutely respect his work and the musicianship of the UNT wind ensemble and hold them both in the highest regards.

David Gillingham is one of my professors at college. His music is wonderful because it evokes strong emotion. Waking Angels is a piece of music that I feel lucky to have the ability not only to hear, but also to play. It is a wonderful piece. He is a wonderful person as well.