Gould: West Point Symphony; Hovhaness: Symphony No. 4 & Giannini: Symphony No. 3

Vittorio Giannini (Composer), Morton Gould (Composer), Alan Hovhaness (Composer), A. Clyde Roller (Conductor), Frederick Fennell (Conductor), Harold Lawrence (Conductor), Eastman Wind Ensemble (Performer) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Performer: Eastman Wind Ensemble
• Conductor: A. Clyde Roller, Frederick Fennell, Harold Lawrence
• Composer: Vittorio Giannini, Morton Gould, Alan Hovhaness
• Audio CD (August 11, 1992)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Philips
• ASIN: B0000057LS
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #217,623 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Performances, Great Music, December 4, 1999

By 

Frederick Lauritzen - See all my reviews

This review is from: Gould: West Point Symphony; Hovhaness: Symphony No. 4 & Giannini: Symphony No. 3 (Audio CD)

We lovers of music for symphonic band owe a lot to the pioneering recordings of Frederick Fennell and the Eastman Wind Ensemble. Here are three wonderful performances of three classic band works. Gould's West Point Symphony is full of martial spirit, but is tender and expressive as well. Giannini's Symphony is bold and exuberant, with a wistful slow movement. Hovhannes work is full of Eastern atmosphere, with it's long melismic solos and evocative brass chorales. Together, under the expert direction of Fennell and his associate, A. Clyde Roller, they make for a richly varied and thoroughly enjoyable program.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One Word: Contrabassoon!, December 19, 2003

By 

Wachovia "music nerd" (Wake Forest, NC USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Gould: West Point Symphony; Hovhaness: Symphony No. 4 & Giannini: Symphony No. 3 (Audio CD)

What a strange and wonderful collection of band music. I especially like the solos for piccolo, bass clarinet, and CONTRABASSOON. The brass harmonies in Hohvaness are a perfect example of erethreal beauty. The ominous CONTRABASSOON solo is very different to hear in a band work. The marimba solos are in 19/8 and 20/8 meter. The other works are also wonderful to listen to.

3 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Very good performances of middling repertoire, April 12, 2005

By 

Michael Simpson "ttlms" (Austin, TX USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Gould: West Point Symphony; Hovhaness: Symphony No. 4 & Giannini: Symphony No. 3 (Audio CD)

The Eastman Wind Ensemble's recordings of Giannini's Symphony No. 3 and Hovhaness' Symphony No. 4 came at the end of the Frederick Fennell era, when he handed off the baton to A. Clyde Roller in 1962. The sound of the group is perhaps never as close to perfection as in these three works (including Gould's West Point Symphony). As a French horn player, I appreciate the slightly more important emphasis given to the horn section in these recordings, which is merited by the music -- especially the long chorale sections in the Hovhaness.

While I purchased this CD for the West Point, I find it hard to agree with the reviewers that either the Gould or the Giannini are classic works of the wind ensemble repertoire. In particular, the Giannini seems very pedestrian to me; there is not much to distinguish it from several other band works by lesser composers during the 50s and 60s, except for a technically challenging and engaging fourth movement. The Hovhaness is a foot closer to classic music, and those who are already fans of this foreshadowing American conundrum will not be disappointed by this performance.