DWS Presents Grainger
Dave | Hoffman Estates, IL USA | 04/03/2009
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I love Percy Grainger's music, and this variety of pieces from his canon played by the wonderful Dallas Wind Symphony is a joy from start to finish. There is so much depth and emotion in these great works he wrote for the wind band, and they don't lose anything to repeated listening. The conductor makes sure to balance all the various musical lines and instrumental colors in a way that allows you to hear everything but while still bringing the "to the fore!" kind of excitement that Grainger calls for.
In addition to the merits of this great music and the artistry of the performers, Keith "Prof" Johnson and the other engineers from Reference deserve credit for capturing the sound in a clear, yet natural way. The resonant acoustics of Meyerson Symphony Hall have made their way onto this disc, which is a very good thing indeed."
What's playing?
Leroy Osmon | 04/25/2009
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Any Grainger fan will love this CD. However, it would be nice if we knew what was on this recording other than the title work. Non Grainger fans will not be so quick to order without knowing the titles of the works recorded."
An essential recording - done without fear
Rezzie Flanders | 12/26/2009
(5 out of 5 stars)
"When you listen to Grainger, you have to listen with the ears of the era. Those of us who have grown up with this music as devoted players in wind bands (as I have) have a certain template for what this music should be. This recording does not conform to that template, which leads to some folks thinking that this recording drags. Personally, I applaud all involved for their artistic decisions. This was done with a real vision and the tremendous resources of the DWS. You can hear the devotion of these players in what they are doing. This is a professional group that plays with the passion of amateurs.
This expansive, exquisitely realized recording attempts to present Grainger's music as the artists believe Percy would have presented it to himself as a present. The playing is as good as the DWS has ever produced, which says it is pretty much letter perfect. The timbres, particularly those of the low reeds and all saxophones (extra kudos to the soprano saxophonist who gets it about Grainger and the saxophone only as someone could after sitting down and thinking about this long and hard) are a thing of extraordinary beauty to me. If you want to know what this is about, listen to the Merry King. If you're not delighted and eager to hear the rest of this after that, then this isn't for you. Thanks to the DWS, Jerry Junkin, and all involved for this singular accomplishment. To me, this is the finest wind recording of the century to date."
Track Listings (18) - Disc #1