Search - David Maslanka, Gregg I. Hanson :: Maslanka: Concertos

Predictable and Marginal

06/11/2001

(2 out of 5 stars)

"This recording represents another release of Maslanka's music by the University of Arizona Wind Ensemble, and it comes up rather short in places. The ensemble lacks fine precision at times, and the intonation is very suspect. Joe Lulloff's playing in the saxophone concerto is riddled with pitch problems (most notably in the 3rd Mvt) and it is a wonder why this was ever released. Maslanka appears to regularly quote himself and essentially re-compose much of his output from previous material, leaving the saxophone concerto, in particular, to sound predictable and tired. Further, it bears such resemblance to other works that one loses what makes it unique. A valiant effort with some sporadic good playing, but the music is average and the soloists are less than spectacular."

I beg to differ..GREAT pieces!

11/05/2001

(4 out of 5 stars)

"While it is true that Maslanka regularly quotes himself, I feel that it creates a body of work as a whole that centers around a central idea, that being Maslnka's brilliant MASS. The saxophone concerto centers around a portion of the mass (the 3rd movement is the main quote) which is the emotional high point of the piece. The Saxophone, played by Joe Lulloff, is not of the highest caliber, but he plays quite well and very beautifully for the duration of the work. There are some pitch problems but they are not incredibly noticeable. Overall a fine recording to a wonderful piece.
The Marimba concerto (with Marimbaist Drew Lang) is perhaps the better recording on the disc. The marimba solo is beautiful and and the wind ensemble plays very well. Overall, this disc is a good addition to anyone's classical library and a nice introduction to Maslanka's music."