Review

Orchestral Excursions

"Marga Richter has always been one of my favorite composers because of her unswerving pursuit of maximum passion in her works. She goes directly for the heart every time and usually hits square on .... I enjoyed the work on first hearing and find it growing on me with each additional hearing .... While [the Howard Harris work] does not aim so deep in feeling as the Richter, this work is very entertaining; you will look forward to hearing it again." Paul Shoemaker, www.musicweb-internaitonal.com

"Marga Richter's epic triple concerto for violin, cello and piano is brilliantly performed...[She] paints an emotional landscape upon which the three soloists journey into an ethereal realm....Richter's rich neo-Romantic language intentionally masks the original timbre of Monteverdi's archaic theme in a shroud of extended chromaticism. With each variation the harmonic tension and brilliance increase until the concerto reaches a fevered pitch of unbridled fury. Richter uses dissonance as a spice, which is sometimes hot and at other times subtle...A 13-minute cadenza section follows in which the soloists are treated as chamber musicians, and each is provided an intensely introspective cadenza. These are preceded by a Trio Cadenza in which the pianist plays the Bach Prelude in its original form, except for beginning in the minor mode. The violinist plays a poignant melody over it, which, intentionally or not, is reminiscent of the Dies Irae from the Requiem Mass, and the cellist provides a slow bass line consisting of the Orfeo chorale. The fusion of these ideas is stunning. With this work, she has proven that there are still composers who have the skill and the ability to capture the hearts and minds of the audience. The Howard Harris saxophone concerto is a cross-over piece between jazz and contemporary idioms. His concept is progressive and a littlle rebellious. Baroque themes are superimposed on the texture of modern jazz progressions creating the effect of simultaneity that resembles works by Charles Ives. The saxophone soloists floats above the mix as a casual commentator. [This piece] makes an excellent companion to Richter's concerto." Dr. Carolyn Broe, Journal of the IAWM [International Alliance for Women in Music] Vol. II, No. 2, 2005.

"Marga Richter has always been one of my favorite composers because of her unswerving pursuit of maximum passion in he rworks. She goes directly for the heart every time and usually hits square on .... I enjoyed the work on first hearing and find it growing on me with each additional hearing .... While [the Howard Harris work] does not aim so deep in feeling as the Richter, this work is very entertaining; you will look forward to hearing it again." Paul Shoemaker, www.musicweb-internaitonal.com

Richter: "The Prologue from Monteverdi's Orfeo was used as the foundation for this set alongside Bach's C Major Prelude from The Well-Tempered Clavier. The always tonal and fresh music runs to a minute more than three-quarters of an hour. It is magnificently serious (Cello Cadenza) and this is completely in keeping with the points of origin. The music is grand (The Var 3a-5), limpid (Chorale 4-6, Tro Cadenza, Piano Cadenza), imaginatively glittering, cold, strange and flightily prim (Violin Cadenza), imperiously urgent (Var. 6-7) and finally serene and rounded in its oratory." Harris: "The music's grave and even melancholic mien fits adroitly with the austere beauties of the Richter. The harpsichord stalks Harris's pages which are sometimes fraught with dense-woven complexity. The synergy and conflict between classical sources and jazz in all its slinky wonderment are sold for all they are worth -- magnificently so at the start of the Quasi Religioso." Rob Barnett, www.musicweb-international.com