Higdon, Jennifer (1962-) - Duo Duel, Concerto for Orchestra : Robert Spano / Houston Symphony - Import CD

Credits:

Higdon, Jennifer (1962-)

Description:

[Pulitzer Prize and Grammy Award-winning composer Jennifer Higdon's exhilarating collection of concertos, America's most sought-after composer] Higdon is a composer praised by the Chicago Sun-Times as "modern yet timeless. She is one of America's most popular composers for her neo-romantic style, which uses melody and harmony effectively, and her skill in writing scores that sound well with the orchestra. His first recording, "Duo Duel," is a single movement work with a playing time of nearly 24 minutes. It is a concerto for two percussionists and orchestra, in which the percussionists' "duel" is intertwined with the orchestra, which sometimes calls for calm, and at other times for intensity and excitement. The Concerto for Orchestra was commissioned to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Philadelphia Orchestra, and was premiered on June 12, 2002, with Wolfgang Sawallisch conducting. It has the same five-movement structure as Bartók's work of the same name, and the virtuosity of the Philadelphia Orchestra's supposedly skilled players is on display throughout.The first movement is full of festive atmosphere, the second movement features strings, the third movement corresponds to the slow movement and allows the soloists to enjoy the solos of each instrument, the fourth movement is impressive with its static and dynamic subject matter and percussion, and the final movement is a masterpiece that fully demonstrates Higdon's mastery of orchestration and energetic sound movements. The final movement, with its energetic sound movement, is a masterpiece that fully demonstrates Higdon's mastery of orchestration. The conductor Spano, who is one year older than Higdon, has been in contact with Higdon from early on, and has been active in promoting Higdon's works. The "Concerto for Orchestra" was re-recorded for the first time since the 2003 Telarc recording. The performance is a masterful one, with a thorough knowledge of every detail of the work. Naxos Japan

Higdon Collection List