Philip Glass - The Concerto Project Vol. I (2004)

The lush harmonies and rhapsodic lyricism of Philip Glass' mature works may attract many listeners, especially those who enjoy his warm, neo-Romantic music more than his hard-edged, minimalist pieces of the 1970s. Both the Concerto for cello and orchestra and the Concerto Fantasy for two tympanists and orchestra offer grand ideas in their expansive forms, and the music in both works is passionate and sweeping. However, a murkiness hovers over these performances on CD, and the cause of this may be assigned variously to the participants. Glass himself deserves a portion for his over-rich orchestration, in which the instrumental choirs are often layered, bass lines are heavily thickened, and precious little room is left in the middle for his soloists to resonate. Julian Lloyd Webber's cello is practically absorbed in the wall of sound, and his lack of an edge makes his part even harder to make out. The dual tympani parts of Evelyn Glennie and Jonathan Haas are difficult to distinguish from the orchestral welter; indeed, they rumble as a steady roar under the flashy tutti, except in the cadenza, where they are isolated. The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, under Gerard Schwarz, is bland and weakly defined, and Orange Mountain's recording fails to create a sense of space and placement.

Review by Blair Sanderson, Allmusic.com

I still remember the incredible sensation I felt one night listening to Philip Glass' "Concerto Fantasy for Two Timpanists and Orchestra" for the first time on my car radio.

It happend about a year ago. After dining at Hooters in Santa Monica with some of my drumline friends, I hopped back into my car, turned on the engine, and all the sudden, the sound of timpani filled the car! I mean LOTS and LOTS of it! Listening to the orchestral accompaniment, I knew it was a concerto piece… a very modern concerto piece. The music was simply mesmerizing, with the orchestra playing rather refreshingly consonant chords, while the drums were struck all over the place, at times arpeggiating, and at times singing the melody. It either had to be a soloist playing so many drums, or even two playing them.

I simply had to know what this strange new piece was, so I listened throughout my whole drive on the dark highways and freeways back home. Lasting pretty long, I knew I must have listened from the first movement. As the music progressed, there was a slower movement, the followed by a huge cadenza featuring the timpani, before another fast movement. By the time I reached home, the music came to an exhilirating close, and listened like an eager student… "Concerto Fantasy for Two Timpanists and Orchestra by Philip Glass ("Philip Glass? Really?", the soloists being Jonathan Haas and Evelyn Glennie ("Evelyn Glennie? I know her!"), with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic under Gerald Schwartz."

I never hesistated by buy the album featuring this work. It only took days for me to find the right album with the right performers (well, this IS the only performance so far, being a premiere recording).

As a percussionist (with timpani being my favorite instrument), I bought this album just for the Timpani piece… obviously. Based on the booklet, the soloists Jonathan Haas (dubbed the "Paganini of Timpani") and Evelyn Glennie (probably THE best percussionist in the world), played on seven drums each, so that's FOURTEEN total! The work did prove a challenge to the performers, but the recording came out very well.

If you love timpani, then you'll absolutely love this work. Guaranteed! I truly cherish the work, and I am hoping to play it in the future to show my obsession with my favorite percussion instrument.

Review by Shota Hanai, Amazon.com

Exact Audio Copy V1.0 beta 1 from 15. November 2010

EAC extraction logfile from 13. September 2011, 21:08

Philip Glass / The Concerto Project Vol. I

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Analyzed: Philip Glass / The Concerto Project Vol. I
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DR Peak RMS Duration Track
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DR15 -0.31 dB -19.98 dB 9:54 01-Concerto for Cello and Orchestra - Movement I
DR13 -5.85 dB -23.04 dB 14:02 02-Concerto for Cello and Orchestra - Movement II
DR11 -0.31 dB -16.00 dB 6:51 03-Concerto for Cello and Orchestra - Movement III
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DR10 -0.23 dB -13.96 dB 4:37 06-Concerto Fantasy for Two Timpanists and Orchestra - Cadenza
DR8 -0.29 dB -10.96 dB 5:56 07-Concerto Fantasy for Two Timpanists and Orchestra - Movement III
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