Urban Requiem
John Dee (horn), Lucas Drew (double bass), David Fernandez (saxophone), Tom McCormick (saxophone), Stephen Welsh (saxophone), George Weremchuk (saxophone), University of Miami Wind Ensemble, Gary D. Green
It is good news whenever a major work by Michael Colgrass comes into the catalog and Urban Requiem is a major work, lasting almost a half hour. In 1978, Colgrass won the Pulitzer Prize. His musical style contains strains of jazz, poetic quiet and rich Orchestral colors. This new work, Urban Requiem was commissioned by Gary Green and this Miami Organization. They gave it its world premiere. As they say today, Michael Daugherty is a "hot" composer with his own disc on Argo with Zinman and Baltimore. Motown Metal was premiered by the Detroit Chamber Winds in February 1994. It was inspired by the rhythms of industrial Detroit: city of automobile clamor, the 60s Motown sound and the 90s techno beat. It features instruments made only of metal. The late Swedish-born, German composer Ingolf Dahl (who eventually settled in the United States and taught at USC until his death), originally composed his Hymn and Toccata for piano solo. John Boyd from Indiana State University prepared the current band Orchestration. Clarke McAlister has written a variety of music for solo instruments, Chamber ensembles and concert band. Currently, he is editor-in-chief of Edwin E. Kalmus and Company and Masters Music Publications. He is quite prominent in Florida music circles. The University of Miami Wind Ensemble consists of the finest wind and percussion students at the University of Miami. Its director, Gary Green, is associate professor of music and director of bands at the University.
Track Listing
| Title | Composer | Performer |
|---|---|---|
| Urban Requiem | Michael Colgrass | University of Miami Wind Ensemble, Gary Green, conductor, David Fernandez, Tom McCormick Stephen Welsh, George Weremchuk, saxophones |
| Hymn | Ingolf Dahl | University of Miami Wind Ensemble, Gary Green, conductor |
| Motown Metal | Michael Daugherty | University of Miami Wind Ensemble, Gary Green, conductor |
| Elega para Quijote y Quijana | Clarke McAlister | University of Miami Wind Ensemble, Gary Green, conductor, John Dee, English horn, Lucas Drew, double bass |
Reviews
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"This rambunctious collection of new music demonstrates the powerful invasion of "classical"territory by American popular music. For better or worse, rock is beginning to be a real influence in art music, whether in the collages of Klause Konig or the rock-band rhythms of Steve Marland and Steve Mackey. Here, Michael Daugherty's Motown Metal combines 60s rock with a "90s techno beat"to evoke the noisy energy of Detroit. Sounds awful, I know, but Daugherty's multiple brass slides and revved-up percussion make a compelling racket. By not taking itself too seriously and not going on too long,, Motown Metal manages to be fun.Mystical, and compelling altogether is the earliest piece, Ingolf Dahl's 1947 Hymn for piano, heard here in a skillful wind transcription by John Boyd of Indiana State University.The recording is dry, close-up, and incredibly immediate. Cymbals, high brass, and percussion erupt with great brilliance; the bass drum in the Colgrass piece is awesome. In repertory and recorded sound, the whole thing reminds me of Frederick Fennell's Mercury Living Presence LPs I loved as a kid. I have no idea whether this music will stand the test of time. For now, it's a real kick."
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