Harbison: Symphony No. 3

Without question John Harbison is one of America's most prominent composers. He has been composer-in-residence with the Pittsburgh Symphony, the Los Angeles Philharmonic, the Tanglewood, Marlboro, Aspen, Ojai, and Santa Fe Festivals, and the American Academy in Rome. He is Institute Professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and has taught at Cal Arts and Boston University, is President of the Copland Fund and serves on the board of directors of the Koussevitsky Foundation. The Most Often Used Chords was composed in 1992 for the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra which gave it its first performance on October 22, 1993. The Flute Concerto was composed on a commission from the Wallace Foundation and Meet the Composer for Ransom Wilson. It was premiered on October 29, 1995 with Mr. Wilson and the American Composers' Orchestra under Paul Lustig Dunkel. The Symphony No. 3 was commissioned by the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra and is dedicated to the composer Christopher Rouse. Mr. Harbison has been front and center in America's classical music news recently because of the performances by the Met of his new opera The Great Gatsby. Well, this new disc recorded in the Troy Savings Bank Music Hall in magnificent, warm sound, shows a different aspect of the genius of this great American composer.