Reviews of blue cathedral
"...Higdon (b.1962) composed a short 13-minute journey that fascinates and inspires, in a mid-20th century American style."
-- William Furtwangler, The Post and Courier (Charleston, SC)
"'blue cathedral' produced an otherwordly atmosphere of floating sound, yet the work never seemed directionless. The work opened with very soft bell-like sounds and quiet solos beautifully played... As the work gained intensity many of the orchestra principal players also joined with impressive solos. At the height of wave of sound, the celestial quiet of the beginning returned... The work was wonderfully effective besides being friendly to the ear."
-- Travis Rivers, The Spokesman-Review (Spokane, WA)
"Higdon is one of America's hottest young composers, and 'blue cathedral' is among the most daring and inventive new compositions to surface in years. According to the American Symphony Orchestra League, 'blue cathedral' is the most-performed contemporary work in America. It is easy to see why."
-- Bob Keyes, Portland Press Herald (Portland, ME)
"POIGNANT NEW OFFERING" [headline]
"Next came the Bay Area premiere of Jennifer Higdon's 'blue cathedral'. Steven Ledbetter's program notes state that 'blue cathedral' has become Jennifer Higdon's 'most frequently performed score' and no one who hears it will need to ask why.' Just a few of the reasons the work is attractive include its transparent orchestration, melodiousness and concision. Magical!"
-- Norman Krieger, San Francisco Classical Voice (San Francisco, CA)
"HIGDON'S 'BLUE CATHEDRAL' STILL SOUNDS FRESH" [headline]
"The piece needs no introduction. It defies analysis and might be unexplainable. Having loved it since its 2000 premiere by the Curtis Institute of Music Symphony Orchestra (which commissioned it), I wanted first-timers to enjoy the music's beguiling succession of sounds with fresh, un-coached ears. And I think they did.
Though its language arises from Aaron Copland's pastoral works, 'blue cathedral' seems completely devoid of contrivance, even with novel percussion effects such as little Chinese balls jingling subtly in the final moments. Listeners don't need to know that 'blue cathedral' was written as a memorial for Higdon's deceased brother: You're so enveloped by the grief, hope and intuitive musical invention welling up through the rich orchestration that you might not remember many specific details about the music from one hearing to the next. I've heard it a lot, and though it's hardly dense or difficult, every encounter feels like a new one."
-- David Patrick Stearns, The Philadelphia Inquirer (Philadelphia, PA)
"'blue cathedral' is a potent experience, awash in facile orchestrations and an engaging sense of journey."
-- Peter Dobrin, The Philadelphia Inquirer (Philadelphia, PA)
"Higdon's 'blue cathedral' made us marvel at the process of creation. It is intriguing and serene, evoking the pastorale naivete of Copland and the crystalline harmonies of Ravel, while sounding utterly of our time."
-- Pierre Ruhe, Atlanta Journal-Constitution (Atlanta, GA)
"The first [movement], 'SkyLine' harks back to similar urban soundscapes by Aaron Copland, William Schuman and Samuel Barber, but carries its own churning energy. The second, 'river sings a song to trees', is particular original; fluttering, shimmering sounds gradually give way to several haunting, primal-sounding themes building to a well-developed climax. Some woodwind chorales evoke Barber, but this piece, at the very least, should have an active life of its own after these initial premieres."
-- Robert Battey, The Washington Post (Washington, DC)
"'SkyLine' is a lively, inventive concert opener by Jennifer Higdon... she really knows how to write idiomatically for a large orchestra-to make the instruments really sound. 'SkyLine' has a strong rhythmic propulsion, witty orchestral effects, and a refreshing sense of vigor and optimism. Spano gave a dynamic, beautifully detailed reading to this masterful vignette."
-- Lawrence Budmen, Coral Gables Gazette (Coral Gables, FL)
"...this work ['SkyLine'] has a hard finish, driving rhythms and minimal melody…is effective nonetheless."
-- Gayle Williams, Sarasota Herald-Tribune (Sarasota, FL)
"The first movement [of 'City Scape'], 'SkyLine,' bolts from the gate and moves forward with jaunty, propulsive optimism. Even when the mood grows calm, there's a sense of motion, an unstoppable pulse - an anticipation that something grand is about to happen. Throughout the movement, percussion is almost always the most prominent section - not to create exotic sounds but to accent, to underline, to magnify the moment. The movement ends with cresting excitement. And it's all done without gloom or wink-wink irony. Higdon is, like, totally over the postmodern experience.
"[In the second movement,] the mood grows somber yet more plaintive and plain-spoken than 'deep'. No, this is innocent, almost childlike expression, without wisdom but unburdended by bitter world-weariness. Simple. Direct. There are also Aaron Copland-style windswept, open harmonies - identifiable Americana ... Higdon's expressive force is sincere, comforting and quite disarming.
"The rondo finale [is] ... forward-propelled and jumpy, with nifty interludes of all-percussion, or that sound like neo-classical Stravinsky. A fugue-like ending takes the symphony to a cheery climax."
-- Pierre Ruhe, Atlanta Journal-Constitution (Atlanta, GA)
"Both the [Concerto for Orchestra] and City Scape - Higdon's three-panel portrait of Atlanta - are expansive yet tautly constructed. Every climax is well-placed, and she seems to know exactly when the ear requires novelty or comfort. This is particularly evident in 'river sings a song to trees', the 17-minute central movement of City Scape. A kind of urbane/pastoral tone poem, its atmosphere is essentially lyrical, but the composer progressively ratchets up the tension to create a surprisingly rugged emotional landscape. The more concise outer movements are exuberant and spiky, in the manner of the concerto's finale. All in all, it's a picture of the city that's surprisingly gritty (and mercifully short on Southern charm). Again, the performance is vividly characterised. Kudos to Telarc for giving us this impressive sample of an extraordinarily gifted composer."
-- Andrew Farach-Colton, Grammophone (review of recording of City Scape and Concerto for Orchestra by the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, Telarc 80620)Reviews of Concerto for Orchestra
"This high-energy showcase...deserves a place in standard orchestral repertoire."
-- Winnipeg Free Press (Winnipeg, MB, Canada)
"While there were whiffs of earlier pieces, including Bartók, in Higdon’s concerto, she goes her own way persuasively and to a rousing conclusion. Her music wins new friends for new music."
-- Pittsburgh Tribune (Pittsburgh, PA)
"When one sees the title Concerto for Orchestra, most people immediately associate it with Bartók. Well, move over Bela, you're going to have some competition from now on, because Jennifer Higdon has usurped your title and may surpass even you."
-- Jeffrey Rossman, Classical Voice of North Carolina
"It is rare to witness a big new orchestral piece being acclaimed as Jennifer Higdon's 'Concerto for Orchestra' was cheered on Friday after its first British performance... The most impressive aspect is the panache with which a huge orchestra is deployed... This colourful, ever-changing intrumental panoply is doubtless one reason why the work makes an instant impression... Higdon's work is traditionally rooted yet imbued with integrity, freshness and a desire to entertain. A promising mixture. More, please."
-- Richard Morrison, The Times (London, England)
"After decades in which writing orchestral music to please was frowned upon, along comes Jennifer Higdon's 'Concerto for Orchestra', with enough persuasive arguments to give populism a good name. This was its UK premiere... and a fine impression it made thanks to Higdon's tingling sonorities, superb technical confidence and bright, blazing energy."
-- Andrew Clark, Financial Times
"If her [Concerto for Orchestra]'s ecstatic reception here is any indication, Higdon might prove to be one of the new composers who can bridge that old East Coast/West Coast divide, appealing to listeners who crave gritty, challenging sounds as well as to those who don't mind a good tune.
"...the distinguishing feature of Higdon's pulsating piece is its rhythmic propulsiveness and variety. It's direct without being simplistic, consciously giving listeners aural treats without pandering. Like its creator, the Concerto is unapologetically fun, and it utterly won over the surprsingly large audience. Its constant pulse pulled the listeners along, and Higdon's artful orchestration kept the melodies and structure easily divined.
"The piece rockets off to a big, sweeping start, with gestures reminiscent of Leonard Bernstein's orchestral works. The second movement shows off the string section, while the skilled and tuneful writing for brass in the third movement is reminiscent of Alan Hovhaness. But it's the fourth movement's percussion fusillade that won the most attention, adeptly contrasting the instruments' varied textures. The finale was flat-out thrilling, as the rest of the orchestra joined in, the musicians visibly counting through the rapidly morphing meters whizzing by, deftly negotiating the score's hairpin turns, and neatly nailing one of the most breathtaking endings I've ever heard in a concert hall. Standing ovations are too common in Eugene, but this one was immediate, enthusiastic and obviously sincere. I can see why critics consider the Concerto Higdon's masterpiece-in the original sense of the word as a work that marks a composer's transition from promising to proven."
-- Brett Campbell, Andante.com
"HIGDON, LANG LEAVE KENNEDY CENTER MARK" [headline]
"Two powerhouses swept through the Kennedy Center concert Hall Thursday night-composer Jennifer Higdon and pianist Lang Lang, the featured attractions on this week's National Symphony program. Each left a long-lasting impression.
Higdon's 'Concerto for Orchestra' is a five-movement score that easily stakes a claim as one of the most inventive and substantive additions to American music in years... the array of sound colors never ceases to grab the ear, while the brilliant working-out of ideas never ceases to impress.
Stylistically, the Philadelphia-based Higdon comes down firmly on the side of tonalists, but she also knows her way around a spiky dissonance. Reminders of many a 20th-century composer may float to the surface of the concerto from time to time, but the net effect of her writing is decidedly original."
-- Tim Smith, The Baltimore Sun (Baltimore, MD)
"This [Concerto for Orchestra] is a substantial and often exciting 35-minute piece in five movements that calls to mind, in passing, the music of Igor Stravinsky, Aaron Copland, Olivier Messiaen and Steve Reich without really sounding like any of them. The concerto maintains close ties to the tonal center-there are dissonances aplenty but they seem decorative, rather than the main lingo of the piece-yet it is distinctly modern in its sensibility. The fourth movement, scored for percussion alone, ha some of the luminous mystery that is so winning in Carl Orff's 'Musica Poetica,' and the finale concludes with one of those propulsive, brashly energetic ticktocks that seem designed to impel listeners to their feet.
"Higdon is a savvy, sensitive composer with a keen ear, an innate sense of form and a generous dash of pure esprit at her disposal. Her concerto kept a listener's attention throughout."
-- Tim Page, The Washington Post (Washington, DC)
"'CONCERTO FOR ORCHESTRA' DEBUT SHIMMERS" [headline]
"[Jennifer Higdon's] Concerto for Orchestra has shamelessly ecstatic climaxes, scintillating interplay among instruments, and an orchestration that delivers wave after heart-stopping wave of intoxicating color.... While traditional symphonic pieces represent a circular journey, dropping you near where you started, Higdon's concerto never retraces its steps, going further and further afield beyond places where most ears have previously traveled. Written in five movements, the concerto begins with a hectic, purely orchestral curtain-raiser before heading into thickets of pizzicato strings and continuing with a series of cat-and-mouse duets among the oboes, flutes and bassoon. The fourth movement for only percussion and harp eventually does away with melody completely, inhabiting [a] celestial world of pure, often haunting color."
-- David Patrick Stearns, The Philadelphia Inquirer (Philadelphia, PA)
"Echoes of Barber as well as Copland were also present in the music of Jennifer Higdon, whose swaggering five-movement Concerto for Orchestra spoke with a certain midcentury populist flare. Different movements highlighted each of the various sections of the orchestra, including an inventive, vaguely Eastern-sounding interlude for solo percussion. Ms. Higdon writes with confidence, and in this piece she dangerously courts bombast without actually crossing the line."
-- Jeremy Eichler, The New York Times (New York City, NY)
"In Higdon's Concerto for Orchestra... she seems to have found her own symphonic voice. Her language is still conservative and tonal, and her models are apparent, from Ravel and Bartok to Bernstein.
"But the sweepingly urgent rocket ride of the opening movement is astonishing. She can shift focus in an instant, from gargantuan wave to fragrant flower of sound, and never loses the listener. A pizzacato'd second movement and nifty percussion-only fourth movement shows mastery of rare order. With her Concerto for Orchestra, Higdon has catapulted herself over the great horde of ambitious young composers. At 41, she's become one of America's elite. Everyone will want a piece of her."
-- Pierre Ruhe, Atlanta Journal-Constitution (Atlanta, GA)
"The Concerto for Orchestra (2002) takes up where Bartok left off, with whirling strings and buzzing brass. And Higdon follows Bartok's five-movement model, too, though the details are quite different. The fourth movement is a showcase for percussion that begins slowly, with music of exquisite, almost ghostly, delicacy - like celestial clockwork - then grows steadily in density, volume and velocity, bringing us directly into the vigorous finale.
"One expects a concerto to be virtuosic, and Higdon peppers this one with solos for the first-desk players, while also offering plenty of opportunity for more general orchestral muscle flexing. The Atlanta [Symphony Orchestra] musicians dig into the music with gusto, and [conductor] Robert Spano gives a strong sense of the score's structural cogency without sacrificing colour or character."
-- Andrew Farach-Colton, Grammophone (review of recording of City Scape and Concerto for Orchestra by the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, Telarc 80620)
"Higdon's Walt Whitman setting in her piece 'Dooryard Bloom' for baritone and orchestra is her freshest and most consistently inventive work yet."
-- The Philadelphia Inquirer (Philadelphia, PA)
"For a new work to share a program with the Ninth [Symphony of Beethoven] and not be overwhelmed by it takes some doing: even works by Bach, in that context, have been made into also-rans... But her 24-minute setting for baritone and orchestra held its own, with sections of it re-surfacing in memory well after the concert ended..."
-- Allan Kozinn, The New York Times (New York City, NY)
"Dooryard Bloom... is among the composer's most intimate and searching works to date... [It] evokes Copland at the start but soon settles into a darker, sometimes chilling examination of death, life and the hereafter."
-- Pierre Ruhe, Atlanta Journal Constitution (Atlanta, GA)
"Serving as an ideal kickoff was a suitably kinetic version of 'Fanfare Ritmico' by Jennifer Higdon, a hot composer of the moment... Surging, clipped passages punctuate, intersect and overlap each other in this five-minute work, which, as its title suggests, is infused with a propulsive rhythmic drive fueled by the piano and an array of drums."
-- Kyle MacMillan, Denver Post (Denver, CO)
"Fanfare Ritmico... full of percussive boldness and ingenious rhythmic interplay."
-- John Rockwell, The New York Times (New York City, NY)
"The sole spark of modernism was Jennifer Higdon's 'Fanfare,' a triumphant shout of rhythmically interwined but straight ahead orchestral jamming. Sneakily paced passages led into abrupt punches of color, which in turn introduced further suspenseful stuttering. Densely layered yet clearly marked textures were abundant. The orchestra kept cresting against punctuations of long, fevered episodes, until a choral theme broke out amongst the crowd. Yet this turn of melody offered no release, until it came in the flick of the tip of conductor Apo Hsu's baton on the very final beat. 'Fanfare' was not just the sole contemporary work, it also was the high point of the show in every regard."
-- Thomas Goss, San Francisco Classical Voice (San Francisco, CA)
"['Fanfare Ritmico'] drew the most enthusiastic applause of the afternoon and demonstrated just how unproblematic and how uneventful it has become to have a good, independent selection by a woman nestled in among three male heavyweights (Copland, Antheil, and Sessions)."
-- Barry L. Cohen, New Music Connoisseur
"Friday [July] the 13th [2001] proved lucky for young American composer Jennifer Higdon, whose lively 'Fanfare Ritmico' received a vigorous performances by the Cleveland Orchestra that night at the Blossom Music Center. Conducted by Kay George Roberts, 'Fanfare Ritmico' transcended the form implied by its title and ws revealed as virtually a pocket concerto for orchestra, replete with colorful and tricky passage work for ensemble and first-deskers alike. 'Fanfare's' post-modern tonal idiom connected well with the audience. Written in 1999, Higdon's driving toccata tips its hat to the middle-of-the-road modernism of Stravinsky and Lutoslawski, but it never strays far from the sound that identifies it as American."
-- Mark Satola, The Cleveland Plain Dealer (Cleveland, OH)
"Light began softly with upward-moving shards of subtly suggestive upper string flecks of sound, before the light grows progressively stronger. Once all sections have entered, the orchestral writing is full and shining..."
-- Erick Eriksson, Peninsula Pulse (Sister Bay, WI)
"...'Loco' is fearsomely here and now, its rhythmic intensity as super-heated as the sparks flying from the locomotive's driving wheels. As a salute to mechanical movement, this intensely-drafted piece will take its place along side famous works by Honegger and Adams. Nothing could supply more sit-up-and-take-notice beginning for a concert experience."
-- Erik Eriksson, Northeast Wisconsin Music Review
"'Loco' is a highly energetic and amply virtuostic. It's not so crazy as to leave the tracks and builds to a climax that delighted the audience."
-- Mark Kanny, Pittsburgh Tribune-Review (Pittsburgh, PA)
"The fanfare-like work filled every nook and cranny with rhythmic pulsing and walls of sound...it metaphorically captures the thrill of both being on a powerful train and watching one go by, alternating between both views (complete with wonderful Doppler effect brass calls)."
-- Andrew Druckenbrod, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (Pittsburgh, PA)
"Evoking both a hurtling locomotive and crazy momentum, 'Loco' was full of vivid detail."
-- Wynne Delacoma, The Chicago Sun-Times (Chicago, IL)Reviews of Machine
"The concert ended with 'Machine' ... one long, loud, freight-train crescendo with hellishly snapping winds and jumping-bean rhythms, and it sweeps relentlessly forward for just under three minutes, then stops on a dime. For sheer unpretentious fun it was just the ticket."
-- Ronald Brown, The Washington Post (Washington, DC)Reviews of Oboe Concerto
"HIGDON'S NEW OBOE CONCERTO PRODUCES STANDING OVATION" [headline]
"[Higdon's] Oboe Concerto shares the shimmering beauty and rhythmic playfulness of many of her other works. The concerto, in fact, seems infused with the beauty of its solo instrument. Higdon seems to address that quality. She opens and closes the work with a sustained note in the oboe’s middle register. It’s a striking opening, as if to say just a single note on this instrument can enchant -- and it does."
--- Michael Anthony, Minneapolis Star Tribune (Minneapolis, MN)Reviews of Percussion Concerto
"[Higdon's] Percussion Concerto is a significant contribution to new music."
-- Nuvo Weekly (Indianapolis, IN)
"Higdon... now offers a concerto that is both a technical showcase for the percussion soloist and intriguing to listeners for its dramatic scene-setting, its textural combinations and its dialogs."
-- The Indianapolis Star (Indianapolis, IN)
"Ms. Higdon aims to please in her colorful, propulsive and unabashedly accessible 25-minute concerto. The performance elicited a cheering ovation for the extraordinary percussion soloist, Colin Currie, and for the composer."
--- Anthony Tommasini, The New York Times (New York City, NY)
"Higdon's Percussion Concerto is of an amazing high quality and beautiful. Her sounds are original and in a word perfect."
--- John Clare, classicallyhip.blogspot.com
"What Higdon delivered was an expertly paced, brilliantly scored frolic that challenges the soloist, shows him off at his best and makes exemplary use of a modern orchestra's resources, along the lines of a Rouse or Joseph Schwantner. It will surely go down well with audiences, regardless of age or musical sophistication."
--- Steve Smith, nightafternight.blogs.com
"The concerto is like a machine whose gears and pistons are its most entrancing qualities. But the oft-awarded, Grammy-nominated Higdon isn't the sort to write a piece that's nothing but pounding. The slow movement had wave after wave of ecstatic, intense color, with sound shapes created by bowing cymbals. Broad, Coplandesque melodies commanded the ear, though everything around them went in unexpected directions."
--- David Patrick Stearns, The Philadelphia Inquirer (Philadelphia, PA)
"The Philadelphia Orchestra gave the New York premiere of a new percussion concerto by the swashbuckling composer Jennifer Higdon, and when it was over the audience jumped and thundered, which was precisely the point. You might think that all composers crave that kind of enthusiasm, but Higdon's sparking, high-wire score is precisely calibrated to elicit shouts.... It's why this grand display of noise took place within a classical, familiar framework and why the orchestra galloped towards its final burst of D-major with Beethovenian vigor. Higdon knows with an impresario's certainty how to let an audience have fun."
--- Justin Davidson, Newsday
"Best new piece of 1996: There were terrific new works by veterans, but there was also an intriguing newcomer: Philadelphia-based Jennifer Higdon, 33, who teaches at the Curtis Institute of Music. Her orchestral work 'Shine' was heard at Indiana State University's Festival of Contemporary Music, and it bubbles over with color, rhythm, high spirits and invention, often sounding like Bartok's 'Concerto for Orchestra' at warp speed but with a personality of its own."
-- David Patrick Stearns, USA TODAY
"The extraordinary evening of primarily contemporary compositions featured three world premieres commissioned by the symphony as part of its centennial celebration.... The most fully realized of the three premieres was Jennifer Higdon's exuberant 'Shine.' Higdon set out to compress all of the zest and energy of life into a 10-minute piece. She succeeded, creating a bright, densely layered work that demonstrated her remarkable abilities as an orchestrator. The symphony gave 'Shine' a dynamic, cohesive reading, powered by striking solo writing for strings and playful percussion.... Even those patrons who are a little allergic to contemporary music should have found much to enjoy in the program."
-- Kip Richardson, The Oregonian
"Jennifer Higdon's 'Soliloquy' is songful and soulful."
-- New Music ConnisseurReviews of Soprano Sax Concerto
"The concert's highlight concluded its first half: Jennifer Higdon's Soprano Sax Concerto (2005-2006). This was a rewrite of her 2005 Oboe Concerto (which I have not heard), and it was superbly realized by soloist Timothy McAllister.
"The single-movement concerto consisted of long stretches of ever-evolving melisma, with phrases cleverly imitated by other solo instruments in a way that seemed to weave a tapestry to the glory of melody. This work, and perhaps the oboe concerto as well, is a significant testament to beauty."
-- San Francisco Classical Voice (San Francisco, CA)
"It was Higdon's concerto that offered the most sublime musical moments on the program... It's scored for [soprano] sax and is an extremely lyrical piece whose ideas are clear and free of musical meandering... The work was played with warmth and agility by saxophonist Timothy McAllister, and Higdon smartly capitalized on the power of the [soprano] sax as counterpoint to a small orchestra. What resulted was a tasty balance, with an almost pastoral feel to the work."
-- Sacbee.com
To order a Press Kit, please contact
Lawdon Press