Renowned for its high energy and finely polished style, the Center City Brass Quintet comprises well-known soloists and leading players in America’s top orchestras who convene regularly and who perform a diverse range of musical styles with equal command. This is the fifth disc Center City Brass (named after the downtown district of Philadelphia where the ensemble was founded in 1985 by students of the prestigious Curtis Institute of music) has released on Chandos. Listeners have all been bowled over by the ensemble’s phenomenal technique. Not surprisingly, Center City Brass has appeared on radio and television broadcasts throughout the United States.

Fifth and last in the present series from the ensemble.

This recording features five works written by American composers, plus one named after Chandos’ home town of Colchester..



Anthony DiLorenzo, a founding member of Center City Brass, composed Fire Dance for the ensemble in 1996. He used his knowledge of the particular abilities of the ensemble in writing the piece. It was his intention, he said ‘to compose a short piece that challenged each of us, was fun to play, and showcased the talents and virtuosity of the Quintet’.
The conductor, composer and pianist Michael Tilson Thomas composed Street Song in 1988 for his father, Ted who was, he says, ‘the central musical influence of my life. The sounds of his night-time improvisations echo in the work’.
André Previn’s eclectic career as a symphony conductor, jazz pianist, composer and Hollywood orchestrator epitomises the life of an American musician. His varied musical background is made evident in his Four Outings for Brass which utilises numerous musical styles to feature the virtuosic capabilities of the brass instruments.
US composer Eric Ewazen is one of the most prolific contemporary composers of music for brass instruments. He wrote his Colchester Fantasy for brass quintet while he was teaching at the Estherwood Festival in Colchester, England. Each of the four movements is named after an old Colchester pub – The Rose and Crown, The Marquis of Granby, The Dragoon and The Red Lion. The names, he said, ‘brought to my mind images of ancient and historical traditions, and impressions of the grandeur and majesty of times past. The beer was good, too!’
Leonard Bernstein’s last published work was Dance Suite for brass quintet. The work was written for the 50th Anniversary Gala of the American Ballet Theater. Each of the movements is dedicated to a choreographer: Antony Tudor, Agnes DeMille, Mikhail Baryshnikov, George Balanchine and Jerome Robbins. The final movement includes an optional part for drumset which is included on this recording.

Noted for their versatility and polish style, this is one of the best brass quintets around… Center City Brass prove yet again they are one of the leading exponents of brass chamber music. Their sensual playing has warmth, passion and style…
'A clutch of America's versatile musical luminaries, Bernstein, Tilson Thomas and Previn, are celebrated in Center City Brass's dazzling new recital of brass quintet works.'
…even Felix [Mendelssohn]s jaw might have hit the ground in disbelief at the astonishing precision of their playing. American orchestras are generally fabled for their brassy brilliance, but in Cleveland, Ohio, the men obrass are evidently something else again. Sparkling runs, impeccable chording, sensitive nuancing between foreground and background, sweep phrasing, a faultless balance in an ideal acoustic'

---