Albany TR 1380

Lowell Liebermann: Orchestral Works – BBC Symphony Orchestra, Grant Llewellyn

It is a mistake to generalise about the music of a composer with an œuvre as broad as that of Lowell Liebermann – and not only because his music ranges from a body of widely performed piano works and chamber music, via a pair of acclaimed operas, to the body of works for large orchestra of which this recording presents just a selection. In a single piece, we can hear centuries of music history absorbed into an omnivorous style, from the lyrical melodies and expansive, chromatic harmonies associated with the music of the romantic period to non-tonal, atonal, and even twelve-tone elements. Brilliantly performed by the BBC Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Grant Llewellyn, the works on this recording illuminate Liebermann’s compositional voice. One of America’s most frequently performed and recorded composers, Liebermann has served as composer-in-residence for many organisations, including the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, and was the first composer to win the Composers’ Invitational Award of the Van Cliburn Piano Competition.