I heard a terrific new recording of Georgia State University’s recent performance of AVENUE X, with Robert Ambrose’s Symphonic Wind Ensemble. Man, this piece is coming along. The more I hear it, the more it’s starting to come to life for me. This performance specifically is a new high—it simply smokes. The ensemble plays with intense ferocity, and it just brings out the best in the piece. The “Side-Show” section in particular (that’s a near-climactic section about 3/4 of the way through, screaming carnival-like idioms and a parade atmosphere), stopped me dead in my tracks. I went back to it several times (wait, rewind!), stunned. I could hear everything. The flutes wailing their freaky carousel-music, the slide whistle, the trilling winds … all the stuff I had thought I had mistakenly buried in the orchestration, balanced out for the world to hear. Really, crazy good stuff.
If you like that kind of thing, that is. And I do. Louder Faster Higher, and all that. Thank goodness for metallic instruments.
When an EQd / mastered version arrives, I will share, of course.
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