Composer Jack Gallagher has produced a pair of symphonies and a body of substantial orchestral works -- an uncommon output for a 21st-century American composer not affiliated with a major symphony orchestra. In that sense, Gallagher's Symphony No. 2 ("Ascendant"), composed between 2010 and 2013, is a welcome novelty in the contemporary music landscape even as it is an example of a traditional form. The subtitle accurately conveys a sweeping, even heroic quality with a notable lack of sentiment. Gallagher's symphonic ...
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Composer Jack Gallagher has produced a pair of symphonies and a body of substantial orchestral works -- an uncommon output for a 21st-century American composer not affiliated with a major symphony orchestra. In that sense, Gallagher's Symphony No. 2 ("Ascendant"), composed between 2010 and 2013, is a welcome novelty in the contemporary music landscape even as it is an example of a traditional form. The subtitle accurately conveys a sweeping, even heroic quality with a notable lack of sentiment. Gallagher's symphonic language here has elements of Copland and Stravinsky, but is unmistakably of a more modern era than either of those. The work is full of brilliant brass and wind writing, alternating with quieter episodes and put together into simple but effective arch and basic sonata shapes. The writing is virtuosic enough to require a top-notch ensemble, and the London Symphony excels here, likely because of the presence of American conductor JoAnn Falletta, a specialist in just this sort of thing. The...
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![Gallagher: Symphony No. 2 [Joann Falletta, London Symphony Orchestra ] [Naxos: 8559768]](https://www4.alibris-static.com/cover/o00545wako8_t.jpg)
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