In Tuesday’s (3/13) New York Times, Zachary Woolfe writes, “Through its invaluable First Music program, the New York Youth Symphony has commissioned works from more than 100 emerging composers since 1984. The orchestra’s concert on Sunday afternoon at Carnegie Hall brought the premiere of ‘That Blue Repair,’ a kind of mini-concerto by Chris Rogerson. Born in 1988, Mr. Rogerson is just a couple of years older than many of the players, who executed the gleaming piece with confidence, and Jay Campbell, an adventurous cellist and an undergraduate at the Juilliard School, who performed the solo part with subtle power and rich tone. The 10-minute work begins with glistening high strings eventually countered by a gloomy undercurrent. … There are inspired, well-devised touches throughout. As Mr. Campbell went higher and higher up the fingerboard, his line was suddenly taken over by the winds at the same pitch. Mr. Rogerson has a gift for transitions, for moving us from moment to moment, section to section, while maintaining the coherence of the whole.” The program, led by Ryan McAdams, also included Bartok’s Concerto for Orchestra and Mozart’s overture to The Marriage of Figaro.
Posted March 13, 2012
