AllMusic Review by James Manheim
By James Manheim
The Chicago Reader describes the Grossman Ensemble of the University of Chicago as a new music "lab" or "incubator," working with composers to develop new works. That might be why the present five works all feature similar chamber orchestration, which makes for a degree of sameness, but listen more closely and more details emerge. Each work has a programmatic reference that one might not guess if listening to the music cold, but that illuminates much once it's known. David Dzubay's PHO is unfortunately not about the Vietnamese noodle dish but stands for Potentially Hazardous Objects, celestial bodies that could collide with the Earth. The work captures both the vastness of space and the atmosphere of danger. The works are all atonal and of the present day, but Shulamit Ran's Ground Rounds is one work that cleverly retains links to tradition. As might be expected from the works' genesis, the music here is performed with confidence and fluency. The album may be recommended to those interested in contemporary music for acoustic chamber ensembles.
Read the review on allmusic.com.