Audio Review: Collective Brass – In Thy Sweet Name

In Thy Sweet Name
Collective Brass
Bill Owens, Trumpet
Carl Stanley, Trumpet
Drew Mangus, Horn
Alaina Alster, Trombone
Keith Kile, Tuba
Brian Broelmann, Guitar
David Bergman, Percussion

These days it almost seems archaic to record the “standards” of the past. While newly commissioned compositions are encouraged, early music sometimes becomes forgotten. With the modern brass quintet starting around the 1940s, “new” music had to be borrowed – whether it was transcriptions of symphonic pieces or arrangements of familiar, popular songs. One quintet now is taking a step back in time to bring familiar songs back to the forefront of brass music.

Collective Brass, a brass quintet formed by New York musicians, has released their debut album featuring songs and dances for brass, guitar, and percussion from Renaissance Era. The liner notes give an excellent description of this recording:

Taking cues from historical treatises as well as some of our contemporary early music heroes, we have crafted exciting and beautiful arrangements that we love to play.

Music of this era tends to have short compositions with flourishing runs and passing melodies between parts. Collective Brass lives up to their name by cohesively performing these smaller pieces as one unit making sure each part is equally heard but not taking away from the characteristic of the piece. With an enhanced acoustical environment thanks to the St. John’s Episcopal Church in Stamford, Connecticut, Collective Brass fills the cathedral with pleasingly rich reverberation.

Throughout the album, the tuba lays a solid yet delicate foundation for the ensemble while the trumpets (and flugelhorn) add a beautiful blend to these tracks of songs and dances. The horn adds a great punch to articulations when necessary, and the trombone rounds out the ensemble with the precision required for this style of music.

On certain tracks, non-brass instruments such as guitar and percussion, add to the superior arranging that is portrayed throughout this recording. Careful yet excellent attention has been given to the writing of the arrangements to produce a wonderful product.

This delightfully fresh album reminds the listener of recordings of old from the monumental Philip Jones Brass and Empire Brass ensembles that also featured renaissance music. Hopefully, this recording will start a resurgence of Renassaince music performed by brass ensembles. If it is any indication from those pillars of brass ensembles, Collective Brass is well on its way to becoming a reputable ensemble in the brass world.

TRACKS
1. Dances: I. L’andreasina
2. Dances: II. Marchesino
3. Dances: III. Grave
4. Dances: IV. La norsina
5. Dances: V. La zambalina
6. Cornish Dance & Scottish Dance
7. Venetian Canzoni: I. Canzon decimanona
8. Venetian Canzoni: II. Canzon decimaottava
9. Venetian Canzoni: III. Canzon vigesimaterza
10. Bassedance
11. Farewell My Good, Forever
12. Tres Morillas
13. Taedet Anima Mea
14. Tunder Naken
15. Dances: I. Pavane
16. Dances: II. Gailliarde
17. Dances: III. Courente
18. Dances: IV. Allemande
19. Sparge la morte
20. In Thy Sweet Name
21. Four Madrigals: I. Si ch’io vorrei morire
22. Four Madrigals: II. Non piu guerra, pietate
23. Four Madrigals: III. Ah, Dolente Partita
24. Four Madrigals: IV. Quel augellin che canta
25. Canzona Bergamasca

Click here to learn more about the album

Learn more about Collective Brass