Brooklyn Wind Symphony (3/14/26)

Saxophone Spring Showcase 

Danse Macabre – Camille Saint Saëns, arr. Dannel Espinoza 
Comets – Jun Nagao 
The Planets, Op. 32: Jupiter – Gustav Holst, arr. Jared Waters 
Give Me Hunger – Stacy Garrop 
Serenade No. 2 Op. 44 – Antonin Dvorak, arr. Frederick R. Heyburn 

I. Moderato quasi marcia; II. Minuetto; III. Andante con moto; IV. Finale 

First, the players. Eleven saxophonists – three soprano, three alto, two tenor, two baritone, one bass. The first piece was played by all eleven. All the pieces except the second included all eleven, making an interesting, imposing sound. This was a fun piece with the melody tossed around to the different ranges of the saxophones. There was also the same melody slightly altered in a middle section before returning to the original and ending the piece. 

The second was a quartet. If memory serves, it was soprano, two altos, and a tenor. The music was relatively modern but still fairly melodic, though it was also a little harsh at times. 

The Holst was very familiar to me and probably would be to you, too. It was nicely jolly (its subtitle is the Bringer of Jollity). It also had tricky rhythms that were executed very well. 

The fourth work was originally written for the all-male vocal group Chanticleer. As a vocal piece, it had text from a Carl Sandburg poem that dealt with angst tempered with joy and tenderness, and the poem was read onstage before we got into the saxophone version. It was modern—a few more dissonances than the Nagao, above. A tender section followed that began very sweetly while still including the dissonances. Parts of the chordal section (I could easily envision this part being sung) were quite pretty, bordering on the majestic. 

The Serenade was also familiar to me; it’s nice greeting old friends again. The first movement was solid and straightforward with a gentle second section. Then it built in volume and intensity before returning to the opening march but ending quietly. The second had a pleasant dance-like feel that then turned into a more energetic dance. It was rather long, but it held my interest just fine. The third movement had pretty themes and was lovely to listen to. It started out with nice rhythms and tunes—quite soothing even though the sound was full. The intensity was upped before being drawn back just a bit, ending quietly. The final movement had an energetic opening, then became pretty rollicking before calming down. This was followed by a return to the opening theme of the movement and building to a bang-up ending. 

It took a little getting used to the idea of a saxophone ensemble, but if you ever get the chance to hear one, grab on to it! 

ConcertMeister