“… The pieces ranging from solemn to exultant are nearly all short – most less than two minutes – and are magnificently played… Although probably not an album you are going to listen to at one sitting, it is an imaginative issue, with 48 premiere recordings and the customary fine Chandos sound quality and booklet notes.”

Recording of the Month

“This really is a superb disc – a veritable box of delights or a horn(!) of plenty… John Wilson proves himself to be a deft and intelligent interpreter of this music which he allows to push on in flamboyant display or swagger with burnished grandeur as the mood demands. The playing of the expanded Onyx brass is of exactly the right kind of easy virtuosity and blazing brilliance. As mentioned, the liner is full of useful and valuable information about both composers and music. St Jude-on-the-hill is an ideal recording venue lending the ensemble richness without undue resonance. The Chandos SA-CD 5.0 engineering (I listened in SA-CD stereo) is very good, being truthful without any added excess glamour. For admirers of British brass writing and performing this will be a reference disc for many years to come. Yes, of course, this is something of a niche programme – and thank you to Chandos for filling that niche, but it is certainly one of the highlights of my listening year to date.”

“… The Onyx Brass ensemble with their friends, and conductor John Wilson provide splendid accounts of all these works… The recording showcases the brassy sound of these 50-odd works ideally.”

“… The performances under John Wilson are exemplary with extraordinary precision in rhythm and careful attention to dynamic ranges…”

CD of the Month

Programme ****      Performance *****      Recording *****      Presentation *****

“… As you would expect from an ensemble of the kudos and personnel of Onyx Brass, the playing is exemplary throughout, as are Chandos’s customary superb production standards allied to a vibrant recorded sound, beautiful presentation and highly informative liner notes. John Wilson’s first foray conducting brass musicians also emerges as a great success… a vital testimony of a significant, yet neglected creative art form that is unique to the world of brass… not to be missed.”