“The world premiere ‘Adagio (For Wadada Leo Smith)’ by the artiste etoile Tyshawn Sorey brings a meditative contrast. Together with the saxophonist Timothy McAllister, the musicians paint broad lines, delving into the mysteries of sound. The plucking strings are falling drops of water that always sound different. The mixture of bass clarinet, trombones, and string basses - a hum that resonates inside us.”

Roman Kuhne Luzerner Zeitung (August 2022)

“They [McAllister and Class] give a truly remarkable performance of Lilith…a superior recording.”

William Bolcom

[Critics’ Picks: Musical Must-Haves for your holiday list: John Adams, Saxophone Concerto, City Noir] “Adams conjures up the seductive yet dangerous swagger of postwar Los Angeles…McAllister, the virtuoso and stylistically nimble saxophonist, lights up this recording…”

Brian McCollum and Mark Stryker Detroit Free Press (12/14/14)

“Adams wrote the piece in 2013 for Tim McAllister who Adams called ‘the best sax player in the world.’ From the very beginning the saxophone unleashed a barrage of notes. A few pauses gave everyone a chance to breathe but the orchestra often took up the same flurry of notes so only McAllister got a chance to catch his breath…there is no doubt that the main point of the piece was virtuosity. In spite of all the pyrotechnics, McAllister’s tone quality was beautiful with a well-modulated...

Don Adkins Performing Arts Monterey Bay (Aug. 2014)

“Chambers’ Come Down Heavy! …a tour de force that tested the upper sonic limits in wild and woolly playing by Timothy McAllister on alto sax…”

John Fleming St. Petersburg Times

“The LA Philharmonic played beautifully throughout the performance (indeed, through the entire evening), with notable solo work from Timothy McAllister on saxophone…”

Robert D. Thomas Music Critic, Pasadena Star-News

“The Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra paired the Eroica with a relatively new piece by John Adams, featuring saxophone virtuoso Timothy McAllister, for whom it was composed. It’s a daunting, virtuosic piece of work, a half-hour long, two-movement piece that allows the soloist almost no rest for its duration…McAllister’s signature sound is gorgeous–smooth and liquid–very similar to a clarinet in the middle register, and only a touch meatier at the bottom and top”

Paul Kosidowski Milwaukee Magazine (March 29, 2014)

Pierre Jalbert

Saxophone Concerto (2024)
Pierre Jalbert (b. 1967)
I. Luna Nova
II. Speed of Light
Duration: 18 minutes

Written for Timothy McAllister and scored for solo alto saxophone, with an ensemble of orchestral winds (woodwinds and brass) plus percussion and piano. The opening movement, marked “Gently, with a sense of pulse”, explores the saxophone’s lyrical and expressive qualities as the ensemble creates slowly-changing, pulsating harmonies, over which the saxophone plays long, lyrical lines. The second movement, marked “With great energy”, contains frenetic, pulse-oriented music and features the saxophone’s virtuosic possibilities. Eventually, the ensemble gives way to the soloist’s slowly evolving cadenza. As the movement titles suggest, the music was inspired by the phases of the moon and the vastness of space. - Pierre Jalbert

Earning widespread notice for his richly colored and superbly crafted scores, Pierre Jalbert has developed a musical language that is engaging, expressive, and “immediately captures one’s attention with its strong gesture and vitality” (American Academy of Arts and Letters). Among his many honors are the Rome Prize, the BBC Masterprize, a Guggenheim Fellowship, and the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center's Stoeger Award, given biennially “in recognition of significant contributions to the chamber music repertory.” He has drawn inspiration from a variety of sources, from plainchant melodies to the natural world. Recent album releases include his Violin Concerto (2019), String Theory (2021), and Air in Motion (2022), which features the Escher String Quartet and Carol Wincenc.
Jalbert is Professor of Music at Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music in Houston, where he has taught since 1996. His music is published by Schott Music.

More information at Pierre Jalbert’s website HERE.

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