This is Albany’s second disc of music by Canadian/American composer William Wallace. His music is well made, conservative in style, and always appealing–and to be honest, if pressed it would be difficult to say what makes Wallace stand out from the crowd of like-minded and similar-sounding artists of the past 50 years (or more). But he has a label, and so here we are, and I am always pleased to hear from him. The major work here is Concerto Variations, a sort of big chaconne with numerous instrumental solos. It’s full of variety, color, and harmonic invention, and in this last respect Wallace really does have something going for him that you don’t find everywhere you look. He isn’t just tonal: he uses tonality and understands what it can do.
The Second Dance Suite, like the First (on the previous Albany CD), is full of good tunes and catchy rhythms. The Gavotte pokes gentle fun at Prokofiev (from the Classical Symphony and the ballet Romeo and Juliet), while the concluding Tarentella is just plain fun. Similarly, the Viola Concertino has lots of charm and would make a terrific occasional piece for any orchestra’s principal player. Finally, Cantilena (for strings) lives up to its billing, being an attractive “song without words”. All of the performances are very good, with Joel Rosenberg a fine soloist in the Concertino. The sonics vary a bit according to venue, but they’re perfectly acceptable. If you don’t expect anything earth-shattering, you won’t be disappointed by this good, solid music.
