Release Date: April 1, 2011
Catalog #: NV5848
Format: Digital & Physical
21st Century
Concertos
Orchestra
Saxophone

Saxophone Concerto

Dance Rhapsody | Horn Concerto

Lee Actor composer

Debra Richtmeyer alto saxophone
Karol Nitran horn
Slovak National Symphony Orchestra | Kirk Trevor conductor
Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra | Kirk Trevor conductor

Saxophone Concerto is the latest release from renowned composer Lee Actor, featuring five compositions: Concerto for Alto Saxophone and Orchestra (2009), which exploits the considerable dramatic and expressive possibilities of the saxophone; Dance Rhapsody (2010) for orchestra, which consists of several strongly rhythmic dance sections interspersed with two slower, nonrhythmic interludes; Concerto for Horn and Orchestra (2007), a work of compact dimensions, consisting of three movements; Opening Remarks (2009), a brisk, upbeat, 6-minute work for orchestra designed as a concert opener; and Celebration Overture (2007), a joyous and invigorating piece with instrumentation similar to Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony. Actor’s music is filled with rhythmic drive and shows a superb ear for orchestral color, and he is able to create music that catches the ear and draws the listener into a world of emotion and drama.

Listen

Hear the full album on YouTube

Artist Information

Lee Actor

Composer

Composer and conductor Lee Actor (b. 1952) was one of five composers selected in November 2014 as an “Honored Artist of the American Prize”, the first time this prestigious award has been bestowed. He has won a number of awards for his compositions, most recently for Dance Rhapsody, winner of the Austin Civic Orchestra Composition Competition and second place winner of the 2011 American Prize in Orchestral Composition, Redwood Fanfare, a winner of the 2009 Ridgewood Symphony Orchestra Fanfare Competition, and Concerto for Horn and Orchestra, the First Prize Winner in the 2007 International Horn Society Composition Contest.

Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra

Ensemble

The Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra (SOSR) was established in 1929 as the orchestra of the Bratislava-based branch of the Radiojournal radio institution, being the first professional symphony orchestra in Slovakia.