"An astonishingly good concert. The Sinfonia under its youthful conductor (only 22) Graham Ross, kicked off 2008's season with an immensely challenging programme ... a gritty and overpowering experience. Ross brought the very best from this fine orchestra... [who] brought this wonderful symphony to a towering climax which had its audience exhausted. So too were the members of the band who beamed at each other and knew they had pulled off something rather special." Cambridge Local Secrets | January 2008 Mike Levy See full review here.
"The Dmitri Ensemble’s 24 singers, ably and unobtrusively directed by its founder Graham Ross, coped admirably with the sometimes complex ornamentation and wide range of dynamic and textural contrasts. ... This was an assured performance of a technically challenging work. The performers demonstrated a well-blended sound and tight togetherness, led with sensitivity by Jamie Campbell (who also provided a beautifully sweet-toned solo line in the third movement). There was no doubt that the performers gave their all to a very challenging piece and MacMillan seemed genuinely pleased with the performance. However, the star of the evening was the Dmitri Ensemble itself." Classical Source | March 2008 Gill Redfern See full review here.
"There was something about the works that was awe-inspiring and reverential. ... The Dmitri Ensemble sounded gorgeous, especially the cellos, and the singers were exceptional. They played and sang with strength and conviction throughout. In the choir, the sopranos were high and sweet, and there were some really lovely solos. The altos were a mix of contraltos and counter tenors which is a sound I really like. The tenors were gorgeous – again, there was a very accomplished soloist. But the basses were exceptional. They were one of the main reasons why I wanted to stay for the second half: I wanted to hear that sound again. It was such a big deep sound, like the lower registers of a bassoon or cello. They must be the most beautiful bass section I’ve ever heard." Primi Divi | March 2008 See full review here.
"It suited choral singing beautifully." The Choir, BBC Radio 3 | April 2006 Deborah Catterall on Come to me in the silence of the night
"It was a unanimous decision. … Just looking at the rehearsals, the piece that the choir had the most problems with was Graham’s [Come to me in the silence of the night], and that’s the piece that won. I think that’s absolutely fascinating, and right - I think it has to be like that. If the purpose of a composition competition is to create something new, or to foster a new voice, there has to be that dialogue, that element of challenge. You see them animated, you see them disagree. … For me that was a magical moment." The Choir, BBC Radio 3 | April 2006 Tarik O'Regan on National Youth Choir of Great Britain's inaugural Composition Competition
"There are 10 new commissions at the Proms this year; I decided to hand out a few more. The brief? Write a piece of music of no more than three minutes’ duration that takes a classic piece of Proms repertoire and ‘rewrites’ it. ... That’s what I got; Graham Ross’s astounding blend of Ravel’s Bolero and Pavane pour une infante défunte." Times Online | July 2008 Nicola Christie on Pavane pour un Boléro défunt See full article here.
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