Ludwig van Beethoven: Egmont Overture
Richard Wagner: Elsa's Procession to the Cathedral (from Lohengrin)
Olivier Messiaen: Apparition de L'Église Éternelle
Healey Willan: How They So Sofly Rest
William C. White: Flood of Waters (Noah and the Flood)
Johannes Brahms: Variations on a Theme by Haydn "St. Anthony Variations"
Gustav Mahler: "Urlicht" and Finale from Symphony No. 2 "Resurrection"

An impressive recording featuring a collection of pieces, both original and arranged, for the Chicago Gargoyle Brass And Organ Ensemble. An ensemble founded in 1992 from faculty members and students at the University of Chicago. "Well into its third decade, the Chicago Gargoyle Brass and Organ Ensemble maintains its position at the cutting edge of music for brass and organ, commissioning and performing new arrangements and compositions for that instrumental pairing" {Booklet Notes}.

What I found to be most startling, is how a 15 strong group of brass and percussion instruments can be so expressive, and project a different sound canvas depending on the work at hand. They well capture the mystery and awe within Olivier Messiaen's Apparition de L'Église Éternelle, as well as the deep solemnity of Healey Willan's How They So Sofly Rest. Even the Flood of Waters (Noah and the Flood) by William C. White, commissioned by the ensemble, which goes from tempestuous cacophony to full resolution, is very well conveyed. They well project the sense of salvation in the Urlicht movement within Gustav Mahler's Resurrection Symphony. And most stirring of all, despite not having the power and scope of a massive mixed-choir, is how they manage to impart the ecstatic resplendence of the final moments of that symphony. Mind you the pipe organ, played here by Mark Sudeith, plays a critical role in this one as far as scope is concerned.

I believe this is the Chicago Gargoyle Brass And Organ Ensemble's fourth recording, the first three of which flew under my radar. Adventurous and varied programming combined with polished arrangements, and Stephen Squires' perceptive direction, all come together to make for a satisfying listening experience.