John A. Carollo
Composer
Release Date: MARCH 12, 2021
Contains Seed of Doubt for String Orchestra (2018)
The pieces are united by their display of raw musical energy, an undercurrent of longing, as well as profundity in both technical and emotional terms...
Although the inspiration for the songs derive from many different places, i.e. ancient myths, rites of passage, reflection, etc., the album flows seamlessly with a unifying theme of raw energy from the exceptional musicians and flawless conducting.
The composers Dave Dexter, William C. White, Simon Andrews, Rain Worthington, Allen Brings, John A. Carollo, John Franek, Jeff Mangels, each give proof of remarkable creative competence, creating a collection of interesting and pleasant music to listen to, in able to demonstrate that contemporary music still has a lot to tell.
Release Date: OCTOBER 11, 2019
Navona Records Apple Music, Spotify, Amazon Music, ArkivMusic
"It shows Carollo once again in a fine light--places him as undoubtedly one of the US composers who is making the present a time to remember musically."
The 4th movement "reminds us that all along there has been present in the music John's gift of creating a beautifully evocative world."
Gapplegate Classical-Modern Music Reviews
"Carollo’s voice is an important one, and it is good to see him getting the recognition he so richly deserves."
Colin Clarke, Fanfare: 43:4
"There are invigorating moments of lyrical drama in this work, itself jam-packed
with themes and colourful ideas."
BBC Music January 2020, Vol 28 No. 4, p. 94
"The symphony had its origins in the composer’s settings of William Blake, from which he extracted four movements and sumptuously orchestrated them into a half-hour symphony celebrating nature and human love."
Records International, Nov. 2019 Catalogue
"A full and emphatic orchestration, rich and well elaborated, runs throughout the entire work, highlighted by the splendid performance of the London Symphony Orchestra, which manages to excellently interpret his compositional style, very personal and original."
'... a distinct, assured musical voice which is not quite like anyone else I have heard.'
Release Date: FEBRUARY 8, 2019
Amazon ArkivMusic Spotify Naxos Direct
Contains 3 Piano Etudes from 2008 and Piano Suite No. 9 (2012)
"There is rhythmic vitality, melodic inspiration, and a real sense of musical shape and direction in Carollo’s score." Henry Fogel, Fanfare Magazine
Release Date: March 9, 2018
Amazon ArkivMusic Spotify Naxos Direct
Many of these recordings were released on compilations over the years and it brings me great joy to have them all together under the PARMA label for all to hear and enjoy. - JAC
"Now there is a new one and it is one of his best.
It is all good, all worth hearing, all primo examples of what one might dub "Middle Modernism," or in other words New Music that treads a middle ground between eclectic Tonality and Avant dashings into outer space. Carollo occupies his own turf consistently and originally. This is an excellent example of his way for those unfamiliar and an excellent addition to the collections of those familiar! Kudos!"
Gapplegate Classical-Modern Music Review
Release Date: AUGUST 25, 2017
AMAZON | iTUNES | NAXOS DIRECT | SPOTIFY | ARKIVMUSIC
"As our very first vinyl release and the 500th PARMA album released, this project is particularly special to us." "This, like Carollo's other works, has a structural resiliency that both embraces and simultaneously defies the melodic and harmonic materials that constitute it."
"Overall, this is important music by an important American composer, one with a quite distinctive voice and language. The well-executed performances are deeply committed, the recorded sound could hardly be bettered, and for anyone with curiosity about trends in contemporary music, Carollo’s disc is close to essential."
Henry Fogel Fanfare
"All the works have been well recorded, and the sound quality is superb. This is music, which is not only thought-provoking, but has an atmospheric potency."
Classical Music Reviews Music Web International
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Release Date: June 10, 2016
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Contains Burlesque for Trumpet and Amplified Guitar
"John A. Carollo’s Burlesque is a tour de force duet for the unlikely pairing of Fadev Sanjudo Rodríguez’ trumpet and Merlyn de la Caridad Corona Pérez’ guitar.
The composition is immensely original and quite intriguing, all the more so in the context of an album that at first appears to be focusing exclusively on jazz."
John's 2nd release on his own label: Musica Baudino.
2012
"It is music of great power and seriousness, strongly constructed."
"Carollo excels at creating highly evolved modernist chromatic-expanded chamber music. It is music of firm sinew, taut muscle, strong bones."
"Carollo (to mix the metaphors) draws bold, hard-edged melodic outlines."
"This is a music creator of much character and originality."
GAPPLEGATE CLASSICAL-MODERN MUSIC REVIEW
Release Date: March 29, 2011
AMAZON | iTUNES | SPOTIFY | ARKIVMUSIC
"This newest disc further confirms Carollo as a major compositional voice."
"The disc takes its title from the first piece, Starry Night for string orchestra. Brilliantly and inventively written, the piece dwells on the “fear of the unknown.” This vital composition is captured in close, involving sound."
"Transcendence in the Age of War (Concert Band version): One of the composer’s most emotionally powerful utterances, it deserves a place in the repertoire."
Colin Clarke - Fanfare
"Carollo’s Music Intense, Deceptively Creative"
"A superb collection of diverse and creative music; all of them are excellent and highly recommended. His music skirts the feeling of edginess while consistently attracting the ear to its underlying structure, and he employs clarity of texture, openness of sound and a method of bouncing the notes off one another, almost in hocket style." (The Penguins Girlfriends Guide to Classical Music)
"This is a multifarious disc, but these works are by no means odds and ends: at the very least they are connected by excellence."
"Thankfully, Navona Records have rescued these superb works from total obscurity, giving at least those who are prepared to look hard enough - for example, by regularly reading the review pages of MusicWeb International! - the opportunity to discover new music that often has every right to stand alongside the great works of past centuries, and to reward, mentally if not financially, those who have put so much creative effort into it."
Music Web International Starry Night Review
"The orchestral piece "Anguish in Every Household" fits in with these two in that all three have something of the crusty pioneers of American modernism--Ives, Ruggles and perhaps Henry Brant--embedded in them. (And others, too.) The thought is that he roots himself in the past in order to create another possible future for American classical music."
Gapplegate Classical-Modern Music Review: John Carollo's Starry NIGHT
Listen to Track: Anguish in every household
Release Date: July 1, 2009
AMAZON | iTUNES | SPOTIFY
"It was the final work on the disc that made the greatest impact, however, even though it lasts a mere five minutes. Let Thy Mind Be Still was inspired by a book of Taoist meditations by Dend Ming-Dao, and Carollo tells us that “this piece speaks to the quiet stillness where peace and contentment exist and where earthly fancies are left behind.” This beautiful contemplative work could easily have a regular place in the repertoire of orchestras if conductors and administrators were aware of it. Instead of one more performance of Barber’s Adagio for Strings (a piece I dearly love), Let Thy Mind Be Still would resonate with listeners in a similar way, while introducing them to something new."
Henry Fogel - Fanfare
Release Date: June 9, 2006
Artwork: Maxon Crumb (brother of Robert Crumb) cover
Download music here CDBABY
John's 1st release on his own label: Musica Buadino.
WINNER of the 10th ANNUAL HAWAII MUSIC AWARDS 2006, CLASSICAL SECTION:
"The music doesn't lend itself to a quick spin; it's better appreciated when listened to from beginning to end in several sittings, letting the webs of instrumental wizardry unveil their enigmatic patterns. Despite the contributed illustrations from Robert's brother Maxon Crumb (the cover is a family portrait including Carollo himself as a spiritually adopted sibling), the whole album isn't devoted to Crumb-mania, just the final suite, which is utterly breathtaking."