“… these six musicians combine and recombine for some American chamber pieces that could stand to be more often represented on CD… The entire ensemble sounds terrific … Samuel Barber’s Dover each will be the best known piece here, and it is sung with plaintive urgency by bass Matthew Rose… This quintet [Price’s Quintet in A minor] will not grab you by the lapels … It is the type of music that calls for many encounters, and whether it becomes a favorite or not, it is unlikely to wear out its welcome.”

“… This is the debut recording from the Kaleidescope Chamber Collective and their performances speak easily familiarity with the music. In a note, Tom Poster and Elena Urioste talk about how the group fell in love with Beach's work a couple of year's ago and the inclusion of the Price was the result of deliberately looking for a suitable companion work. This is a superb debut, with a finely attuned group of talented players. In Tom Poster they have a pianist who is well able to deal with the complexities of Beach's piano writing yet in neither piano quintet do you feel there is a danger of moving towards mini piano concerto, this collegial playing at its best. All three works have a feeling of long experience, and this results in a richly rewarding programme…” ****

“… The most intriguing entry here is Price’s Piano Quintet… the Quintet is an inviting piece and this, its premiere recording, should win the score a robust following. The KCC digs into the music throughout, ably illuminating its busy textures and troves of tunes. Tom Poster’s execution of the Quintet’s intensely busy piano part is nothing short of epic. Indeed, this reading feels like just the type of “event” of which Price’s music is so deserving… There’s plenty to admire in the KCC’s reading [Beach’s Piano Quintet]: the group’s attention to details of dynamics and balances is keen; their playing technically accomplished; and their feel for some of Beach’s tempestuous, intense writing is quite fine…. Best is the KCC’s take on the soaring central movement, which is smartly directed and shaped. In between the Quintets comes Barber’s 1931 setting of Matthew Arnold’s famous poem. Bass Matthew Rose sings with trueness of pitch, excellent diction, and absorbing tonal focus. The KCC’s accompaniment is flowing, urgent, and bleak; in other words, it’s excellent.”

Interpretation ****     Sound Quality ****      Repertoire ****      Booklet ***

“… They [Kaleidoscope Chamber Collective] all share an interest in unknown and innovative repertoire, and their artistic expertise leads to exemplary results here. In terms of sophistication, listening to one another, musical expression, you can hardly wish for better recordings, and the production is also extraordinary in terms of recording technology…”