American Rapture

When the young Samuel Barber made his symphonic debut in 1936, contemporaries anticipated nothing less than the Great American Symphony. And even today, Barber’s brooding, storm-swept First Symphony packs a formidable punch, making it a commanding centrepiece to a recording that showcases America’s musical melting pot in all its energy, colour and individualism. Rapture is the title work, and Patrick Harlin’s 2019 orchestral showstopper makes an exuberant counterpoint both to Barber’s mid-century struggles and to the sunlit, freewheeling fantasy of Jennifer Higdon’s Harp Concerto, composed in 2018 and performed here by its dedicatee Yolanda Kondonassis. This is contemporary music at its most accessible, imaginative and unashamedly optimistic. It’s performed with verve and unmistakable enjoyment by the Rochester Philharmonic under its impressive young music director Ward Stare.