Press

Critical Acclaim for the music of Bruce Hobson

American Record Guide, January/February 2009, p. 241,
review of Equinox Music CD #0104, by Kraig Lamper

"Morphopoiesis, the 'formation of an organic structure from a limited number of subunits', . . . as short, long and short, short, long and then short, short, short, long form the [rhythmic] basis of the three movements. This is extremely well done and tactful."


Fanfare Magazine, July/August 2008, pp. 42-43,
review of Equinox Music CD #0104, by Robert Schulslaper

"Bruce Hobson lives in Vermont and New York and writes music that to me reflects both locales. He's inspired by nature, yet his vocabulary is cosmopolitan. . . . Mountain Paths was my favorite piece on the CD. . . . The atmosphere is mysterious but not menacing, possessing a primeval grandeur. . . . I find some of the ideas Hobson uses to plan his music's shape fascinating and the results dramatically effective. . . . Contrasts juxtaposes piano and strings, which alternately share and provoke responses in a convincing timbral and thematic dialog. The performances do justice to the composer's conceptions, and the sound is lifelike and present."


Fanfare Magazine, March/April 1999, review of Equinox Music CD #0101,
by John Story

"The Two Isorhythms and Contours are especially impressive works. . . They are very beautiful. . . Throughout, Hobson's command of writing for the piano is very impressive. . . I urge curious listeners with internet access to hear the music for themselves, as Hobson's is a voice well worth experiencing."


American Record Guide, November/December 1999, p. 310,
review of Equinox Music CD #0101, by Stephen D. Hicken

"The pieces on [this] Equinox disc are tightly structured and fine sounding. Hobson has a very strong sense of the nature of chromatic harmony, and his 'extensions' of tonality really 'sound'. . . The performances on this disc are uniformly outstanding, with a special nod to Margaret Kampmeier, who puts forward Hobson's fine piano works with skill and expression."


Fanfare Magazine, November/December 1998,
review of Equinox Music CD #0102, by Peter Burwasser

"Hobson is using the tools of his choice to put together expressive, superbly crafted music. The Trio is bold and ambitious. It often sounds much larger than just three instruments, and yet a clarity of structure is apparent at all times.

The music for solo piano is, in subtle ways, some of the most compelling music on this collection. . . The Trio 1966 is also a work of quiet charms, producing supple clusters of sound from the beguiling combination of violin, clarinet, and cello.

Cantilena Infinita is a fine example of a manner of expression that is unique to our times, speaking a language. . . that expresses a point of view that Mozart could not have known. . . taut, powerful music."


Fanfare Magazine, November/December 1998,
review of Equinox Music CD #0102, by Robert Kirzinger

"From the early Trio 1966 to the latest piece on this disc, Trio, Hobson's style recalls the Romantic era. Though his pitch and rhythmic language grows out of Schoenberg and Sessions, the shapes of the larger phrases and the rubato applied in these performances link Hobson to the 19th century. . . These are well-written pieces, particularly the Cantilena Infinita."


American Record Guide, July/August 1994, Vol. 57, No. 4,
review of Vienna Modern Masters CD #3017, by Mark L. Lehman

"The most substantial piece on the program is Bruce Hobson's Three, an 18 minute concerto for two trumpets and orchestra. This is a densely contrapuntal, chromatic, and dissonant piece of considerable integrity and expressiveness; it seems influenced by jazz in a far deeper way, avoiding obvious clichés but inspired by the rhythmic freedom and questioning intensity of the great jazz players."


The New York Times, October 23, 1977, review by Allen Hughes of Lyric Piece I in a concert by the Guild of Composers on October 20, 1977 at Columbia University's McMillan Theater

"Of the new works, this listener was most attracted to Mr. Hobson's piano essay. It is a ... work that moves through several changes of texture and mood in a relatively short time and, in David Holtzman's performance, sounded as though it had resulted from the composer's genuine desire to write music that would evoke emotive response."