by Edward J. Madden
Album Title: SINFONIA: MUSIC OF EDWARD J. MADDEN
Recording: The Washington Winds
Conductor: Edward Peterson
Guest Conductor: Edward J. Madden
Publisher: Two CD set Music and CD available from Coach Lane Music Publishing Company
I am very pleased to review this collection of music and perhaps reintroduce Edward J. Madden to band directors and instrumentalists. From his first published work, A Colonial Rhapsody (1958) the compositions of Edward J. Madden have been solid contributions to band musicians and their audiences. Works such as A Colonial Rhapsody, Sinfonia, Marche Symphonique, the evocative Eyes of Saint Agnes and much more are featured on these two CDs. The lone transcription is a complete and most satisfying bandstration of Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun by Claude Debussy. A longtime personal favorite work also appears on Sinfonia; Adagio for Winds (originally published as Fantasia on a Folk Theme). This is simply a beautiful haunting composition that truly showcases the lyric quality of the wind band. These works and many more are available through the composer’s own company Coach Lane Music Publishing Company. There is plenty of Madden’s music old and new to choose from and the Washington Winds gives a very solid performance to these works. Very highly recommended.
