“There is nothing dull in these pages: plenty of beguiling tunes and fetching harmonies, especially in the more relaxed passages. Timothy McAllister’s playing is perfectly judged and emotionally diverse, ranging from humour to profound reflection.”

John France MusicWeb International (January 2024)

“Creston explores a wide range of emotions and technical demands for the saxophonist throughout the piece. The saxophonist Timothy McAllister plays in all aspects in a more than satisfactory way. He is at his ease in the short, staccato notes but also delivers notable melodious lines in the second movement. The final movement introduces a lively and playful character, demonstrating Mr. McAllister’s agility and virtuosity well.”

Giorgio Koukl EarRelevant (December 2023)

“The pieces performed by McAllister, in tandem with the talented pianist Liz Ames, stand out for their melodic inventiveness and liveliness and rhythmic intensity. In most cases, the authors summoned here draw liberally from extra-cultured music - jazz primarily, but also funk, rock and even Balkan music -, mixing classical, contemporary and vernacular languages with imagination and consistency…a beautiful and exhilarating CD.”

Filippo Focosi Kathodik - Italy (May 2023)

“…the playing by the LSO is first-rate in the three concertos, their experience of Fuchs’s style from four previous albums (recorded between 2004 and 2014; this newcomer was set down in August 2017) showing. The concertos are all very different in format…Rush is a rather Bernsteinian diptych for alto saxophone with a punchy, roof-raising final passacaglia…soloists are exemplary. Naxos’s sound is terrific.”

Guy Rickards Gramophone, October 2018

“★★★★★ out of five–Performance, ★★★★★ out of five–Recording (John Adams City Noir; Saxophone Concerto; Nonesuch/St. Louis Symphony)”

David Nice BBC Music Magazine (July 2014)

“the saxophone concerto that accompanies City Noir carries bebop in its DNA, and soloist Timothy McAllister is simply outstanding.”

Anastasia Tsioulcas NPR Music's 25 Favorite Albums of 2014 (So Far)

“Dense, brash and exuberant, these two stellar works by John Adams are love letters to the confidence of the 1950s and a time when some of the greatest feats of virtuosity were often performed in smoky jazz clubs. David Robertson leads an incisive performance; the saxophonist Timothy McAllister sizzles”

Corinna da Fonseca-Wollheim The New York Times (June 2014)

“McAllister is at the center of what’s probably the most mainstream classical saxophone disc of the decade - John Adams’ City Noir and Saxophone Concerto on Nonesuch”

David Patrick Stearns The Philadelphia Inquirer (April 2014)

“the main attraction of this enjoyable St. Louis Symphony album, conducted by David Robertson, is Adams’ Saxophone Concerto, composed for the virtuosic Timothy McAllister, who plays it here. Stacked with swing-era allusions, moody 4am interludes and cartwheeling acrobatics, it is unpretentious fun from start to finish”

Richard Morrison The Times London (5/31/14)

[Critics’ Picks: Musical Must-Haves for your holiday list: John Adams, Saxophone Concerto, City Noir] “Adams conjures up the seductive yet dangerous swagger of postwar Los Angeles…McAllister, the virtuoso and stylistically nimble saxophonist, lights up this recording…”

Brian McCollum and Mark Stryker Detroit Free Press (12/14/14)

Recordings