Reviews
Composer
SHIR CHADASH CD
“Cohen is a talented classical and theater composer whose settings of liturgy are beginning to find their way into the concert repertoire. This set showcases some of his liturgical writing, which is quite tuneful, but hardly easy listening (or singing). Like one of his teachers, John Corigliano, he is a gifted melodist who isn’t afraid to write “pretty” music, but there is a steeliness underling the melodies that prevents them from becoming the sort of cocktail-lounge droning that characterizes too much new Jewish shul music. Anyone who can listen to Janowski’s ‘Avinu Malkeinu’ and hear chords from Harold Arlen (a comparison Cohen made in recent interview) is a composer after my own heart and ears. Available from www.stevecohenmusic.net. Rating: **** 1/2.”
— George Robinson, The New York Jewish Week, September 8, 2009
RIVERWALK
“Riverwalk, an SATB piece written for the British SaxShades quartet, is a single-movement jazz piece in swing style. The use of the word “swing” pertains not only to the swing-eighths time feel, but also to the pervasive cooking, swing band style.”
— David Demsey, Saxophone Journal July/August 2010, Volume 34, No. 6
JUGGERNAUT
“Friday’s SSO program had visceral appeal aplenty. The concert began with Steve Cohen’s ‘Juggernaut,’ as showy a piece of orchestral writing as I have heard in this relatively new millennium.”
“The 2002 work clearly marks Cohen as an Eastman School-involved composer. The confident combination of a clean, crisp orchestration for a large group and the relative accessibility of the materials and harmonic touches of the work have strong roots undoubtedly planted by American composer and longtime Eastman guiding spirit, Howard Hanson.
“‘Juggernaut’ works its way through other influences as well, such as the minimalism and pop/rock rhythms typical of John Adams, as well as the sweep and dash of some of the popular concert and film works of John Williams.
“There were more advanced styles on display as well, but the gestures of the mechanistic and glowering opening, which occasionally returned throughout the piece, were eventually outweighed by the vigor on display. The composer joined Grant Cooper and the Syracuse Symphony on stage for a friendly reception by the SSO audience.”— Chuck Klaus, The (Syracuse) Post-Standard, January 21, 2006
“Steve Cohen’s nifty orchestral composition ‘Juggernaut’ started with a nearly inaudible rumble in the bass drum and piano before the double basses stirred the murk to shape and drive it. “It was lean-in-and-pay-attention stuff, which Cohen backed up with a 10-minute composition full of brilliant details - swirling textures, leaping rhythms, neat intertwining melodies and forceful, novel combinations of instrumental colors.
“The piece, in its premier performance by the West Virginia Symphony Orchestra on Friday night at the Clay Center, is this year’s winner of the Museum in the Community/WVSO Composer’s Award.
“It created quite a buzz in the audience. When I asked around the balcony at intermission, I did not find anyone who did not enjoy the piece (and several said they were thrilled by it).
“The middle section has a hammered chord that keeps interrupting, to its detriment, some beguiling work in the woodwinds and percussion, and the first climax sounds a tad routine. But that is small change in a fascinating piece that gripped one’s attention effortlessly and held it…”— David Williams, Saturday Gazette-Mail, November 13, 2004
SONATA FOR SOPRANO SAXOPHONE AND PIANO
“This is a superb piece, and a great addition to the repertoire, for professionals and for college student recitals.”
— David Demsey, Saxophone Journal July/August 2010, Volume 34, No. 6
“The jazz influence had… the first word, in Steve Cohen’s tuneful Sonata for Soprano Saxophone… Mr. Cohen’s score was at its most appealing at the start of its meditative Blues movement, when the music crawled through the lower reaches of the instrument’s range.”
— Allan Kozinn, New York Times, January 5, 2012
“This work uses the soprano saxophone as an expressive and energetic instrument of classical music in the outer movements. However, the subtone, glissandi, and ‘blue notes’ that define the ‘Blues’ make it as soulful a movement as you will hear outside of the Village Vanguard.”
— Anthony Balester, Outstanding Contemporary Saxophone Recordings and Works
WIND QUINTET
“Steve Cohen’s WIND QUINTET will appear on the new compact disc. The work was one of great harmony and drive.”
— Bob Cole, Centre Daily Times (State College, PA)
“The three-movement WIND QUINTET (1982-3, rev. 1992) by Steve Cohen get the CD started off in fine fashion. The expanded tonal neo-classical style of the composer is readily accessible to any listener’s ears, especially with its sparkling, contrapuntal; tarantella/saltarello finale. I was very impressed with the light, witty spirit of the work.”— The Double Reed, Reviewing the Pennsylvania Wind Quintet’s CD “Recent American Works for Winds” (2002)
SAXOPHONE QUARTET NO. 2
“Recommended for high school and college quartets, or professional groups.
“This 1998 quartet, by New York composer Steve Cohen, is recently published. It represents a beautiful example of contemporary neo-classical writing. Perhaps the best statement that can be made about the piece is that its musicality transcends the realm of the saxophone. Audiences who may be new to the concept of classical saxophone will be very moved by this piece’s lyricism, counterpoint, melodic interest and interplay.
“Each of the four parts lays well on the instrument, and the music is beautifully engraved and easy to read. None of the parts are technically difficult, with no extended range issues or nasty technical passages. A good high school or college player could handle the technical challenges. That said, it takes a considerable amount of musicianship, thought, and group rehearsal to make this piece sing, as demanded by the lyrical melodic elements of this quartet, and the way the voices mesh (sometimes with lightning precision).
“The first movement has the effect of an introduction, creating a flowing, pastoral atmosphere that opens with unaccompanied tenor, soon joined by all voices in some wonderful modulations and mode changes.
“The second movement is a scherzo that features some interlocking acrobatics and great compositional effects that show off the saxophone’s agility. The composer’s notes mention the created illusion of circular breathing among the group, and a more percussive nature.
“The third movement, an adagio, has the piece’s most lyrical moments, interspersed with jazz-like clusters in the ensemble.
“The allegro giocoso finale is the most neoclassical of the four movements, and sets a playful mood with an ascending scale motive that is soon broken up and quickly passed around in fugue-like environments. This movement ties up the entire work by bringing in elements of the other three movements, cast as the half tempo pastoral melodic basis of bubbling melodic comments from solo parts.
“This SATB quartet is a gem, and its approach is share by only a handful of other new compositions. It would be a beautiful addition to any professional quartet’s repertoire, and will teach any student group a great deal about the chamber music tradition.”— David Demsey, Saxophone Journal, Volume 30, Number 3 Jan/Feb 2006
“Steve Cohen’s Saxophone Quartet No. 2 (1998) is, on its surface, a pleasant piece. When one delves a bit deeper into its harmonic structure, one finds a vein of quintessentially American nostalgia…”
— William Zagorski, Fanfare (November/December 2001)
Saxophone Quartet #2 (1988) is perhaps New York contemporary composer Steve Cohen’s (b.1954) most famous composition. It has the density and finesse of a classical string quartet. The mellifluous opening Andante proposed a unified yet complex musical discussion; the following Scherzo was replete with upper and lower register jokes between Cohen on soprano sax and Tim Ruedeman on baritone sax; the movement sounded like a comic sax traffic jam; the Adagio delivered lyric nuance with great unity, Cohen’s soprano sax soaring with excellent support from Bence Szepesi on alto sax; the concluding Allegro Giocoso centered on Brellochs’ tenor sax taking the lead and the other sax players agreeably following. There was drama, humor, and offbeat lyricism in this sophisticated quartet.
— Kent T. McEneaney, The Millbrook Independent: 14 September 2019
http://www.themillbrookindependent.com/content/brellochs-company-vassar#disqus_thread
LA PIZZA DEL DESTINO
“‘La Pizza’ [was] one of the highlights of the evening…”
— Arthur Sainer, The Village Voice (1975)
GILLES DE RAIS
“Steven Cohen’s mock-Renaissance score, for flute, percussion and amplified keyboards, is a model of what such things should be. I hope whoever stages the play subsequently…will have the sense to use it.”— Michael Feingold, The Village Voice (1975)
Testimonials
“Steve is a talented composer and arranger in addition to being a bulldog with a magnifying glass as a proofreader!”
— Steven M. Alper, composer/arranger/music director
“Steve is a complete, highly skilled musician who is a wonderful composer as well.”—
Paul Shapiro, The Main Man, Paul Shapiro Music
“Whenever I see Steve’s excellent work as a composer and arranger I always know I’m in good hands. His depth of knowledge and sensitivities to text and the needs of singers is always apparent. I think this also influenced by the fact that Steve is also an excellent singer. Another of Steve’s skills is musical transcription, which is an art he practices with care. As a composer and arranger, I always learn something from looking at his scores.”
— Elliot Z. Levine, singer/composer
“Steve is a fantastic musician who is extremely versatile and eager to take on new assignments and challenges in any genre. I recommend him without reservation and with warmth and great confidence.”
— Grant Cooper, Artistic Director at West Virginia Symphony Orchestra
“Steve Cohen is a gifted composer. I can recall the music of an opera he wrote when he was about twenty one and I continue to admire all the wonderful music he has written for sax quartet, etc., up to and including the present time.”
— Joe Gianono, freelance composer and arranger
“I am a professional classical singer based in New York City. A few years back, I recorded a piece that Steve wrote for 4 women’s voices. The piece was fantastic, and his way of working with us to get the best realization of the piece was very successful. The resulting CD was beautifully put together. He is very kind and friendly, and was very clear about what he wanted out of his project, which made my job as a singer much easier when I was recording for him. Steve and I have maintained a friendship ever since—our paths crossing from time to time in various musical situations. I very much look forward to another opportunity to work with him in the future.”
— Kirsten Sollek, freelance classical singer
“Steven is an extraordinary composer, musician and person. It is a joy working with him and playing his music.”
— Dr. Jasmin Bey Cowin, harpist, educator and lecturer“
Steve is a very creative artist. His insights into composing have helped me greatly in my own craft. This, coupled with a very warm disposition and affable nature makes him a great work partner.”
— Erik Contzius, baritone, composer and cantor
”Steve wrote a beautiful piece of music, “Beloved,” for me to sing in my senior recital. Steve was an absolute pleasure to work with. He took the theme of my recital, along with my suggestions for text and created a masterful piece that suited my voice, was great for my choir, and was a highlight of my recital. The choir and I loved singing the piece, and the audience adored it. Steve has a great sensitivity in his writing and an excellent sense of expression. I truly enjoyed working with him.”
— Cheryl Wunch, Cantor
Steve Cohen is a steady stream of inspiration and of stellar new scores for nearly every musical style and genre. His active involvement in collaborative projects is always with great integrity and sincere enthusiasm. It is a great pleasure to work with Steve Cohen, and I recommend him highly, without reservation.”
— James Noyes, saxophonist/educator/composer
Arranger
Reviews
A Swingin’ Christmas
“Latecomers rushed to their seats between the numbers, just in time for a specially commissioned Steve Cohen masterpiece–‘A Klezmer Nutcracker: Three Miniatures for Orchestra.’ Growing up, my favorite version of the holiday classic, ‘Nutcracker,’ was from the Philadelphia Orchestra, conducted by Eugene Ormandy. I didn’t know that there was such a thing as interpretation in classical music when I was 10, but knew that felt right to me–pacing, dynamic, build—everything. When I heard Cohen’s arrangement, I had the same feeling of ‘right!’ The miniatures included Klezmerized versions of ‘Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy,’ ‘Arabian Dance,’ and ‘Trepak,’ and held the audience rapt from the opening notes. Students of Carnegie’s history recall that Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky conducted the first concert held there in 1891, which happened during the time he was writing ‘The Nutcracker.’ History has come full oval, as no one could call that peregrination a circle!”
— Sheri Rase, Q-onStage
“There were many gems that were embraced by the audience such as Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker performed as a Klezmer piece brilliantly arranged by Steve Cohen.”
— Magda Katz, Times Square Chronicles
Kiki Baby
Honorable Mention for Outstanding Orchestration: 2011 New York Musical Theater Festival (NYMF)
“Directed with panache by [Lonny] Price and Matt Cowart, and featuring lively orchestrations by Michael Starobin and Steve Cohen (played by a six-member combo under the fine musical direction of Mark Hartman), the production is performed by a first-rate cast.”
— Lisa Jo Sagolla, Back Stage
“The score, too, is an accomplishment, bouncy and infectious, but possessing throbbing undercurrents in Michael Starobin and Steve Cohen’s orchestration (which includes an accordion and euphonium) that more intimately express the unsettling populist sound Kurt Weill created for Bertolt Brecht.”
— Matthew Murray, Talkin’ Broadway
Langston in Harlem
“This is the kind of a show where every musical number is a winner, a gorgeous melding of strong, rich voices, evocative lyrics and intricate melodies all backed up by an orchestra (orchestrated by Steve Cohen and under the direction of John DiPinto) which is at once joyful, lively, raucous, smoky and seductive.”
— Karen Tortora-Lee, The Happiest Medium
“Musical director John DiPinto confidently leads the smoking six-piece band through Steve Cohen’s colorful orchestrations.”
— Eric Haagensen, Back Stage
Overture to Nabucco
“Cohen’s transcription of Verdi’s Overture to ‘Nabucco’ for saxophone choir is an arrangement that truly captures the orchestral sound from the wide span of the saxophone choir (one sopranino, pairs of sopranos, altos, tenors and baritones, plus bass and contrabass), as well as the operatic flair of the original score. …This work is not often programmed orchestrally, but should be in the library of any saxophone choir; it’s great programming, and an equally great opportunity for ensemble growth.”
— David Demsey, Saxophone Journal
Spittin’ Image
“…orchestrated with savvy by Steve Cohen…”
— Alvin Klein, New York Times
Testimonials
“Steve Cohen does beautiful score preparation in a timely manner. His expert knowledge leads to excellent results, and in the process he is a pleasure to work with. I couldn’t recommend anyone more highly!”
— Ellen Mandel, composer
“Steve is the utmost professional in his music services. He is an accomplished composer as well. We worked together in my company’s representation of publishing rights for Ed Kleban’s A CLASS ACT. As some people say, a good movie score should be there but not overpower the film - Steve is the kind of professional you can work with who checks his ego at the door and gets the job at hand done and not just done, but, you’ll never have to revisit the work for anything that may have been missed the first time. Timely, thorough and professional work can be expected from Steven.”
— Vincent Scuderi, composer/arranger/editor
“Steve arranged and orchestrated some music for performance by the New York Choral Society and did a fine job. I would certainly hire him again for similar work.”
— John Daly Goodwin, Music Director (ret’d), New York Choral Society
“Steve wrote a series of gorgeous, violinistically literate arrangements that I had the pleasure of playing for the recording sessions. Steve wrote idiomatic, technically challenging romantic interpretations of classic Cole Porter and other Songbook songs for a former subway violinist, and the result was a gorgeous, passionate recording! Great changes, Steve!”
— Jon Burr, Bassist for hire, composer, teacher, music copyist
“I first met Steve while we were both in the BMI Musical Theatre Workshop. Later, I followed his career as a composer and particularly an orchestrator with great interest. Having attended KIKI BABY and SPITTIN’ IMAGE, I am quite impressed with Steve’s musicianship and ability to bring a composer’s voice to exciting life through orchestration. He is capable of also successfully orchestrating for both small and larger pit bands. “Steve has earned an excellent reputation for his dedication to his craft. He is honest, intelligent, and has integrity.”
— Douglas J. Cohen, composer
“Steve worked as the copyist, transcriber, and co-orchestrator on our musical, “The Legend of Pearl Hart” through the years of its development through its 2-week Equity Showcase in NYC, and beyond. His dedication to the project was fierce, at times stronger than my own, and his professionalism and flexibility remarkable. A very patient and hard-working man whose talents extend far beyond what he did for us. Work with this man!”
— Rich Look, composer
“How do you convey deep appreciation for talented creative work. You check off all the expletives, but that just can’t get the level of satisfaction and confidence across. Steve Cohen is a talented composer, whose depth of musical knowledge has so informed my work along the years that gratitude seems a mild response. When Steve returns your music, it will be in as professional and crisp a form as exists. I cannot recommend him highly enough.”
— Elliott Baker, composer
“Steve Cohen is an exceptional musician. I have collaborated with him many times and his work always meets the highest standards of professionalism and artistry.”
— Grant Sturiale, composer