Bass Sonata in D, Op. 2: I. Winter Dream

This music on this album is for all aficionados of string chamber music and specifically music for the double bass.
"This CD features music by composer and double bassist Peter Griesinger written between 2007 and 2011 in different chamber settings: string quintet, bass duo and bass with piano, played by members of the [BPO] and guest artists.
A Wedding Symphony, dedicated to his wife, has movements entitled Work Mode, Summer Evening, and War and Piece. Sounding a bit like Stravinsky in classical mode, this is very accessible and delightfully played by a string quartet plus bassist Brett Shurtliffe. The same ensemble delivers a convincing String Quintet in A, which I found racy and pugnacious. The CD concludes with String Quintet in D with more lyrical sections, sensitive bass pizzicatos, and excellent balance between the instruments.
Shurtliffe also plays a three movement Bass Sonata with Paul Ferrington accompanying sensitively on piano. Alternating between easily playable and totally virtuostic passages, the playing is immaculate and the music itself is captivating and enjoyable.
In between we have twelve short vignettes for two double basses where the composer himself is double tracked. The vignettes come in every shade - chatty, lyrical, pizzicato, and jazzy, all very inventive and fun to listen to. I was particularly impressed with how he managed the instrumental range without the grunting that often characterizes bass duets.
This is a superb project and should delight audiences of bass players and many others There is also sheet music available at prestostringquartet.com." - Review by Catherine Side - Bass World, February 2012

"Peter Griesinger is an Upstate New York composer who writes music in the traditional, classical style. It's lovely to listen to, especially when played, as it is on this disc, by distinguished musicians from the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra. Five pieces are included on this disc. "A Wedding Symphony" is immediately captivating, with a Baroque tone that could make you think of Vivaldi. Griesinger wrote the symphony for his wife. "It starts with us fighting," he joked in a brief interview. "We fought a lot while we were dating." All's well that ends well: The slow movement is lyrical and the last movement quotes from Wagner's "Bridal March." A sonata for bass with piano has a more modern style, klezmer in parts; it's played by bassist Brett Shurtliffe, the BPO's assistant principal bass, with Paul Ferrington on piano. A string quintet, "The Crusader" strikes a more brooding tone, though it has an overall serenity. There's a March, then a Prayer, then a more frenetic Fracas. Twelve quick Vignettes for Two Double Basses follow, more entertaining than you would think. The disc ends with shades of Haydn, written just this year. Roman Mekinulov, the BPO's principal cellist, digs into it with gusto. Other musicians featured include Valerie Heywood, Antoine Lefebvre, Robert Prokes, and Amy Licata. It fascinates me that anyone is writing music in this style. The CD's cover [photo by Anne Griesinger] is beautiful, a blue photo of a forest in the snow." - Review by Mary Kunz Goldman (Buffalo News - November 27th, 2011)