Reviews

• The centerpiece of its program on Monday evening at Merkin Concert Hall was its latest acquisition, Richard Danielpour's Kaddish (2009), an elegiac work that the composer described as a belated memorial to his father, who died in 1977.
  
  Though named for a Jewish prayer recited in memory of the dead — it is actually a sanctification of God's name, with no references to death — Mr. Danielpour's score uses neither the rhythms of the text nor traditional melodies associated with it. But the work captures and magnifies the prayer's essence by juxtaposing an intricate, glancingly modal solo violin line and rhythmically steady, sometimes forceful ensemble writing.
  
  Mr. Danielpour's language is consonant and instantly accessible; he is more inclined to seduce listeners than to challenge them. Ittai Shapira brought the solo violin writing to life with a sweet, plaintive tone and an almost narrative approach to phrasing.
  Allan Kozinn, The New York Times, 18/05/2010