Christopher J. Greco: Baroque: For Soprano Saxophone and Piano
Navona Records

Three things in particular recommend Christopher Greco's album: the harmonious pairing of his soprano saxophone and Po Sim Head's piano; the equally pleasing character of the expressive Baroque compositions he selected for the project; and the performances themselves, which engage without fail. Greco, a Benedictine College professor and Los Angeles native, is no dilettante who decided on a whim to record works of the Baroque era but rather someone who seriously invested himself to become aware of their nuances and the performance conventions of their time. While he plays clarinet and flute also, in this context he gives the stage to soprano saxophone exclusively.

A composer as well as performer, Greco's music ranges widely, from classical chamber to jazz-based and even electronic forms, but Baroque finds him wholly focused on works by Alessandro Marcello, Georg Philipp Telemann, François Couperin, and, mostly, J. S. Bach. It's fascinating to witness Greco performing repertoire on soprano saxophone that was written before the instrument's time. As interesting is how splendidly the soprano saxophone, with its bright, rich tone and incisive attack, becomes a conduit for these composer's imaginings. Greco's inspired re-casting of early material consistently presents it in a fresh, new light.

His understanding of the material is scholarly but his playing is anything but distanced or disengaged. In liner notes, he delves into the differences between practices of interpretation then and now and how markings of an earlier time held subtler different meanings compared to today. Many of the decisions Greco made regarding tempi and phrasing were influenced by conventions of the past and thoughtfully considered for the recording project. Once that understanding was in place, he felt free to loosen the creative bonds, so to speak, and allow his impulses to be his guide. The spirit of playfulness embodied by Baroque also, he acknowledges, enabled him to simply “get on with the business of making the music.”

There is an undeniable dynamism to this music, regardless of composer, and contrasts of moods too, with some movements rapturous and others melancholy and even lamenting. There is balance as well as a clear sense of structural formality in the works' multi-part designs. Three pieces by Bach are interspersed, with Marcello's Concerto in C minor in the pole position and Greco's instrument making its sinuous presence immediately felt. The entwining of woodwind and piano is effected fluidly with the two as enthusiastic dance partners in the opening andante, after which the sombre slow movement shows how effective the soprano saxophone is at communicating emotion when its tone is so vocal-like. Offsetting the funereal procession character of the adagio, the fleet-fingered “Presto” movement exudes joy in its exultant expression.

The four works that follow were written for instruments other than the soprano saxophone, of course, yet it's interesting nonetheless to discover that the suite and three sonatas were created with cello, flute, and oboe in mind. The first of two Bach flute sonatas, the one in E-Flat Major reflects his characteristic genius in the elegance of the writing and graceful flow of the music. In the three-part work, two energized allegros emblematic of the composer's style frame a cantabile “Siciliano.” The second, this one in C Major, opens beguilingly with a tender andante before moving onto a technically challenging allegro, dignified adagio, and singing double minuet. Performed by Greco sans accompaniment, the third Bach work, a two-part G Major suite written for cello, is no less alluring in this solo presentation as it would be as a duet.

Written for oboe, Telemann's A minor sonata begins with a delicate and hushed “Siciliana” before advancing to an energized “Spirituoso” and an exceptionally lovely “Andante.” Greco made a wonderful choice in ending the recording with Couperin's pretty Berceuse en Rondeau when its melodies are so endearing. Multiple benefits accrue to the listener when the musicians execute the six pieces with conviction, and Baroque singlehandedly shows the degree to which immersion in material from an earlier time can be illuminating and perspective-enlarging.

August 2025