the new Naxos CD…of Peter Schickele’s works for woodwind quintet, [is] played beautifully by the Blair Woodwind Quintet. I have always enjoyed Schickele’s “serious” music, particularly his enticing chamber music. His string quartets and piano quintets are quite wonderful. The title piece here is A Year in the Catskills, accompanied by Dream Dances, Diversions, and other pieces. These are sweet, genial musical musings that percolate pleasantly along. Much of it is gentle and reflective, capturing a poignant nostalgia. These are works of sheer delight and attractive fancy. There is simply not a mean bone in the body of this music. © 2012 Crisis Magazine

It is all very engaging, and wonderfully presented by musicians and engineers. Naxos has a winner here, and I hope we hear more from the Blair Wind Quintet. Meanwhile, woodwind fanciers are hereby alerted to a must-buy release. © 2012 Fanfare Read complete review on Fanfare

A Year in the Catskills…is a delightfully elegant piece of American neoclassicism. Schickele’s essential style has remained recognizable through several decades of tonal fashions, and as heard in these wind-ensemble pieces it’s often very funny indeed. …his ear for amusing musical pictorialisms is keen…Schickele sticks very close to the basic blues harmonic pattern but displaces both rhythm and texture in the added counterpoint in clever ways. The album is full of other pleasures… Highly recommended… © 2012 Allmusic.com Read complete review

This collection of chamber music, deftly rendered by members of the faculty of Vanderbilt’s Blair School of Music, is a showcase of the composer’s unique wit and creativity. Colorful, original, whimsical, and adventuresome, this collection of musical short stories from one of America’s most diverse composers has something to please every ear. © 2011 MusicWeb International Read complete review

This disc shows Schickele (born 1935) as a serious musician with a fine grasp of chamber-music writing and a predilection for miniatures: with the exception of one movement that runs seven minutes…Schickele strings these short pieces together into works intended to evoke a particular time, place or mood. The performers, all faculty members at Vanderbilt University, approach the works with affection and enjoyment…Schickele’s experiments with sonority…are the most interesting thing here; they and the fine performances earn the CD a (+++) rating…The result is works that are pleasant enough and appear enjoyable to perform…