All Music‘s James Manheim gives Shapeshifter: Music of Erwin Schulhoff from James Conlon and the Colburn School a 4.5 star rating in his new review:
“The music is delivered with a valuable jolt of enthusiasm by the youthful players, and Conlon and company make a powerful case for its inclusion in the general repertory going forward. There is a bit of Bartók in Schulhoff’s works like the Five Pieces for string quartet (such as the third piece, “Alla czeca”), but Schulhoff is a different kind of composer, eclectic in a way that looked forward to the music of the present day.… The music here is vigorous, and even as it carries overtones of the world the Nazis destroyed, it points toward the future. Appearing just ahead of the 2022 holiday season, this would make an excellent gift of unfamiliar but highly listenable music for anyone who loves the 1920s scene or really for anyone.”
—James Manheim, All Music
See the full review on AllMusic.com