“This debut CD features a sultry ‘Summertime’ and a haunting performance of the theme from ‘Schindler’s List’ that rivals Perlman’s justly famous recording.”
Newsweek

“The soloist Gregory Harrington was impressive. This young Dublin born violinist showed natural artistry and an ability to dazzle”.
The Irish Times

“In James MacMillan’s Kiss on Wood, Harrington described its winding contours with aching tenderness, a profound sense of melancholy touching every phrase. With Brahms’ Sonata in D minor op108, Harrington was in his element, reveling in its rich sonorities and capturing its underlying tensions with great aplomb.”
The Strad Magazine

“Spellbinding, world class.. Without You is consistently gripping and dazzling, Harrington’s poetic ear for sound deliver chills to the bone. He is an artist with a soulfulness in his heart. You don’t often hear violin in a jazz context, and this is precisely why Harrington’s sound is so intrinsically unique and quite memorable.” JazzCorner 

 

“Violinist Gregory Harrington is a throwback to the rich lyrical strings sounds that evoke the melodic swing of Stephane Grappelli on alluring session. Bold and Beautiful”Jazz Weekly 

 

“With nods to classical, jazz, and blues weaved in here, Harrington is able to make something that absolutely soars. The careful care-taking of the different instrumental elements makes a Herculean chore into child’s play. Few non-vocal tracks are able to express the same gravity as what is present here.”
Neufutur Magazine 

 

“Harrington is a seasoned violinist with a laser focus, and his musicianship is truly one of a kind.  If you enjoy great jazz music with a unique twist, then this one is most definitely for you!”
INK 19 

 

“[Without You].. eleven songs and compositions arranged and rendered in the violinist’s singular fashion – a blend of passion, power, fragility, and inescapable virtuosity.”
ICON Magazine

 

“..and no other song better expresses Harrington’s sentiments in this regard than U2’s “With or Without You”.. The melody itself is beautifully rendered, sounding as much like chamber music as it does like rock. But the violinist’s playing is arresting for its careful balance of power and fragility, with soaring long tones that are infused with yearning and propulsive double-stop rhythms that generate a spirit of optimism.”
Jazziz Magazine 

 

 “Without You brings 11 renditions of tunes from some legendary songwriters – and Harrington reinvents them all with his keen attention to ambiance and meticulous musicianship.”
Take Effect

 

“His level of musicality, masterful technique and hunger for experimenting with new styles will cast a wider net, bringing in more fans who have varied tastes. The only downside of the show was that it had to end!”

“Gregory Harrington is the violinist on this excellent and highly recommendable CD of small-scale works by James MacMillan. The two impressions with which you’ll come away after even a single sitting with this CD are of the music’s immense beauty and powerful economy. And the extent to which the three players honour and convey those and MacMillan’s other gifts. Technically, their playing is superb. It never stands in the way of a low key yet vital empathy they have with the idiom, the Scottish idiom too, and the ranges of emotion from the wry and unselfconsciously lighthearted to the extremely poignant and profound which MacMillan has written in this collection. It’s a collection, by the way, in which the order of whose works provides a nice sense of contrast. Yet the sequence continually reinforces MacMillan’s restrained melancholy. The acoustic and recording could not be better; and there is just the right amount of material and background on pieces and players – and the composer – in the booklet that comes with a CD that contains recordings otherwise unavailable on CD. Don’t hesitate. If you’re already a MacMillan collector, you’ll want this one. If you want to see whether you might become one, let A Different World convince you.”
Musicweb International (Recording of the Month July ’11)

“… these are very loving atmospheric performances.”
BBC Music Magazine (double 5 star review of “A Different World”)

“… passionate searching performances, that suggest, if not perfect alignment of faith and politics, a similar view to the composer’s on matters relating to human dignity and human spirit.”
International Record Review

“Harrington’s playing is marked by its veiled richness in the lower register and incredible control into the sometimes stratospheric higher registers employed by MacMillan.”
Composition Today

“It is obvious to anyone picking up this disc, that it is a labor of love by violinist Gregory Harrington. The playing is emotional, committed and intimately in sync with the printed page. Passion leaps off the recording and grabs the listener. The precision and musicality is impressive and that comes across clearly. Mr. Harrington plays with a beautiful and versatile tone that is appropriately raw when needed. He navigates the highest registers of his instrument with precision and confidence. The great joy of this recording is the commitment of the artists to the music and the assurance that you are hearing almost exactly what the composer envisions. For music that requires a bit of active listening, that is a reward that is rare and well worth the journey to a different world.”
ConcertoNet

“Violinist Gregory Harrington is the central figure in these compositions and particularly shines on the opening three pieces for violin and piano. The wistful and lonesome melodic lyricism is expressive and emotionally compelling while still sounding very much of contemporary times. The final track brings attention to the crystalline sounds of Harrington, who here brings an almost folk-ish quality to the solo violin version of In Angustiis…II. There is a permeating sadness to the piece but the affect is one of solitary contemplation instead of heart wrenching sobs. MacMillan’s music is evocative and expressive, even when he isn’t setting text which expresses those emotions. The performers and performances on this disc seize every opportunity for expression on this recording and make a very compelling disc.”
Sequenza 21

“Mr. Harrington, a superb emerging player who has yet to be called up to the Big Dance in violin performance, revealed himself to be a talent to be reckoned with. The concert concluded with a spectacular and moving performance of the familiar and beloved Chaconne from Bach’s Partita in D minor. In Mr. Harrington’s interpretation, we could hear the passion and sensuality of the Spanish dance that underlies this form. Rhapsodic and rebellious, totally constrained and yet straining at every turn, this was a Bach I hungered to hear more of. Indeed, I am now on tenterhooks, awaiting the moment we will be graced with a recording of the entire Bach unaccompanied violin oeuvre from this master of the violin.”
The East Hampton Star

“The performances are driven by violinist Gregory Harrington’s obvious affinity for MacMillan — this is intelligent and attractive music-making.”
Audiophile Audition

“Harrington conveyed a deep commitment to this work [Kiss on Wood], layering passion, meditation and mystery on top of one another. The simple, monophonic, prayer-like phrases gently tossed back and forth between the two instruments were hypnotizing and mercilessly gripping.”
The New York Concert Review

“Harrington combines velvet smoothness with intricate passion… This player nets you gently, and you will find you have listened to every note. It doesn’t get much better than that.”
Waikato Times, NZ

“Harrington delivered a virtuoso performance”
La Jolla Light

“inheritor of the Heifetz tradition… ”
Audiophile Audition

“In Angustiis… II for solo violin is explicitly evocative. You can hear the planes or bodies dropping without much prompting. [Kiss On Wood] is technically treacherous, and this is one of the better performances that I have heard.”
American Record Guide

“This was a defining moment in the recital illustrating Harrington’s gifts both thoughtful lyricist and serious technician.”

“an array of technical and lyrical splendor.”
The New Music Connoisseur

Harrington, a Dublin-born violinist, performed the haunting theme from “Schindler’s List” with a tender melancholy that raised the bar for the show’s duration.”
The South Bend Tribune

CONCERTOS WITH ORCHESTRA

 

 

BACH, J.S.
Concerto No. 1 in a minor, BWV 1041
Concerto No. 2 in E major, BWV 1042
Concerto in d minor for 2 Violins, BWV 1043

BARBER
Concerto, Op. 14

BARTOK
Concerto No. 1, Sz 36

BEETHOVEN
Concerto in D major, Op. 61

BERG
Concerto

BRAHMS
Concerto in D major, Op. 77

BRUCH
Concerto No. 1 in g minor, Op. 26
Scottish Fantasy, Op. 46

DVORAK
Concerto in a minor, Op. 53

GERBER
Concerto

GLASS
Concerto

MENDELSSHON
Concerto in e minor, Op. 64

MOZART
Concerto No. 3 in G major, K. 216
Concerto No. 4 in D major, K. 218
Concerto No. 5 in A major, K. 219

PREVIN
Concerto (Anne – Sophie)

PROKOFIEV
Concerto No.1 in d minor, Op. 19

ROREM
Concerto

SIBELIUS
Concerto in d minor, Op. 47

SOSA
Concerto

STRAVINSKY
Concerto in D major

SZYMANOWSKI
Concerto No. 1, Op. 35

TARTINI
Concerto in d minor

TCHAIKOVSKY
Concerto in D major, Op. 35

VIVALDI
The Four Seasons, Op. 8, Nos. 1-4, with string orchestra
Concerto in a minor, Op. 3 No. 6

VIOTTI
Concerto No. 22 in a minor

WIENIAWSKI
Concerto No. 2 in d minor, Op.22

PIECES WITH ORCHESTRA

 

 

BARTOK
Rhapsody No.1

BEETHOVEN
Romance in G major, Op. 40
Romance in f minor, Op. 50

CORIGLIANO
Chacconne from “The Red Violin”

KERNIS
Air

KHACHATURIAN
Sabre Dance from “Gayne Ballet”

KREISLER
Caprice Viennois Op. 2
Tambourine Chinoise Op. 3

MASSENET
Meditation from “Thais”

MONTI
Czardas “Gypsy Caprice”

MOZART
Adagio in E major, K. 261
Serenade in D major, K. 250

RAVEL
Tzigane

RIMSKY – KORSAKOV
Flight of the Bumble Bee

SARASATE
Zigeunerweisen, Op. 20, No. 1

SAINT-SAENS
Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso, Op. 14

TCHAIKOVSKY
Serenade Melancolique, Op. 26

UNGAR
The Ashokan Farewell

WIENIAWSKI
Legende in g minor, Op. 17

WILLIAMS, JOHN
3 Pieces from Schindler’s List
Tango from “Scent of a Woman” (Gardel)

VAUGHN – WILLIAMS
The Lark Ascending

VITALI
Chaconne