“Jeremy Beck is Exhibit A in classical music’s defense against the charge of being out of touch.”
– Andrew Druckenbroad, Gramophone (June 2006)
“Jeremy Beck’s album ‘Remember‘ is a sonic revelation. With an impressive range of instrumental and vocal compositions, Beck takes us into a world of emotions and reflection. The compositions, including the award-winning ‘Invitation to Love‘, testify to Beck’s extraordinary creative vision and his ability to translate deep feelings into music.
… The album reaches its climax with ‘String Quartet No. 6‘, played by the outstanding Frosch String Quartet. The quartet’s two binary movements are a masterpiece of structure and theme development. The relationship between the movements is made clear through clever variations of melody, motif and harmony, highlighting Beck’s mastery of composition.
Overall, Jeremy Beck’s ‘Remember‘ is a triumphant album that explores the boundaries of music and takes the listener on a journey of emotions. The diversity of the compositions and the masterful interpretations make this album an unforgettable experience. With a rating of 8/10, this album deserves all the recognition and attention it will undoubtedly receive.”
– Amplified Magazine (Germany) (October, 2023)
“Beck writes particularly compelling music. … For example, the lyricism in his sixth string quartet, [is] especially beautifully expressed in the dynamic second movement[.] … And on this very versatile album we also find more beautiful things, starting with the four preludes for piano performed by Jessica Litwiniec Dorman , followed by four songs written for the mezzo-soprano Michelle Monroe. ‘November Dances’ is also particularly melodious for the striking combination of flute, Petyo Kolev, viola, Viktor Mitzev and harp, Denitsa Dimitrova.”
– nieuwenoten (The Netherlands) (October, 2023)
“Luminous, expressive, and refined are some of the words that come to mind as the album’s tonal pieces play, “by moonlight” deftly showing Beck cultivating an individual voice while operating within a tradition.”
– Textura (May 2020)
“The music disarms me as a listener by not calling attention to itself as an example of some new trend, some flavor-of-the-month fodder for some genre cannon. Instead it beguiles purely on its own terms … As nature becomes awakened in full spring as I write this I feel the music helps do justice to the glorious seasonal opening of buds. Most pleasurable a listen it is. Bravo Jeremy Beck.”
– Gapplegate Classical-Modern Music Review (May 13, 2020)
“[One of] today’s most thoughtful composers… Rich rewards abound [in Beck’s innova CD by moonlight].”
– George W. Harris, Jazz Weekly (Mar. 2020)
“…American composer Jeremy Beck … seems to attach a distinctively individual compositional technique to each and every different instrument or group of instrumental or vocal forces he writes for. …[H]ighlights for me are the Echoes of a Young Poet’s Dream from Dream and Echoes, performed impeccably here by the vocal ensemble The First Readings Project. Its harmonically rich dissonances pull you into a dark fog that magically lifts once you hear the goosebump inducing final chord. Also admirable are his orchestration skills made apparent in the Three Pieces for Orchestra in which different threads manifest themselves simultaneously and request your attention.”
– Jean-Yves Duperron, Classical Music Sentinel (Mar. 2020)
“[This] American composer knows the importance of embracing the past while also going his own way. … [In] Beck’s forceful and expressive sound world … the writing is concise in structure and generous in tonal language, savouring both the dramatic and the poetic. … [t]he First Quartet … moves organically from solemn to invigorating ideas, with ample contrapuntal interplay to keep the narratives rich and layered. … [T]he Second Quartet … is a striking and intensely felt work. Likewise, the Fifth Quartet makes a haunting impression in three movements of contrasting utterances.”
– Donald Rosenberg, Gramophone (Dec. 2013)
“Jeremy Beck … writes in lush tonal harmonies and builds elaborate sonata structures around the same harmonic pillars that were in use in the 19th century[.] … But, of course, novelty isn’t the only thing music can provide, and the moody expressiveness of Beck’s writing is its own reward. The String Quartet No. 4 … strikes me as most successful – the four movements are terse but finely balanced, and they call out tellingly to one another. But the other pieces here each have their own dark-hued allure[.]”
– Joshua Kosman, San Francisco Chronicle (SF Gate)
(Oct. 24, 2013)
“Beck’s music is unabashedly tonal, rhythmically intricate, and makes nods to the past while sitting squarely in the present. … IonSound Project is a thoroughly engaging CD from top to bottom. … Though architecturally rigorous, Beck writes clearly and without pretense[.]”
– Andrew Sigler, NewMusicBox: Sounds Heard
(Sept. 11, 2012).
“Jeremy Beck is one of the multi-talented, gifted individuals making … positive contributions to the American new music scene and deserves wider recognition[.] … His music is uplifting, buoyant and also soothing, beautiful and a complete pleasure to listen to[.] … I found [his] music to be a revelation[.]”
– Daniel Coombs, Audiophile Audition
(July 19, 2011)
“[Beck is] an original voice celebrating music. Without self-consciousness, without paralyzing abstraction, Beck reminds us that music is movement, physically and emotionally. … [His] music is well worth hearing and Innova deserves thanks for putting another relevant voice in front of the public eye.”
– Mark Sebastian Jordan, MusicWeb International (2008)
“Beck’s concern for communication and naturally evolved dramatic form … is apparent from the start … [of] Never Final, Never Gone. The Toccata from the Four Piano Pieces is … spirited and attractive [and] … immediately imparts a feeling of warmth and familiarity[.]”
– David N. Lewis, All Music Guide (2008)
“Jeremy Beck’s music is firmly rooted in free tonality, and is … warmly melodic and colourful with unexpected harmonic twists. … [His] music is yet another example of what can be successfully achieved within the boundaries of tradition, for it is never reactionary and holds enough harmonic and rhythmical surprises to sustain the interest.”
– Hubert Culot, MusicWeb International (2006)
“[T]he most effective piece is the lovely Sinfonietta for string orchestra; the music is given structure by a very clear formal design … [Beck has composed] a fine and graceful piece from his lovely melodies and harmonies.”
– American Record Guide (2005)
“[Death of a Little Girl with Doves] is a deeply attractive and touching piece of writing which I recommend urgently for its imperious melodic confidence, fluent emotional command and yielding tenderness. [Wave is a] lovely disc made fully compelling by the song-cycle and one that is likely to leave most listeners keen to hear more from Jeremy Beck. Let’s now have Death of a Little Girl with Doves in the 2005 Proms please. Imaginative sopranos with good diction and adventurous and capable music directors should be seeking out this disc. Do not delay.”
– Rob Barnett, MusicWeb International (2004)
“[A] superb new opera by Jeremy Beck … The Biddle Boys and Mrs. Soffel was more successful compositionally … than many new works seen at major opera houses.”
– Mark Kanny, “Soffel opera scores well in all departments”
(Pittsburgh Tribune-Review – June 18, 2001)
Song of the Son for tenor & piano is “…one of those rare new works that grabs the listener upon a first hearing.”
– William T. Walker, “Dual Wings of American Song”
(Classical Voice North Carolina, Oct. 16, 2001)
Beck’s monodrama Black Water is “enthralling … stunning in its intensity[.]”
– Carl J. Halperin, “Black Water runs deep, strikes chord”
(The Herald-Sun, Durham, NC – Sept. 19, 2000)
“Jeremy Beck’s quiet, beautiful, and lyrical Songs Without Words [for flute and harp] … unfolds in three charming movements[.] … Maybe it’s the instrumentation, but there’s something unmistakably French (particularly Debussy, Ravel, Satie) in all of this, plus perhaps a little Francophiled Stravinsky in the stately Orpheus-like second song, …mists of brightness…”
– Bryce Rankin
(21st Century Music – May 2000)
“Also quite appealing is Jeremy Beck’s Kopeyia, … a percussion work inspired by field recordings of traditional Ewé drumming that the composer made in the summer of 1995. Like Steve Reich and Paul Simon, Beck finds his own way through the African influence; the results of his sonic explorations are fresh and engaging.”
– Bryce Rankin
(21st Century Music – Feb. 2000)
“New Music New Haven’s program in Sprague Hall [included] … the premiere of an impressive opera by Jeremy Beck, a gifted young composer at the Yale School of Music. … [H]is handling of dramatic relationships and superimposed time was masterful[.]”
– Courtenay V. Cauble, “New Music finale was climactic”
(New Haven Register – April 19, 1992)