The New York Times
Grantham... creates atmospheres with a witty, vivid hand, employing rhythmic devices that convey the diabolical doings with a winning, even jazzy smirk. The work is marked 'cheerfully vulgar, but also sinister' which...the orchestra followed gleefully, finding the ominous depths in . . . the drug-Induced personality of Mr. Hyde in infectious chatter.
Fanfare Magazine
High spirits continue in J'ai été au bal (1999), an homage to dance music indigenous to Louisiana by . . . Donald Grantham. Cajun tunes begin and end the work, and the middle section swings in New Orleans style . . . with impressive solos from tuba, trombone, string bass, trumpet, and percussion.
October 28, 2015
Audiophile Audition
The best work though is Donald Grantham’s La canción desesperada, a 2005 work revised here from probably the best-known of the composers represented. The piece grips from first to last, with a continuity and expressiveness fully suited to the choral medium. Grantham’s mastery of the art is evident from bar one, full of color and shading while featuring a melodic locus, a significant addition to the choral repertory.
Steven Ritter
Austin Chronicle
Then came an abrupt about-face, a loose, sensuous spin across the dance floor via Baron Cimetière's Mambo. Conducted playfully by Robert Carnochan, this new work by Austin's Donald Grantham whirled us into a splashy world of reckless abandon, the frisky brass in the lead, flirtatiously bouncing hither and yon. Austin Chronicle
