It manages to balance its weird orchestra breakdown with a rather contemporary beginning and ending.

The composer and pianist Timo Andres’s take on the “Coronation” (otherwise known as the Piano Concerto No. 26 in D) felt necessary — not a lark but a surprisingly moving dazzler.

“Roots albums, no matter the landscape around them, always feel sturdy, firm—responsible, in the classic Gangstarr way.”

In “…And Then You Shoot Your Cousin,” The Roots prove their mastery of mixing high and low culture for diverse audiences. It’s a headier album, but one rife with significance.

“It’s a curious turn, but one that finds them as oddly whimsical and satisfying as ever.”

All preconceived notions of ‘hip-hop’ are tossed out the window, as the transcendence of the sometimes one-dimensional genre is epitomized here.

Putting the record on the turntable is an immersive experience that I consider to be synonymous with hip hop as the music will not only radiate through your body but will also touch your soul.

In The Roots’ …And Then You Shoot Your Cousin, pianos and strings clash in explosions of third-stream jazz, French electro-acoustic pioneer Michel Chion brings noise, deep-blue tones vibrate like Miles Davis' Porgy and Bess.

It’s hard to deny the overall effect of this strange, smartly conceived album.

The Roots have total command of their combination of jazz-influenced hip-hop and social awareness.

Home Stretch is a gentle gondola ride through five lovely Eno songs ... a clever, lovingly orchestrated homage in the time-honored spirit of Franz Liszt.

Dreamscapes is magnificent with virtuosic performances… a spectacular sounding disc… by one of today’s most eclectic composers.

In the reinvention of the Coronation Concerto on Home Stretch, Andres lets his imagination fill in the gaps, and creates a lovely amalgam of Mozartian classicism and modern pianistic sensibility.

The different music on composer-pianist Timo Andres’ Home Stretch — a rhythmically modern piece for piano and chamber orchestra, a reimagination of Mozart’s Coronation concerto, and a “paraphrase” of themes written by an experimental, ambient musician — is an adventure in time, in terms of tempo and stylistic history.

The centrepiece of this latest collection on Home Stretch is a perfect example of Andres's playful intelligence and individuality.

“An ambitious and confident performance resulting in a compelling blend of ancient and modern.”

“Thought-provoking glimpses into how the past and the present merge in classical music today.”

The two concertos were recorded at Tanglewood’s Seiji Ozawa Hall by Charlie Post and Tim Martyn with a “you-are-there” feeling.

The opening Violin Concerto is a good introduction to Fung, offering an immediate vista of her understated but brilliant orchestration and her technically demanding but musically riveting writing for the violin.