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"The thing that impressed us to no end is his degree of craftsmanship, coupled with a fantastic imagination. He seems to have an unending font of ideas..."  -- David Finckel, cellist, Emerson String Quartet

"Dillon has a huge repertoire of technical tools on his belt, and he uses them liberally but always sensitively and intelligently."  -- Raymond Tuttle, Fanfare Magazine

"I like music that makes me think. Dillon's does just that."  -- Raymond Tuttle, Fanfare Magazine

"This is a terrific work. In fact, it is so good it made me weep. And Dillon, with his vivid imagination and his ear for vocal and instrumental color, seems to be a terrific composer. I'm paying attention now."  -- Raymond Tuttle, Fanfare Magazine re Appendage

"If you have any interest in contemporary American chamber music, you really should hear Appendage and Other Stories."  -- Raymond Tuttle, Fanfare Magazine

"The evening's freshest encounter was Dillon's First Symphony, written brilliantly for its string choirs and demonstrating that every modern symphony doesn't require steroidal brass and percussion forces. Dillon argues his case principally through strings and woodwinds, flavoring the mix with a pair of horns. propulsive energy defines the first and third movements, which possessed exceptional structural rigor and harmonic richness. Even more remarkable was the second movement -- a slow, ghostly sequence with slightly freakish double-bass solos and small, plaintive exclamations from the oboe. The entire symphony testifies to the composer's compelling, innate soulfulness."  -- Andrew Adler, Louisville Courier-Journal

"It is obvious on this recording of chamber music by Lawrence Dillon that smoke and mirror musical tricks and "classical" music pretension have been abandoned in favor of a pure mode of expression that layers lines so gracefully they seem to play themselves with an energetic fervor. Dillon's painterly style carefully colors phrases with glissandi and subtle accents underneath an intricate tapestry of sound."  -- Amanda MacBlane, Sound Tracks, New Music Box

"Lawrence Dillon's Flute Concerto...is truly an outstanding work...the piece successfully maintained an extremely coherent and powerful dramatic flow...Dillon's unique compositional voice clearly makes itself heard. [A] passionate and often unpredictable work."  -- Charlotte Observer

"Rich, full-blooded, stylistically uninhibited...[the] performances are knockouts...[Dillon's] fast music is great, [but] it's the slow movements which really get to me: that of the bassoon quintet is really haunting, and the nocturne that ends the string quartet is similar - it makes me hang on every note, and hate to see it go."  -- Robert Carl, Fanfare Magazine

"None of the music on this disc is dry or academic; the CD repays frequent listening. These works ought to be given repeated live performances. It would be wonderful if all new music received such meticulous care as these three quartets and the soloists invest in Dillon's scores. It would be wonderful, too, if all new music were as worthy of such attention as these three compositions!"  -- William Thomas Walker, CVNC

"C'è ad esempio il blog di Lawrence Dillon, un compositore che racconta il suo lavoro passo dopo passo: e nel farlo, fornisce molti spunti di riflessione sulla musica in generale. In questi giorni, Dillon sta scrivendo la sua Seconda Sinfonia.."  -- Il blog della Domenica

"This CD is long overdue. It collects some of the best, most recent chamber music by Lawrence Dillon...The music is terrific...Every note demands the listener's complete attention...It’s still difficult to believe that [Jests and Tenderness] was Dillon's first crack at a string quartet – so complete is its mastery of form."  -- Ken Keuffel, Winston-Salem Journal

"I listened with great delight, especially to the almost unlawfully lush D-minor-ish music at the center."  -- Alex Ross [re String Quartet No. 3: Air]

"Despite a tension, chromaticism and angularity that seem entirely 20th-century, the music takes great pains to draw the audience in."  -- Chamber Music America [re Furies and Muses]

"His music is often in a tense but generally tonal idiom, notable both for its rhythmic propulsiveness and a strong lyrical element. Many of his works exhibit a formal clarity and smooth continuity that reflect his interest in establishing connections with Classical heritage."  -- New Music Wiki

"Clear and honest music, with no attempt to impress or mystify the listener... [a] common-sense setting of the English language, which is rare in any style."  -- Kyle Gann [re Appendage]

"He is not a taker of sides, nor a polemicist. He is both moderate and moderator, impatient with battles of musical aesthetics in which one side of the coin fights the other for dominance. He reserves his anger for the intolerant, and seeks balance."  -- Kyle Gann [re an infinite number of curves]

"Turbulent atonal patterns are devilishly revealed to stem from the angry opening theme of Mozart's G Minor Symphony."  -- Chamber Music America [re Amadeus ex machina]

"Lawrence Dillon, an increasingly formidable composer..."  -- Ken Keuffel, Winston-Salem Journal

"Most welcome was Amadeus Ex Machina by Lawrence Dillon...add this to his growing list of challenging yet audience-friendly compositions. Bold slashing figures are combined with high string harmonics and unusual woodwind sounds that twist and swerve. The audience's response was enthusiastic as Dillon was called and recalled to the stage by conductor Kennedy. In conversations with several of the players in a dorm elevator, I learned that they had really enjoyed learning the work."  -- William Thomas Walker, Classical Voice of North Carolina

"Dillon's piece emerges as a most intriguing collision of tradition and innovation. In it, a tune that might appear in most any 19th-century opera comes in and out of focus as it weaves its way through a thicket of gritty effects."  -- Ken Keuffel, Winston-Salem Journal

"the passionate music the small orchestra produced under Kennedy's direction seemed strikingly original and not at all Mozartian. Mr. Dillon was in attendance to approve the performance and bask in enthusiastic applause."  -- Charleston Post and Courier

"He is a dream to work with, and understands well the give and take between creator and re-creator...he is one of our American treasures."  -- Sharon Robinson, Kalichstein-Laredo-Robinson Trio

"There was a lot to enjoy, not least the pulsating repetition of the rock bacchanale sections and the buzzing tremolos of the fervent fifth movement."  -- Charles T. Downey, ionarts [re String Quartet No. 4: The Infinite Sphere]

"Dillon's "Quartet No. 4: The Infinite Sphere is a work of jewel-like craftsmanship, in arch form, consisting of seven movements alternating between rounds and rondos. The tonal language is not dissonant, but not conservative either; Dillon seems to reach across several centuries for inspiration, somewhat like Benjamin Britten. The centerpiece -- a "circular fugue" -- had each new voice enter at a faster tempo than the previous, and indeed, Dillon's control of time was a conspicuously imaginative element throughout. It is a fine addition to the repertoire, rendered with great skill by its dedicatees."  -- Robert Battey, Washington Post