NOW Ensemble has been a prominent member of the New York City indie classical scene for more than four years. With an idiosyncratic instrumenation of flute, clarinet, electric guitar, double bass, and piano, NOW is synonymous with its unique sound, blending five instruments into one virtuosic band. For its long-awaited debut album, the group chose 7 pieces from its core repertoire, a body of work that is helping to redefine chamber music for the 21st century.

Steve Smith, who gave the album 5 stars in Time Out New York, writes: "[Judd] Greenstein's wistful Folk Music and passionate Sing Along serve as bookends on the eponymous debut recording by NOW Ensemble, a polished, versatile chamber group consisting of flute, clarinet, electric guitar, piano and double bass. Members Patrick Burke and Mark Dancigers contribute two works apiece; rising star Nico Muhly provides How About Now. Despite their diversity, what unites these pieces is the way they combine the formal elegance of chamber music with a pop-honed concision and rhythmic vitality."

"(Five Stars) \[Judd\] Greenstein’s wistful Folk Music and passionate Sing Along serve as bookends on the eponymous debut recording by NOW Ensemble, a polished, versatile chamber group consisting of flute, clarinet, electric guitar, piano and double bass. Members Patrick Burke and Mark Dancigers contribute two works apiece; rising star Nico Muhly provides How About Now. Despite their diversity, what unites these pieces is the way they combine the formal elegance of chamber music with a pop-honed concision and rhythmic vitality." - Steve Smith, Time Out New York

"(Five Stars) On its first recording, \[NOW Ensemble\] makes a point of playing happy music with a pop sensibility that's nonetheless pretty rigorous....The melancholy flute line, above bobbing piano chords, of Judd Greenstein's Folk Music is one of the disc's highlights...like a lot of \[Nico\] Muhly's music, the energetic throb \[of How About Now\] has a poppish sensibility but takes a crack team of players to pull of easily. And can this group make it sound easy. Flutist Alexandra Sopp and clarinetist Sara Phillips shine as soloists and as ensemble players, and pianist Michael Mizrahi does as well. Greenstein's works open and close the disc, starting and ending it on a clean and pure current." - Marc Geelhoed, Time Out Chicago, album review, January 17, 2008

"Setting up shop closer to the classical camp is the outstanding seven-member NOW Ensemble's debut, NOW. Composers Nico Muhly, Patrick Burke, Mark Dancigers and Judd Greenstein...provide repertoire plenty deep enough to be dredged on multiple passes without crawling up inside its head so far it misplaces its soul." - Molly Sheridan, "New CDs From Musicians Who Play the Field", The Washington Post, March 9, 2008

"NOW Ensemble is a smart young chamber group that straddles a line between contemporary classical music and indie rock. The ensemble has just released their debut album, which features some of today’s rising young composers." - John Schaefer, WNYC's Soundcheck