"The title piece of the CD is an unnervingly vivid representation of the unsettling impressions of a lifetime insomniac in the small hours of the night. The composer has a wonderful sense of instrumental color, and an accessible harmonic language." --- Records International Reviews

"Of particular interest are Night, Again, with its darkness and flashes of light, and the Cello Concerto, with its alternating moods of introspection and playfulness. The Baylor University Wind Ensemble, under the direction of Michael Haithcock, plays this music with style and understanding. Vein Sielert, flugelhorn, and Robert LaRue, cello, give strong performance in their concertos." --- American Record Guide

"...Hagen's style seems to be rooted in jazz and the American neo-Romantic: highly crafted, instrumentally colorful, basically tonal, and very listenable." --- Fanfare Magazine

"Night, Again is a treat for lovers of brass and especially for those who enjoy intriguing, idiomatic music written for contemporary brass ensembles. 'Night, Again' is Hagen's musical portrait of what he refers to as the "intense, introspective solitude of the smallest hours." This is a mercurial and exciting piece that is punctuated by percussive outbursts on timpani and wood block. The Concerto for Flugelhorn is a "composer's holiday" in that it uses pop idioms as its source material. 'Precise Funk' actually resembles East Coast jazz more than anything else, while 'Slow swing' is an homage to 1940s film noir soundtracks. The final movement, 'Driving Bop' is a tribute to 1950s jazz that has moments that call to mind the work of Miles Davis. Sennets, Cortege and Tuckets is a cheery work full of trumpet flourishes and a degree of minimalism to it. Amid the musical proceedings is an Ives-like amalgam of ideas, which include allusions to Erik Satie, Scott Joplin, and Leonard Bernstein. Finally, the Concerto for Cello and Wind Ensemble is a work whose compositional methodology centers around the varying moods of sleep. Especially effective is the use of percussion to underscore the agitated aspects of a sleepless night." --- Tower Online Record Reviews