 Contributor Brett Campbell called the recording one of the year's "most compelling", with "blistering, committed, sharply etched performances" that illustrate the orchestra's quality under Kalmar's leadership.Similarly, "Portland Monthly" included "Music for a Time of War" on its list of fifteen "giftable" Portland albums.Alex Ross of "The New Yorker" included the album on his list of the ten most "exceptional" classical music recordings of the year.