John Adams: Harmonielehre
Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
Of the music by the four reigning minimalists in this country (Steve Reich, Philip Glass, and Terry Riley are the others), that of John Adams is perhaps the simplest, constructed on punctuated--and percussive--chords riding above coherent melodies. This is probably why Adams has had such success with his two operas. Harmonielehre is a sustained orchestral piece in three sections--triptychs framing a slow second movement of unusual somberness, given the gaiety of the opening section. Part III, called "Meister Eckhardt and Quackie", is a sprightly fairy tale of shimmering, glissando-like textures underscored by a dignified flowing melody. --Paul Cook
John Adams: Harmonielehre, Music, John Adams, Edo de Waart, San Francisco Symphony Orchestra, 20th/21st Century Orchestral Music, Classical, Classical Composers, Classical Music, Orchestral
Average customer rating:
- Terrific Big Big music
- A Must-Have For Lovers of Contemporary Classic Music
- I bought this because it sounded so good on the radio
- Rattle and roll
- A Finely Tuned Harmonielehre
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John Adams - Harmonielehre · The Chairman Dances · Tromba lontana · Short Ride in a Fast Machine / Sir Simon Rattle
John Adams , Simon Rattle , Jonathan Holland , Wesley Warren , and City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
Manufacturer: EMI Classics
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Similar Items:
- On the Transmigration of Souls
- John Adams: The Dharma at Big Sur/My Father Knew Charles Ives
- Naive & Sentimental Music
- Adams: Violin Concerto/Shaker Loops
- Road Movies
ASIN: B000002RU2
Release Date: 1994-04-12 |
Tracks:
- Harmonielehre: Part I.
- Harmonielehre: Part II. The Anfortas Wound
- Harmonielehre: Part III. Meister Eckhardt And Quackie
- The Chairman Dances: Foxtrot For Orchestra
- Two Fanfares: Tromba Lontana - Jonathan Holland
- Short Ride In A Fast Machine
Customer Reviews:
Terrific Big Big music.......2007-05-15
Harmonielehre
I heard the St. Louis Symphony womp this puppy out at Carnegie Hall and it's just as great on this CD by Rattle et co. Vast, intricate, sailing, imaginative.
Buy it.
A Must-Have For Lovers of Contemporary Classic Music.......2007-03-28
This CD is a collection of some of the greatest pieces of contemporary classical music by one of the world's greatest living classical composers. The works herein are highly accessible in their intense rhythms, explosive energy, and original construction. It's difficult for me to heap enough praise on these works and this CD.
I bought this because it sounded so good on the radio.......2007-02-06
I heard The Chairman Dances and went right to Amazon to order this. This ia a lovely little gem of a CD, and it is so pleasing to find John Adams, another great modern American composer. I'm also a fan of composers such as Christopher Rouse, for example, and Joe Leniado Chira is my cousin. Modern composers are a precious resource that we should explore, demand more of and nurture. We afficianados would like to see symphony orchestras and ensembles giving more attention to the modern genre. Meanwhile, John Adams has impressed me with this disc. The Chairman Dances is my favorite. I can just see Chairman Mao doing a vigorous foxtrot to this, and Tricky Dick feeling jealous. This might be the music that opened China to the West.
Rattle and roll.......2007-01-12
Slouching back in the old easy chair I was very tempted to write an eloquent review after listening to this recording but why bother, no I
think I'll just go back and listen to it again. Care to join me ?
A Finely Tuned Harmonielehre.......2006-04-02
Should any friend ask what CD to obtain to begin an appreciation for the music of one of our greatest living composers, John Adams, this superb disc with Simon Rattle and the Birmingham Symphony Orchestra would surely be at the top of the list. Rattle has selected the various sides of Adams' thoughts and offers performances that are sparkling and rich and very well performed.
For inclusiveness Rattle has elected excerpts from one of Adams operas, 'Nixon in China', in the facile and gently humorous yet tender 'The Chairman Dances', foxtrot for orchestra. For sheer showmanship there is the 'Tromba Lontana, fanfare for orchestra', and the often performed 'Short Ride in a Fast Machine, fanfare for orchestra'.
But the glory of the recording of course is the magnificent orchestral 'symphony' from 1984-85, the 'Harmonielehre'. Though this work has multiple recordings, not the least one being the premiere recording with Edo de Waart and the San Francisco Symphony, Simon Rattle brings to the work his usual insight into architecture that allows the listener to appreciate the splendors of each of the three sections.
But this listener, though long a champion for this masterwork, was still amazed to hear just how magnificently composed is 'Harmonielehre', hearing a live performance with John Adams conducting the Los Angeles Philharmonic. The acoustic of Disney Hall allowed the huge percussion section of drums, gongs, bells, keyboards, triangles, etc and manipulations of each of these sections in the odd ways in which Adams achieves his effects to truly shine. Watching the performance enhances the auditory splendor. Rarely has the emotionally loaded aspect of the work been so revealed. One can only hope that Adams will record this performance to share the miracle. Grady Harp, April 06
Average customer rating:
- Moved to tears
- Nonesuch delivers.Again
- harmonia in excelsis
- Our greatest living composer
- Wonderful CD
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The John Adams Earbox: A 10-CD Retrospective
Manufacturer: Nonesuch
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ASIN: B00001SID1
Release Date: 1999-10-19 |
Tracks:
- Lollapalooza
- John's Book Of Alleged Dances: Judah To Ocean
- John's Book Of Alleged Dances: Toot Nipple
- John's Book Of Alleged Dances: Dogjam
- John's Book Of Alleged Dances: Pavane: She's So Fine
- John's Book Of Alleged Dances: Rag The Bone
- John's Book Of Alleged Dances: Habanera
- John's Book Of Alleged Dances: Stubble Crotchet
- John's Book Of Alleged Dances: Hammer & Chisel
- John's Book Of Alleged Dances: Alligator Escalator
- John's Book Of Alleged Dances: Standchen: The Little Serenade
- John's Book Of Alleged Dances: Judah To Ocean (Reprise)
- Slonimsky's Earbox
Tracks:
- Two Fanfares For Orchestra - Tromba Lontana
- Two Fanfares For Orchestra - Short Ride In A Fast Machine
- Common Tones In Simple Time
- El Dorado - Part I. A Dream Of Gold
- El Dorado - Part II. Soledades
Tracks:
- Harmonielehre - Part I
- Harmonielehre - Part II The Anfortas Wound
- Harmonielehre - Part III Meister Eckhardt And Quackie
- Violin Concerto - Part I
- Violin Concerto - Part II Chaconne:
- Violin Concerto - Part III Toccare
Tracks:
- Chamber Sympony - Mongel Airs
- Chamber Sympony - Aria With Walking Bass
- Chamber Sympony
- Hoodo Zephyr - Tundra
- Hoodo Zephyr - Dissappointment Lake
- Hoodo Zephyr - Hoodo Zephyr
- Gnarly Buttons - The Perilous Shore
- Gnarly Buttons - Hoe-Down (Mad Cow)
- Gnarly Buttons - Put Your Loving Arms Around Me
Tracks:
- Ensemble - I Was Looking At The Ceiling And Then I Saw The Sky
- A Sermon On Romance
- Consuelo's Dream
- Mike's Song About Arresting A Particular Individual
- Tiffany's Solo
- Song About The On-Site Altercation
- Song About The Bad Boys And The News
- Your Honor My Client He's A Young Black Man
- Leila's Song; Alone (Again Or At Last)
- Three Weeks And Still I'm Outta My Mind
- Crushed By The Rock I Been Standing On
- Dewain's Song Of Liberation And Surprise
- !Este Pais! / This Country
- One Last Look At The Angel In Your Eyes
- Finale
Tracks:
- Lollapalooza
- John's Book Of Alleged Dances - Judah To Ocean
- John's Book Of Alleged Dances - Toot Nipple
- John's Book Of Alleged Dances - Dogjam
- John's Book Of Alleged Dances - Pavane: She's So Fine
- John's Book Of Alleged Dances - Rag The Bone
- John's Book Of Alleged Dances - Habenera
- John's Book Of Alleged Dances - Stubble Crotchet
- John's Book Of Alleged Dances - Hammer & Chisel
- John's Book Of Alleged Dances - Alligator Escalator
- John's Book Of Alleged Dances - Standchen: The Little Serenade
- John's Book Of Alleged Dances - Judah To Ocean (Reprise)
- Slonimsky's Earbox
Tracks:
- Harmonium - Negative Love
- Harmonium - Becuase I Could Not Stop For Death
- Harmonium - Wild Nights
- Shaker Loops - Shaking and Trambling
- Shaker Loops - Hymning Slews
- Shaker Loops - Loops and Verses
- Shaker Loops - A Final Shaking
Tracks:
- The Chairman Dances - Foxtrot For Orchestra
- Grand Pianola Music - First Movement
- Grand Pianola Music - Second Movement
- Grand Pianola Music - Third Movement: On The Dominant Divide
- Fearful Symmetries
Tracks:
- Nixon In China - Opening
- Nixon In China -
- Nixon In China -
- Nixon In China - Landing Of The Spirit Of '76
- Nixon In China -
- Nixon In China -
- Nixon In China -
- Nixon In China -
- Nixon In China - Cheers
- Nixon In China -
- Nixon In China - Opening
- Nixon In China -
- Nixon In China -
- Nixon In China -
- Nixon In China -
- Nixon In China -
- Nixon In China -
- Nixon In China -
- Nixon In China -
- Nixon In China -
- Nixon In China -
- Nixon In China -
Tracks:
- The Wound-Dresser
- Christian Zeal And Activity
- Five Songs - Thoreau
- Five Songs - Down East
- Five Songs - Cradle Song
- Five Songs - At The River
- Five Songs - Serenity
- Eros Piano
Amazon.com
Having earned his composing stripes after the 1960s, John Adams had the pioneering work of Steve Reich, Philip Glass, and Terry Riley close at hand as he ventured into his trade. And, while minimalism's historical continuum helps place Adams, he used Reich, Glass, and Riley (among others) only as a starting point. And here's proof: a 10-CD retrospective of nearly all Adams's recorded compositions on Nonesuch Records, the label that also issued Steve Reich 1965-1995 and Kronos Quartet: 25 Years. Adams's Harmonium, a choral work of startling energy and effervescence, appears here in a new recording, as do distillations of both The Death of Klinghoffer and Nixon in China, two path-clearing operas. Over the span of a career covered by Earbox, Adams has returned minimalism to traditional instrumental ensembles as well as to projects that at once advanced a political commentary and took that commentary back to orchestral audiences. And so, in far less time than his predecessors, Adams created works that now play like standard repertoire pieces: The Wound Dresser and Shaker Loops and the Violin Concerto--all of them are here. What these works demonstrate is a fierce creativity on the one hand and perhaps a hunger for commercial advances on the other. Adams may at times be a bustling free thinker, but he sounds ever conscious of what audiences are listening to. As for the works themselves, they remain every bit as daunting as when written.
Some may object to particular selections. I Was Looking at the Ceiling and Then I Saw the Sky, for example, hardly ranks with Adams's best work. But this box isn't a mere best-of; it's an almost-all-of. At times terrifically American--especially in the news-aware operas and their narrative pragmatism--Adams well deserves a major box set, and its coverage is appropriate to his varied, stylistically diverse output. As with any large-scale retrospective, Earbox--which fairly bristles with Adams's new composition, Slonimsky's Earbox--has spots where fans might balk at the quality of the composer's writing. But it's got a fantastic accompanying booklet along with its many hours of inarguably modern and thoroughly listener-friendly music. --Andrew Bartlett
Customer Reviews:
Moved to tears.......2004-03-18
Never before in my life was i moved so intensely and directly by classical music. I put the first cd in my player and a few minutes later tears are flowing. I find myself dancing and moving to a rythm i already seem to know. Wow, i just have to share that.
Nonesuch delivers.Again.......2002-11-27
John adams is one of the most popular living composers of"modern" classical music[I believe the cutoff point, though arbitrary is usually WWII}.I came to him late, through my husband. Modersn classical music , I said? What the hell is that?My husband kept playing bits and pieces of adams for me, and more and more i found myself amazed. and swayed. His operas have been groundbreaking{Nixon in China} controversial{Death Of klinghoffer},his compostions sublimely beautiful{shaker Loops or harmonium].HIS STATURE IS WORTHY THEN OF SUCH A MONUMENTAL CAREER SPANNING BOX SET.This 10 disc set[great value, again from NONESUCH}encompasses Adams' entire career,and though there are some misses here{I was looking at the ceiling and then i saw the sky doesnt quite fit},it is still magnificent. the Highlights are ,{for me} the Wound Dresser, Chamber symphony,Violin Concerto, of course, Shaker Loops and Harmonuim are wonderful. The true jewels here are Nixon in China,the Chairman dances and the Death of Klinghoffer,which is simply a masterpiece. The set comes with a wonderful book, which contains essay's by Robert Hurwitz {An Uncommon Man}renaud Machart[John adams as seen from europe} and Essays before an earbox by Adams himself.A Chronology and dicography are included. A wonderful study of an American original,worth the investment, Highly highly recommended
harmonia in excelsis.......2001-11-12
I must agree with Mr. Bartlett, particularly with regard to "Ceiling." It may well be because his Violin Concerto and Harmonielehre are so powerful. 4.5 stars.
Interesting, and likely intentional, is that two names in the extensive liner book fail to mention two great and glaringly obvious precursors: Carl Orff and Raymond Scott. Without "Carmina Burana," there would be no "Harmonium." Orff has his mark all over Adams's gifted and epic compositions. Similarly, though there are glib references to "cartoon music," the polymath engineer/musician Scott is a seminal figure in American music, and casts a large shadow over the witty juxtapositions and sense of play one loves in Adams's work. In all, an excellent career overview.
Our greatest living composer.......2001-07-22
As a composer, I'm staggered that anyone could fail to be gripped by this music.
That anyone can use the words "spoiled, overrated" amazes me. I emphatically disagree with "A music fan"'s review.
I don't think it's "mind-numbing"; I think it's spiritual and exciting. To me it's the most substantial music being created in our times.
I'm really sorry that anyone could fail to enjoy it, and really recommend others to listen for themselves.
Wonderful CD.......2000-04-02
This compilation should turn even the most curmudgeonly listerner into a fan. Beautifully recorded, great notes -- and it's a heck of a bargain!
Average customer rating:
- Returning to the Great Ones
- Absorbing and Powerful
- A magnificent work
|
John Adams: Harmonielehre
Manufacturer: Nonesuch
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD
All Works by Adams
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Similar Items:
- Adams: Harmonium
- Chamber Symphony: Grand Pianola
- John Adams: The Chairman Dances
- Century Rolls
- Naive & Sentimental Music
ASIN: B000005IXN
Release Date: 1990-10-25 |
Tracks:
- Harmonielehre: Part I
- Harmonielehre: Part II, The Anfortas Wound
- Harmonielehre: Part III, Meister Eckhardt And Quackie
Amazon.com
Of the music by the four reigning minimalists in this country (Steve Reich, Philip Glass, and Terry Riley are the others), that of John Adams is perhaps the simplest, constructed on punctuated--and percussive--chords riding above coherent melodies. This is probably why Adams has had such success with his two operas. Harmonielehre is a sustained orchestral piece in three sections--triptychs framing a slow second movement of unusual somberness, given the gaiety of the opening section. Part III, called "Meister Eckhardt and Quackie", is a sprightly fairy tale of shimmering, glissando-like textures underscored by a dignified flowing melody. --Paul Cook
Customer Reviews:
Returning to the Great Ones.......2006-03-02
John Adams is now part of the mainstream of classical music and his newer compositions, married in part to social commentary such as the magnificent 'On the Transmigration of Souls' in tribute to 911, 'El Nino' with its bow to the Hispanic heritage, and of course the obvious - his operas 'Nixon in China', 'The Death of Klinghofer', and 'Doctor Atomic'- gain widespread coverage in the media and rightly so. But now and then it is refreshing to return to some of his purely orchestral works such as the splendid 1981 'Harmonium' and the brilliant 'Harmonielehre' here recorded shortly after its premiere in 1985.
'Harmonielehre' is a mature work, a purely orchestra fabric in which Adams is in full control of his very original musical language. That 'language' is the massive pulsation of single chords that moves subtly in context with various additions and subtractions of instrumental choirs, changing tonal colors and rhythms in a manner that sweeps the work along never allowing a moment of static position so often prevalent in some so-called minimalist music. The work is divided into three parts. Part I is 'like a tanker taking off', a driving almost brutal force. Part II 'The Amfortas Wound' is one of the most serenely beautiful movements has written, an evocation of Wagner's tragedy within 'Parsifal'. Part III 'Meister Eckhardt and Quackie' is the climatic 'harmonic struggle among different tonalities vying for dominance'.
Edo de Waart and the San Francisco Orchestra have captured as honest and straight forward a perfomance of this mighty work as we are likely to hear. The recorded sound (from SFOs Davies Hall) in 1985. There is a spaciousness to the recording perhaps in part due to the fact that the CD has no accompanying works. This is the gold standard recording for Adams' important 'Harmonielehre' (translated means Harmony Lesson) and it is a complete success. Highly recommended. Grady Harp, March 06
Absorbing and Powerful.......2001-06-10
I have had this CD since it came out in the late 1980's. Almost 15 years and hundreds of CD's later, it still is one of the joys in my collection. Its a musical cocktail of minimalism, Sibelius, Bruckner and Wagner.
The first movement is a sonic portrait of (Adam's description of a dream he had) "a huge tanker in the San Francisco Bay that suddenly takes off like a rocket out of the water with an enormous force of levitation". For those of you familiar with Sibelius, I find obvious parallels with the first movement of the 5th symphony.
The second movement (The Anfortas Wound) is a slow, deeply emotional piece that echos Wagner's Parsifal. Per Adams, it is "a piece about sickness and infirmity, both physical and spiritual".
The third movement is a struggle out of darkness back into the light. Again, the sound world resembles sibelius with the arc of bruckner.
While I have collected most of Adams works since this purchase, this remains my favorite work of his (El Dorado is a close 2nd). Of the two commercial recordings, this performance by Edo De Waart and the San Francisco Symphony is to be preferred to Simon Rattles later version. Rattle over romanticises the piece. De Waart and the SFS provide a more modern interpretation with a leaner orchestra sound that provides much more clarity.
Highly recommended - One of the best orchestra works to come out of the 2nd half of the 20th century.
A magnificent work.......2001-01-09
I just discovered John Adams recently, and have heard only a few of his works. I picked up this album from my local library. I was extremely impressed by the scope of this work. For all practical purposes, it is a symphony that compares favorably with any of William Schuman's symphonic works. The beginning reminds me of a Bruckner symphony -- and much of the first movement is positively Brucknerian, albeit it is a Bruckner that has an expressionistic style. The second movement reminds me in spots of late Mahler -- especially that long extended dissonant chord, which can also be heard in M10. The last movement is charming, and probably the most enjoyable movement of this work. All in all, I am tremendously impressed to realize that this music was composed when Adams was a mere 38 years old. A magnificent work.
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