Earbox: A 10-CD Retrospective [Box set]

Editorial Reviews
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

Earbox: A 10-CD Retrospective, Music, Steve Smith, Sanford Sylvan, Hannu Rantanen, Dominick Morgan, John Orford, Andrew Shulman, Christopher van Kampen, Joan Jeanrenaud, Guy Cowley, Kari Tenkanen, Michael Collins, John Adams, Charles Ives, Edo de Waart, John Adams, Kent Nagano, Lynda Houghton, Robin McGee, Jari-Pekka Karvonen, Paul Clarvis, Gareth Hulse, Kronos Quartet, Sebastian Bell, Michael Thompson, Jari Nieminen, Teresa Shaw, Hallé Orchestra, London Sinfonietta, London Symphony Orchestra, Lyon Opera Orchestra, Orchestra of St. Luke's, San Francisco Symphony Orchestra, The Hallé Orchestra, David Maric, John Alley, Paul Crossley, Shelagh Sutherland, Janne Murto, Dawn Upshaw, Judith Rees, Nicole Tibbels, David Purser, Christopher Gekker, Glenn Fischthal, John Wallace, Hank Dutt, Levine Andrade
The John Adams Earbox: A 10-CD Retrospective
Average customer rating: 5 out of 5 stars
  • Moved to tears
  • Nonesuch delivers.Again
  • harmonia in excelsis
  • Our greatest living composer
  • Wonderful CD
 The John Adams Earbox: A 10-CD Retrospective

Manufacturer: Nonesuch
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

DancesDances | Ballets & Dances | Classical | Styles | Music
QuartetsQuartets | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music
All Works by AdamsAll Works by Adams | Adams, John | ( A ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
Ives, CharlesIves, Charles | ( I ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Concertos | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Classical (c.1770-1830) | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Ives, Charles | Composers | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
Chamber MusicChamber Music | Forms & Genres | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
Vocal & SongVocal & Song | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
General ContemporaryGeneral Contemporary | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
PianoPiano | Keyboard | Instruments | Classical | Styles | Music
ViolinViolin | Strings | Instruments | Classical | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Strings | Instruments | Classical | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Symphonies | Classical | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Sacred & Religious | Classical | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Classical | Styles | Music
San Francisco Symphony OrchestraSan Francisco Symphony Orchestra | ( S ) | Featured Performers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
Modern & 20th CenturyModern & 20th Century | Historical Periods | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
EnglishEnglish | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
ChorusesChoruses | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
OratoriosOratorios | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
Minimal TechnoMinimal Techno | Techno | Dance & DJ | Styles | Music
ClassicalClassical | Box Sets | Stores | Music
Opera & VocalOpera & Vocal | Box Sets | Stores | Music
Similar Items:
  1. Steve Reich 1965-1995
  2. Naive & Sentimental Music
  3. John Adams: The Dharma at Big Sur/My Father Knew Charles Ives
  4. 25 Years: Retrospective
  5. Century Rolls

ASIN: B00001SID1
Release Date: 1999-10-19

Tracks:

  1. Lollapalooza
  2. John's Book Of Alleged Dances: Judah To Ocean
  3. John's Book Of Alleged Dances: Toot Nipple
  4. John's Book Of Alleged Dances: Dogjam
  5. John's Book Of Alleged Dances: Pavane: She's So Fine
  6. John's Book Of Alleged Dances: Rag The Bone
  7. John's Book Of Alleged Dances: Habanera
  8. John's Book Of Alleged Dances: Stubble Crotchet
  9. John's Book Of Alleged Dances: Hammer & Chisel
  10. John's Book Of Alleged Dances: Alligator Escalator
  11. John's Book Of Alleged Dances: Standchen: The Little Serenade
  12. John's Book Of Alleged Dances: Judah To Ocean (Reprise)
  13. Slonimsky's Earbox

Tracks:

  1. Two Fanfares For Orchestra - Tromba Lontana
  2. Two Fanfares For Orchestra - Short Ride In A Fast Machine
  3. Common Tones In Simple Time
  4. El Dorado - Part I. A Dream Of Gold
  5. El Dorado - Part II. Soledades

Tracks:

  1. Harmonielehre - Part I
  2. Harmonielehre - Part II The Anfortas Wound
  3. Harmonielehre - Part III Meister Eckhardt And Quackie
  4. Violin Concerto - Part I
  5. Violin Concerto - Part II Chaconne:
  6. Violin Concerto - Part III Toccare

Tracks:

  1. Chamber Sympony - Mongel Airs
  2. Chamber Sympony - Aria With Walking Bass
  3. Chamber Sympony
  4. Hoodo Zephyr - Tundra
  5. Hoodo Zephyr - Dissappointment Lake
  6. Hoodo Zephyr - Hoodo Zephyr
  7. Gnarly Buttons - The Perilous Shore
  8. Gnarly Buttons - Hoe-Down (Mad Cow)
  9. Gnarly Buttons - Put Your Loving Arms Around Me

Tracks:

  1. Ensemble - I Was Looking At The Ceiling And Then I Saw The Sky
  2. A Sermon On Romance
  3. Consuelo's Dream
  4. Mike's Song About Arresting A Particular Individual
  5. Tiffany's Solo
  6. Song About The On-Site Altercation
  7. Song About The Bad Boys And The News
  8. Your Honor My Client He's A Young Black Man
  9. Leila's Song; Alone (Again Or At Last)
  10. Three Weeks And Still I'm Outta My Mind
  11. Crushed By The Rock I Been Standing On
  12. Dewain's Song Of Liberation And Surprise
  13. !Este Pais! / This Country
  14. One Last Look At The Angel In Your Eyes
  15. Finale

Tracks:

  1. Lollapalooza
  2. John's Book Of Alleged Dances - Judah To Ocean
  3. John's Book Of Alleged Dances - Toot Nipple
  4. John's Book Of Alleged Dances - Dogjam
  5. John's Book Of Alleged Dances - Pavane: She's So Fine
  6. John's Book Of Alleged Dances - Rag The Bone
  7. John's Book Of Alleged Dances - Habenera
  8. John's Book Of Alleged Dances - Stubble Crotchet
  9. John's Book Of Alleged Dances - Hammer & Chisel
  10. John's Book Of Alleged Dances - Alligator Escalator
  11. John's Book Of Alleged Dances - Standchen: The Little Serenade
  12. John's Book Of Alleged Dances - Judah To Ocean (Reprise)
  13. Slonimsky's Earbox

Tracks:

  1. Harmonium - Negative Love
  2. Harmonium - Becuase I Could Not Stop For Death
  3. Harmonium - Wild Nights
  4. Shaker Loops - Shaking and Trambling
  5. Shaker Loops - Hymning Slews
  6. Shaker Loops - Loops and Verses
  7. Shaker Loops - A Final Shaking

Tracks:

  1. The Chairman Dances - Foxtrot For Orchestra
  2. Grand Pianola Music - First Movement
  3. Grand Pianola Music - Second Movement
  4. Grand Pianola Music - Third Movement: On The Dominant Divide
  5. Fearful Symmetries

Tracks:

  1. Nixon In China - Opening
  2. Nixon In China -
  3. Nixon In China -
  4. Nixon In China - Landing Of The Spirit Of '76
  5. Nixon In China -
  6. Nixon In China -
  7. Nixon In China -
  8. Nixon In China -
  9. Nixon In China - Cheers
  10. Nixon In China -
  11. Nixon In China - Opening
  12. Nixon In China -
  13. Nixon In China -
  14. Nixon In China -
  15. Nixon In China -
  16. Nixon In China -
  17. Nixon In China -
  18. Nixon In China -
  19. Nixon In China -
  20. Nixon In China -
  21. Nixon In China -
  22. Nixon In China -

Tracks:

  1. The Wound-Dresser
  2. Christian Zeal And Activity
  3. Five Songs - Thoreau
  4. Five Songs - Down East
  5. Five Songs - Cradle Song
  6. Five Songs - At The River
  7. Five Songs - Serenity
  8. 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:

5 out of 5 stars 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.

5 out of 5 stars 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

4 out of 5 stars 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.

5 out of 5 stars 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.

5 out of 5 stars 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!

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