aworks :: "new" american classical music

Treemonisha (1911). Scott Joplin

Anthony Tommasini reviews reissued recordings including a performance of Scott Joplin's Treemonisha:

Looked at one way, the story is affirming and prescient. A modest young black woman who acquires some education comes back to her home town and is embraced by her community as an enlightened leader.

gable: aworks  wwi/prohibition era joplin: del.icio.us wikipedia google news yahoo audio singingfish treemonisha: usopera new production midi amazon sales rank #7,531

A Love Supreme (1964). John Coltrane /string quartet/

From artist recommendations on Amazon, David Balakrishnan recommends A Love Supreme:

This is my all-time highest favorite recording of any music in any style I have ever heard, although that might be partly because I am currently wrestling with how to arrange some of this incredible music for TISQ.

Since Elvin Jones' drumming is so good, for example, the solo at the beginning of Pursuance followed by his accompaniment as the band joins in, I don't see how the work can be arranged for string quartet.

Other interesting artist recommendations include Anonymous 4:

• On the Transmigration of Souls. John Adams.
• Pioneers Who Got Scalped: The Anthology. Devo.
• Action Packed: Best of the Capitol Years. Richard Thompson.
• Bernard Herrmann - The Film Scores / L.A. Phil. · Salonen

Renee Fleming:

• Hejira. Joni Mitchell.
• Unspeakable. Bill Frisell.

Paavo Järvi:

• Nancarrow, Daugherty et al on Absolute Mix. Kristjan Järvi's Absolute Ensemble.

gable: aworks consciousness revolution era coltrane: aworks del.icio.us wikipedia google news yahoo audio singingfish a love supreme: aworks amazon sales rank #345

In C (1964). Terry Riley /without the c/

Allan Kozinn writes of a performance by the Composer's Collaborative of Terry Riley's In C:

There is also usually a repeating C, in octaves, played as a pulse that runs through the work, although this time the ensemble - billed as the Mighty CCI House Band - elected to drop it. That decision, though it made the piece sound slightly naked at first, allowed for an extra measure of fluidity in this already free-flowing score.

gable: aworks riley consciousness revolution era riley: official del.icio.us wikipedia google news yahoo audio singingfish

beyond aworks :: Pandora

I've been playing with the pandora beta this week. It's one of those "if you like x, we'll play you y" streaming radio services. Of course, there is nothing remotely classical i.e. no Philip Glass let alone Couperin or Cowell. But the interesting twist is that instead of using social recommendations, it's based on exhaustive musical analysis of tracks.  I've started three "stations" -- one based on Boards of Canada, one on Interpol and one on Mission of Burma. Each station plays tracks of the artist and related to the artist. I then tweak the station by indicating if I like it or not. For example, Angel's Sen by Sevendust is currently playing on my Boards of Canada station. I can then ask why this is playing:

Based on what you've told us so far, we're playing this track because it features basic rock song structures, mild rhythmic syncopation, a subtle use of vocal harmony, and a clear focus on recording studio production.

I happen to really dislike the current song. While those factors may in fact be present, how did my Boards of Canada station end up requiring "a subtle use of vocal harmony?" Still, it's a fun exercise.

Car Radio by Spoon on my Mission of Burma station "features electronic rock instrumentation, punk influences, mild rhythmic syncopation, a subtle use of vocal harmony, and major key tonality." Ok, I never realized my preference for syncopation but given all those jazz years, it makes sense.

On Interpol (coming to San Jose in September!) radio,

...features

Well, I can't quote it because it is not working right now (unfortunately, I think it's a flash application and my PC has problems with graphically intense programs. Buying that HP "Carly Fiorina Celebrity Edition" PC two years ago was a mistake).  Still, the key Interpol attribute I remember was minor key tonality and in general, I like my pop music minor. What I really want is a control panel where I can explicitly choose major/minor, production studio/unprocessed acoustic, etc. I realize the average music consumer won't be able to handle that level of specificity and so for now, I'm stuck with  thumbs up/thumbs down mode. Final note: If someone can come up with the set of relevant attributes, I volunteer to listen to thousands of classical tracks so we can  leverage their "genomes".

Update: The new Google Desktop was consuming memory. A reboot and Pandora is working fine as is that new Black Sabbath channel I just created. Here's hoping it's just a phase I'm going through...

Update #2: No, Pandora stalled again just as it was about to play Iron Man. Though, if I click on fast forward, it takes me to a Wishbone Ash track Lady Whiskey that I have to say sounds very Black Sabbath-ish. Carter was president the last time I heard Wishbone Ash:

...it features hard rock roots, mild rhythmic syncopation, minor key tonality, repetitive melodic phrasing, and extensive vamping.

Well, that pretty much sums up the seventies...

 

Dirty Love (1973). Frank Zappa /strictly commercial/

Thinking about yesterday's post, it occurs to me I can only speculate on which music is truly "semi-popular" and which music qualifies as "long-tail" obscure. Surely, "The OC" soundtracks are popular but does Mission of Burma's CD sell more than John Adams'? Using Amazon sales rank as a proxy, let's find out:

music sales rank 1-10:
11-100: Amadou & Mariam
101-1000:  Music from the OC: Mix 1
1001-10000: Music from the OC: Mix 2 Slint
10001-100000: Kronos Quartet Frank Zappa Mission of Burma John Adams Charles Ives/Bernstein Eric Dolphy  Alan Hovhaness/Shanghai Quartet
100001-1000000: The Anomoanon/Black Sabbath Henry Cowell/Anthony de Mare Robert Moran

Ok, so Mission of Burma only slightly outsells John Adams...

Arias, Interludes And Inventions (1992). Robert Moran

Current ***** tracks:

• Paint the Silence. South.
• Adagio Ma Non Troppo. String Quartet No. 4.  Alan Hovhaness. Shanghai Quartet.
• Spem In Alium. Thomas Tallis. Kronos Quartet.
• Andante Moderato. Symphony No. 2. Charles Ives.
• Largo Ostinato. Henry Cowell.
• Dirty Love. Frank Zappa.
• Bee Vamp. Eric Dolphy.
• M'bifé (Balafon). Amadou & Mariam.
• Artistiya. Amadou & Mariam.
• (5). Arias, Interludes And Inventions. Robert Moran. Jayne West, Piano Circus Band.
• Don't Let Me Disappoint You. Corey Dargel.
• You Got Me All Wrong. Dios Malos.
• (2). Arias, Interludes And Inventions. Robert Moran. Jayne West, Piano Circus Band.
• Breadcrumb Trail. Slint.
• Mother of the Man. Naive and Sentimental Music. John Adams.
• Prepared. Mission of Burma.
• Sam Lazaro Bros. Jurg Frey. Edwin Alexander Buchholz (accordion).
• Planet Caravan. The Anomoanon.

Observations:

1. My current musical life is a dialectic battle between semi-popular music and semi-contemporary classical music. Lately, if it weren't for Robert Moran, I would say pop was winning.
2. Love/hate that Slint reissue CD.
3. Again, Corey Dargel's music sounds fresh and novel without being "avant-gardey." From the Sequenza21 listening room (where I need to listen to the other composers; I also have an interesting backlog of listening suggestions I've received).
4. I'm always surprised I don't listen more to the music of Alan Hovhaness.
5. I know next to nothing about South, Dios Malos, Mission of Burma, Jurg Frey, or The Anomoanon, but there they are...

Akhnaten (1984). Philip Glass /vacation mix/

Note to self: for the next vacation with considerable rental car time, take more CDs. I like Philip Glass, Black Sabbath, and Tori Amos as much as the next bloke, but sheesh.

Chuck Klosterman, in preparing for his road trip to research his book Killing  Yourself to Live, takes on the subject of what CDs to pack:

I think about my CDs a lot. I find it oddly reassuring to look at them when I'm intoxicated. Right now, my eyes are scanning their alphabetized titles, and I'm wondering how many will make the cut for my drive across America. This decision will dictate everything. Space will be limited, so I can only select those albums that will be undeniably essential.

I elect to bring 600.

In other news while I was gone, Gapers Block reports of an upcoming listening party for a new Philip Glass remix CD. Amazon has clips. I'm normally game for this kind of thing but a dance from Akhnaten sounds weak.

gable: aworks glass consciousness revolution era glass: del.icio.us wikipedia google news yahoo audio singingfish

A Love Supreme (1964). John Coltrane /carl stone playlist/

I see that composer Carl Stone has been listening to John Coltrane's A Love Supreme as played by Carlos Santana and John McLaughlin as well as music by Dumisami Muraire, Mykal Rouse, Henry Brant, Glenn Gould and others. I'm always interested in what people actually listen to. In this case, not surprisingly, it's a diverse list.

gable: aworks coltrane stone consciousness revolution era coltrane: del.icio.us wikipedia google news yahoo audio singingfish stone: wikipedia

Doctor Atomic (2005). John Adams /getting ready/

• "Director Peter Sellars has an unusual new creation -- turning the world's first atomic bomb project into music." Associated Press
• "The opera, which is set in 1945 in the final hours leading up to the first atomic explosion, is indeed a community effort for the Bay Area, connecting the Berkeley-based composer not only with Oppenheimer, a former professor of the University of California (Berkeley), but also with local events observing the 60th anniversary of the United Nations, a conference of the American Physical Society celebrating 2005 as the World Year of Physics, a seminar on Oppenheimer at the Stanford University Institute for International Studies, and a Bay Area film festival of 'post-atomic' films and 'mad scientist' movies dating back to the 1920s." Gramaphone
• "There's more than a little irony in the fact that a man named Peter Sellars (a noted opera director) is behind the project." Boing Boing
• "The story focuses on a night in July 1945, during a rainstorm, when the brilliantly charming Oppenheimer and his youthful team prepared to test detonate the first atomic bomb at their secret location near Los Alamos." Martinis, Persistence, and a Smile
• "In this photo released by the San Francisco Opera, composer John Adams, left, listens to director Peter Sellars as he explains his idea about the premiere of Adam's new Opera "Doctor Atomic," as San Francisco Opera's general director Pamela Rosenberg looks on in New York." Washington Post
• '"This is an awesome subject that can't be dealt with in a rational way," Adams said. "It's about flesh-and-blood people screaming at each other, and loving one another." CBC Arts
• For Dr. Atomic, Adams's angel was Edgard Varèse, whom he described as the "original post-nuclear composer."' newmusicbox
• "We ready ourselves...musically and otherwise." In the Wings

The Overture clip (here, click on Music for .mov files) sounds a bit dangerous and threatening. Although the texture is compelling, I'm not sure I'm ready for the idea of ominous music in ominous times i.e. now.

robert gable: aworks adams culture wars era adams: official del.icio.us wikipedia google news yahoo audio singingfish amazon doctor atomic: official iron tongue of midnight wikipedia: 2005 dr. strangelove varèse

String Quartet No. 4 (1970). Alan Hovhaness /*****/

Creeping starism...

1. Paint the Silence. South.
2. String Quartet No. 4. Adagio Ma No Troppo. Alan Hovhaness. Shanghai Quartet.
3. El Salon Mexico. Aaron Copland (arranged for piano by Leonard Bernstein). Eugenie Russo.
4. The Cat. Jimmy Smith. Kudos to my recently deceased Oklahoma grandmother-in-law. Who knew she had such jazz tastes?
5. Yellow. Petra Haden and Bill Frisell. A Coldplay song by real musicians.
6. Sonntag. Alexander Hacke. From a recent The Wire CD.
7. The Duel. Dexter Gordon. Boldface or italicize?
8. Piano Sonata Op. 26: Adagio mesto. Samuel Barber. Emanuele Arciuli. 1999 CD of the Year?
9. Piano Sonata Op. 26: Fuga-Allegro con spirito. Samuel Barber. Emanuele Arciuli. Did I mention how good the CD is?
10. Salvese Quien Pueda: Juana's Epic Re-Version (Edit). Juana Molina. From the same The Wire CD.
11. I Loves You, Porgy. Sun Ra.
12. Concerto in D minor: Andante. Vivaldi. Guillou. For organ. What's up with his "new" work?
13. Arias, Interludes And Inventions (5). Robert Moran. Jayne West, Soprano / Piano Circus Band. Not enough attention on Robert Moran.
14. M'bifé (Balafon). Amadou & Miriam Mariam. New album.
15. Artistiya. Amadou & Miriam Mariam. Did I mention they have a new album out?
16. Arias, Interludes And Inventions (2). Robert Moran. Jayne West, Soprano / Piano Circus Band. Did I mention Moran deserves more attention?

The most American aworks post is here, inspired by the music of Alan Hovhaness. Since then, I don't really have any major new thoughts on religion, the Amish, Alan Hovhaness, Hoosier mores, or American Muslims. I can say I'm much more aware of China (Hi Norman. Hi Wayne) and I do sometimes wonder if after A Love Supreme, John Coltrane practiced nihlism.

In 1970 according to Wikipedia, Charles Wuorinen, at age 32, won the Pulitzer Prize, Davy Jones left the Monkees, Randy Bachman started Bachman Turner Overdive Overdrive and Black Sabbath released Black Sabbath. I was probably listening to Chicago's 25 or 6 to 4, If You Could Read My Mind by Gordon Lightfoot and/or Santana's Black Magic Woman. By this time, I knew who Ferde Grofe was (Hi Mrs. Merrill). I remember buying the singles Venus by Shocking Blue and Whole Lotta Love by Led Zeppelin. I also vaguely remember Bobby Sherman. George Crumb wrote Ancient Voices of Children and Ligeti wrote Continuum but it took me another twenty years before I "grokked" contemporary classical music. Mariah Carey, Jennifer Lopez and Beck were all born in 1970 and Slim Harpo, Earl Hooker, Janice Joplin, George Szell, and Jimi Hendrix all died. That year, I saw Scrooge at a matinee with my mom, but didn't like it because of all the singing (Hi Mom). I've since seen The Aristocats, released in 1970.  For geeks, the Unix epoch began January 1, 1970 (Hi Shawn and ...). I do remember being in a bookstore hearing about the problem with Apollo 13 (Hi Tom Hanks). I also remember the Ford Pinto although I never saw one explode...

Update: Reading this 1970s nostalgia trip one day later, it amazes me how ephemeral popular culture really is.