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Track Listings
| 1. Harmonielehre, I. |
| 2. II. The Anfortas Wound |
| 3. III. Meister Eckhardt And Quackie |
| 4. Short Ride In A Fast Machine |
Product Description
Product Description
Michael Tilson Thomas and the San Francisco Symphony release two works by John Adams: Harmonielehre which was commissioned, premiered and recorded by SFS in 1985; and Short Ride in a Fast Machine, commissioned by Tilson Thomas prior to his becoming Music Director of SFS in 1995. Michael Tilson Thomas (MTT) and the San Francisco Symphony (SFS) release the latest in their award-winning catalogue of recordings with two works by John Adams, a composer indelibly associated with the orchestra: Harmonielehre, one of the composer's earliest orchestral works which was commissioned, premiered and recorded by SFS in 1985; and Short Ride in a Fast Machine, commissioned by MTT prior to his becoming Music Director of SFS in 1995. In keeping with the high-end quality of the MTT-SFS releases on their own SFS Media label, this recording is released in the Hybrid SACD format. Harmonielehre is one of Adams' early bold statements, blending elements of classical, jazz, rock and minimalism, and American and European influences. MTT, who conducted the work during his first season as SFS Music Director in 1995 and multiple times since, said of the work, "When a new piece is premiered, it can make a stunning impression. But the real story of that piece is what emerges over time. When the SFS first performed Harmonielehre in the mid-80s it was a life changing moment for everybody who heard it… now, decades later, the piece still stands up." Of Short Ride in a Fast Machine, Adams recalls, "For some reason a connection with Cape Cod came to mind. Years before [the commission] I had been there with a former brother-in-law and he had asked me at about 1 in the morning if I would like to take a ride with him in his Lamborghini. I did and once he started up I wished I hadn't because he drove very, very fast. The idea of a piece that had that combination of excitement and thrill and was just on the edge of anxiety or terror was the motivating force." This release joins the highly-acclaimed, best-selling MTT-SFS catalogue, which includes their outstanding cycle of Mahler's orchestral works and songs, the Keeping Score series of DVDs and Blu-Rays, and more recent releases of works by Beethoven, Copland and Ives. Critical acclaim for Michael Tilson Thomas and the San Francisco Symphony: "In a powerhouse performance … this brilliant and dynamic opus emerged with all its force intact… Thomas is a proven master of this music - he led an unforgettable performance" – San Francisco Chronicle Personnel: San Francisco Symphony, Michael Tilson Thomas (conductor)
Product Description
San Francisco Symphony - Michael Tilson Thomas, direction
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
By droflim
Format:Audio CD|Amazon Verified Purchase
I've been meaning to try a John Adams piece for a while so when this new version of Harmonielehre came out, and on SACD, I gave it a whirl; particularly as a BBC review said it was "as near a great work as makes no difference". And very good it is too. The surround sound is fulsome although as with much classical music balanced to the front as per concert hall which I always feel to be a missed opportunity, especially with modern music. While new to the work it seems strangely familiar in parts but only in brief fragments before it swirls elsewhere and you lose it; Adams apparently alluded to the work perhaps being a parody - and certainly the last part suggests Steve Reich - but overall it is strongly itself. As another, and perhaps not wholly original, musician, Steven Wilson (Porcupine Tree) has it in a lyric: "it could be a joke, could be a statement"...
To my ears the additional 'short ride' piece could easily be a fourth part of the major work here; still what do I know?
As an introduction to Adams I have found it intriguing so far - but if surround sound is not your thing there are earlier and cheaper versions of the 1985 work which, again according to the BBC review, are "not displaced" by this version.
To my ears the additional 'short ride' piece could easily be a fourth part of the major work here; still what do I know?
As an introduction to Adams I have found it intriguing so far - but if surround sound is not your thing there are earlier and cheaper versions of the 1985 work which, again according to the BBC review, are "not displaced" by this version.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
5.0 out of 5 stars
7 reviews
11 of 12 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Powerful Grandeur & A Sonic Adventure
21 Mar 2012
By Dr. Debra Jan Bibel
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Audio CD|Amazon Verified Purchase
Harmonielehre, which premiered in 1985 with the San Francisco Symphony under Edo de Waart, is John Adams' break-out opus that made the classical world take notice. No longer lumped as a minimalist, long past his tape experiments, Adams wrote a majestic, powerful, complex composition. He had labored long in frustration searching for a novel work, but a dream (of a powerful tanker in San Francisco Bay suddenly taking off into the air) awakened a chordal idea that brought everything rapidly in order. I have heard performances of this work three times by the SF Symphony, once under the baton of Adams himself, and it never fails to plunge into my marrow. The old first issue of the work can hardly approach the new engineering standards of this high technological, surround sound SACD/CD. The live recording sparkles by its clariity, dynamic range, symphonic separation, and presence, from the hushed pianissimo to brass blasts, from the deep bass of the string basses to stratospheric piccolo, celesta, triangle, and bells. The performance in this album is outstanding, as good or better than I have experienced years before. The elegant, beautiful gravitas of Harmonielehre is shed for the encore fanfare, Short Ride in A Fast Machine, which was released in 1987 on The Chairman Dances album. Tilson Thomas takes it a minute longer, and on this recording it is a sonic adventure. This excellent album is a perfect match for Adam's excellent, exciting, ever fresh symphonic showpieces.
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Emotionally stunning music
6 July 2012
By Crusty Analyst (Retired)
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Audio CD|Amazon Verified Purchase
For me, a classical music nut, musician, and audiophile, music comes in two "rough" flavors...
One: Stuff I can go around whistling and other people will recognize the music.
Two: Stuff that bypasses this route and goes directly to the soul.
Adams: Harmonielehre is a type two composition. I had never before heard anything from this composer and I was skeptical.
I put the SACD/CD disk on and settled down to reading my Kindle.
I have a large, powerful audio system.
The music was absolutely stunning!
I soon gave up on Kindle and just listened.
When the disk was finished, I repeated listening to it three more times.
This is a great example of primal direct mind stimulus, you will NOT go around whistling the "melody", but you might shed a tear.
I cannot recommend this more!
One: Stuff I can go around whistling and other people will recognize the music.
Two: Stuff that bypasses this route and goes directly to the soul.
Adams: Harmonielehre is a type two composition. I had never before heard anything from this composer and I was skeptical.
I put the SACD/CD disk on and settled down to reading my Kindle.
I have a large, powerful audio system.
The music was absolutely stunning!
I soon gave up on Kindle and just listened.
When the disk was finished, I repeated listening to it three more times.
This is a great example of primal direct mind stimulus, you will NOT go around whistling the "melody", but you might shed a tear.
I cannot recommend this more!
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Music of John Adams has become so familiar
4 April 2012
By Grady Harp
- Published on Amazon.com
The selected title of this brief review is in no way negative: quite the opposite! How gratifying to see that in a composer's lifetime he can gain such complete acceptance and recognition that the public knows most of his works so well. And of course everyone realizes that he doesn't stop there. Every year his new works are premiered by orchestras across the country - but mostly in California where the San Francisco Symphony and the Los Angeles Philharmonic honor every work he writes.
This recording is form a live taping during a concert in which Michael Tilson Thomas revisits his approach to the HARMONIELEHRE (`Harmony Lesson') and after a few listenings it seems this may be the finest recoding of the work available. The sound is bright and the harmonics are well delineated and masterfully played by the San Francisco Symphony. Although many regard this as their favorite Adams' composition, this listener continues to favor the HARMONIUM, perhaps because of the use of Emily Dickinson poetry as intoned by the chorus. But that is simply a personal passion.
Adding the SHORT RIDE IN A FAST MACHINE is a coups for this recording. It is distant in time form the big work but glows and pulsates in a manner that in a way pays homage to the lyricism of HARMONIELEHRE. This is a very special recording and one that belongs in the Adams section of the home music library. Grady Harp, April 12
This recording is form a live taping during a concert in which Michael Tilson Thomas revisits his approach to the HARMONIELEHRE (`Harmony Lesson') and after a few listenings it seems this may be the finest recoding of the work available. The sound is bright and the harmonics are well delineated and masterfully played by the San Francisco Symphony. Although many regard this as their favorite Adams' composition, this listener continues to favor the HARMONIUM, perhaps because of the use of Emily Dickinson poetry as intoned by the chorus. But that is simply a personal passion.
Adding the SHORT RIDE IN A FAST MACHINE is a coups for this recording. It is distant in time form the big work but glows and pulsates in a manner that in a way pays homage to the lyricism of HARMONIELEHRE. This is a very special recording and one that belongs in the Adams section of the home music library. Grady Harp, April 12
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5.0 out of 5 stars
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