t/s: John Adams vs. Phillip Glass vs. Steve Reich

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Adams!

― M. V. (M.V.), Thursday, 22 September 2005 05:30 (twenty years ago)

adams now, reich then

― j blount (papa la bas), Thursday, 22 September 2005 05:31 (twenty years ago)

Still Reich, despite that he hasn't written anything decent in the last five years (haven't heard 'Cello Counterpoint' yet though, here's hoping it bucks the trend).

― avery keen-gardner (avery keen-gardner), Thursday, 22 September 2005 08:57 (twenty years ago)

Glass. Why can't I find a decent recording of Ankhnaten or whatever it's called?

― The Brocade Fire (kate), Thursday, 22 September 2005 08:59 (twenty years ago)

Reich > Glass > Adams

― Raymond Douglas Dadaismus (Dada), Thursday, 22 September 2005 09:07 (twenty years ago)

TBH, I've never heard any John Adams. Reccomendations, please, esp. if similar to Glass and Reich. (I do like Reich but just not as much as Glass.)

― The Brocade Fire (kate), Thursday, 22 September 2005 09:13 (twenty years ago)

I'd prob'ly go with Reich for overall work, but Mishima is my favourite thing by any of them.

x post

You'll probably like Nixon in China, Kate.

― I'm a Problem for Anthony Blair (noodle vague), Thursday, 22 September 2005 09:14 (twenty years ago)

I will give it a try, Noodle.

― The Brocade Fire (kate), Thursday, 22 September 2005 09:17 (twenty years ago)

A warning however - it's opera.

― Raymond Douglas Dadaismus (Dada), Thursday, 22 September 2005 09:21 (twenty years ago)

I like opera! (Ankhnaten is an opera, BTW)

― The Brocade Fire (kate), Thursday, 22 September 2005 09:22 (twenty years ago)

Ah well, you'll probably like it then!

― Raymond Douglas Dadaismus (Dada), Thursday, 22 September 2005 09:26 (twenty years ago)

John Adams. Reccomendations, please, esp. if similar to Glass and Reich.
Some Adams recommendations:
Grand Pianola Music
Hallelujah Junction
China Gates
Shaker Loops
The Chairman Dances
Short Ride in a Fast Machine
parts of 'Nixon in China' (not a big opera fan TBH) and parts of 'Hoodoo Zephyr', this one's a weird sort of semi-trance affair where Adams himself creates all the parts on synths.

There's loads more which I'm either not so keen on, or haven't heard!

― avery keen-gardner (avery keen-gardner), Thursday, 22 September 2005 10:12 (twenty years ago)

Terry Riley! Then Reich, then Glass, then Adams.

― Dan Selzer (Dan Selzer), Thursday, 22 September 2005 11:37 (twenty years ago)

and I'm no Adams hater, just prefer the others.

― Dan Selzer (Dan Selzer), Thursday, 22 September 2005 11:43 (twenty years ago)

I highly recommend Adams' "Harmonielehre" for a really great large-scale orchestral piece. It's really exciting to hear for the first time.

― matt carlson, Thursday, 22 September 2005 12:31 (twenty years ago)

Reich = Glass > Adams

― Dominique (dleone), Thursday, 22 September 2005 13:49 (twenty years ago)

Brocade, there are two versions of the same performance out on CD, one with libretto (CBS Masterworks) and one cheap one without (Sony). Or did you mean that that performance doesn't satisfy?

― Brakhage (brakhage), Thursday, 22 September 2005 14:11 (twenty years ago)

Oh, that's interesting - what I meant was that I could not find a *complete* recording of it. I kept finding excerpts from it on Glass compilations (which would invariably be the best bits of said compilations) but never managed to locate the complete work.

Since I have just got paid, I have some record shopping to do, clearly. Must write these down.

― The Brocade Fire (kate), Thursday, 22 September 2005 14:17 (twenty years ago)

Glass is derivative bullshit. He's been coasting on his "unique" style for years, and ruined many a movie with his lame repetitious soundtracks. He actually made The Hours worse. One good thing about Adams is his sense of humor. Adams' Phrygian gates is gorgeous. These guys need to lighten the fuck up though.

― what?, Thursday, 22 September 2005 14:18 (twenty years ago)

Pre 1980 or so, Reich, then Glass, then Adams. After that, Reich, Adams, then Glass. Some of Glass' soundtrack work has been fine, but his latest symphonic opus (#5 I think) I rather despised. Speaking of minimalism, has anyone out there heard Anton Batagov? This description from Forced Exposure has me very curious: " BATAGOV, ANTON The Wheel of the Law 2002 release in stock for the first time. Massive triple CD that is perhaps the greatest new minimalist work of the past 10 years. Recorded in 1999, this is Batagov's opus, long pieces for organ, glockenspiel, xylophone, etc. Great titles like closing 69-minute work: "Liberation Through Listening in the Between" -- which finalizes this truly extravagant experience. Kyle Gann referred to Batagov as "like Reich on vodka." It also reminds of forgotten classics like Michael Vetter's Zen -- Glocken."

― Joel (aquabahn), Thursday, 22 September 2005 14:40 (twenty years ago)

Reich.

― Edward Bax (EdBax), Thursday, 22 September 2005 14:47 (twenty years ago)

Brocade, try to pick up the one with the libretto, as that opera and Satyagraha really need it. Unfortunately that really adds to the cost.

In the Minimalist Heirarchy of Needs I would say Glass is king, as I can't imagine life without Einstein, Akhnaten and Satyagraha. Einstein takes my head off every time; I can't imagine what seeing the original production was like. (Are there DVDs of Glass performances? I never thought to look.) Glass' solo piano stuff, the film scores - it's all great. Haven't been too wild about the latest records, but much respect. The Glassbreaks mashups are really nice, too (not the Glasscuts remix record).

Reich is fantastic as well, and I think why I'm not quite as enamored is that he lacks the Doom that late seventies Glass holds for me. But I love everything he's done. Tehillim is so beautiful, especially.

Adams I haven't spent a lot of time with. I liked Nixon in China quite a bit. I remember liking his synthesizer-pop record, the name of which escapes me. I'll drop by the library today to see what they have.

Terry Riley should definitely rank with these guys, and it's a shame he's not better known. Shri Camel and the Poppy Nogood stuff is great, You're Nogood is great ... I saw him do a solo piano show and I was completely engrossed.

I think of LaMonte Young and Morton Feldman operating in the same space as the minimalists, even though their music is very different.

― Brakhage (brakhage), Thursday, 22 September 2005 14:56 (twenty years ago)

The "Music In 12 Parts" 3cd release sums up my opinion of Glass - parts 1-6 (recorded 1975) amazing, parts 7-12 (recorded 1980's) despicable in their use of tinkly shitarse digital synths instead of the lovely sounding Farfisas on the older recordings.

So, Reich then Glass then Adams, taking their entire careers into account.

― Matt #2 (Matt #2), Thursday, 22 September 2005 15:00 (twenty years ago)

I'm with Joel on the ranking of Reich, Glass, and Adams in early and more recent years. Riley, in my opinion, deserves his relative obscurity apart from a few early works; the most "minimal" thing about his more recent work is the amount of effort and imagination he's put into it.

― Paul in Santa Cruz (Paul in Santa Cruz), Thursday, 22 September 2005 15:02 (twenty years ago)

la monte young pwns all ($20 bills with his face on 'em).

― hstencil (hstencil), Thursday, 22 September 2005 15:02 (twenty years ago)

Joel, Wheel of the Law MP3 samples here: http://batagov.com/zvuki/wheel_e.htm

― Brakhage (brakhage), Thursday, 22 September 2005 15:06 (twenty years ago)

Anybody heard Reich's 'You Are' yet?

― Brakhage (brakhage), Thursday, 22 September 2005 15:18 (twenty years ago)

Riley is underrated in general, but I think it's almost appropriate, seeing as *most* of his output isn't really minimalist. IMO Young really is the great underrated composer of now, at least outside avant-garde circles

― Dominique (dleone), Thursday, 22 September 2005 16:16 (twenty years ago)

Probably underrated because he DOESN'T LET ANYBODY HEAR ANYTHING HE'S EVER DONE!

― Matt #2 (Matt #2), Thursday, 22 September 2005 16:23 (twenty years ago)

or it's hard to release a 42 hour uninterrupted performance on CD

― Dominique (dleone), Thursday, 22 September 2005 16:27 (twenty years ago)

... and prices for his work are a little high

― Brakhage (brakhage), Thursday, 22 September 2005 16:45 (twenty years ago)

Regarding dvd footage of Glass, apparently he was adamantly against anyone videotaping/showing Einstein, but a little bit of it was recorded for some PBS special or something and some of the unedited footage was somehow "obtained" by a professor of mine at college who showed it to us, making sure we were impressed that he had a copy!

― Dan Selzer (Dan Selzer), Thursday, 22 September 2005 16:48 (twenty years ago)

Nice!

― Brakhage (brakhage), Thursday, 22 September 2005 16:49 (twenty years ago)

He actually made The Hours worse

well, i liked this movie to begin with, but PATENTLY UNTRUE.

and umm... how about:

Arvo Part > Gavin Bryars > Glass > Reich > Adams (haven't heard much from Adams though)

― firstworldman (firstworldman), Thursday, 22 September 2005 17:40 (twenty years ago)

mmm, listnening to extendo-version of Drumming right now and it's the best background music ever...work is like just the awesomest hazy dream now. although my coworker keeps asking me "do you hear that weird high-pitched buzzing? what the hell is that?"

― Zack Richardson (teenagequiet), Thursday, 22 September 2005 18:06 (twenty years ago)

best background music, and perhaps the most beautiful thing I've ever heard is this:

http://www.notam02.no/9/

It's Beethoven's 9th stretched to take 24 hours to play back with no pitch adjustmant using new cutting-edge time-stretching software. It's truly astonishing. Table of the Elements is planning on releasing it on DVD at some point.

― Dan Selzer (Dan Selzer), Thursday, 22 September 2005 18:19 (twenty years ago)

Reich pisses all over Glass. Adams is...nice.

― Naive Teen Idol (Naive Teen Idol), Thursday, 22 September 2005 18:19 (twenty years ago)

Brakhage--

Thanks! It sounds good...

― Joel (aquabahn), Thursday, 22 September 2005 19:28 (twenty years ago)

Dan, I think I was sitting in that class with you — I have vivid memories of performers (Glass included) dressed in black and sitting at keyboards nodding their heads dramatically with the pulse of the music. Whose class was it again?

― Naive Teen Idol (Naive Teen Idol), Thursday, 22 September 2005 20:09 (twenty years ago)

oh man I can't remember the guys name, it was that super pretentious class that all the super hipsters took. Performance and Non-Literary Theater or something? I think the name was actually longer then.

― Dan Selzer (Dan Selzer), Thursday, 22 September 2005 20:20 (twenty years ago)

Out of deep ignorance, Reich, simply because the '78 ECM version of Music for 18 Musicians is one of my handful of greatest albums ever. I like Glass and Adams too, though (and Terry Riley!)

― Matos-Webster Dictionary (M Matos), Thursday, 22 September 2005 20:54 (twenty years ago)

Early Reich > Early Adams and Glass. then glass was better and maybe Adams is best now.

― jed_ (jed), Thursday, 22 September 2005 22:03 (twenty years ago)

http://www.film-makerscoop.com/events/benefit2005/sept_benefit_05.html

wish I could go!

Adams' music suddenly bugged me a lot less after his Pulitzer acceptance speech

― milton parker (Jon L), Thursday, 22 September 2005 23:57 (twenty years ago)

Reich, simply because the '78 ECM version of Music for 18 Musicians is one of my handful of greatest albums ever.

Yeah, that's what elevates Reich over Glass for me, too, even though I probably like more of Glass's stuff overall. As for Adams, I've only really heard Nixon in China; I'd like to hear more.

― jaymc (jaymc), Friday, 23 September 2005 00:10 (twenty years ago)

wish I could go!

Hell, yeah, that looks soooooo cool! Wonder if Glass and Reich will talk to each other?

― avery keen-gardner (avery keen-gardner), Friday, 23 September 2005 00:14 (twenty years ago)

Anybody heard Reich's 'You Are' yet?
I saw this performed at the Barbican in January. Can't really say after only one hearing but seemed a bit too 'Desert Music' for my taste. Still, 'Eight Lines' and 'Tehillim' were in the same concert and they were great.

'You Are' and 'Cello Counterpoint' are released on 26 September in the UK.

― avery keen-gardner (avery keen-gardner), Friday, 23 September 2005 00:19 (twenty years ago)

Thanks Avery. It'll be out in a few days in the States as well.

― Brakhage (brakhage), Friday, 23 September 2005 12:51 (twenty years ago)

Desert Music has become one of my fave Reich pieces, though my only problem w/Reich is that he sticks to his favorite harmonies/voicings too much. I wish he'd do something totally atonal or arhythmic or something (which is probably going against everything he stands for, but oh well)

― Dominique (dleone), Friday, 23 September 2005 13:25 (twenty years ago)

seven years pass...

Adams' Son of Chamber Symphony -- so awesome

― #fomo that's the motto (Hurting 2), Tuesday, 27 August 2013 14:59 (twelve years ago)

i don't listen to a ton of modern composed music but for some reason john adams really speaks to me. not sure why he's my dude in particular.

― congratulations (n/a), Tuesday, 27 August 2013 15:01 (twelve years ago)

one year passes...

Anyone seen Klinghoffer/planning to see it? Curious in re the "anti-Semitism" angle. From what I have read it doesn't exactly sound anti-Semitic but maybe a little morally mushy.

― my jaw left (Hurting 2), Tuesday, 21 October 2014 13:31 (eleven years ago)

Tomassini's exemplary description of complex, apparently imperfect, riveting The Death of Klinghoffer at the Met: http://nyti.ms/1pwPdry

― dow, Tuesday, 21 October 2014 14:07 (eleven years ago)

the libretto sounds corny to me. I'm sure the music is great though.

― my jaw left (Hurting 2), Tuesday, 21 October 2014 14:13 (eleven years ago)

http://www.lrb.co.uk/blog/2014/10/21/adam-shatz/whos-afraid-of-klinghoffer/

― Acting Crazy (Instrumental) (jed_), Tuesday, 21 October 2014 17:26 (eleven years ago)

Shoot wish they were doing Met Live in HD for this

― Brakhage, Tuesday, 21 October 2014 22:35 (eleven years ago)

Reich > Glass, easy. Adams I can't speak intelligently about, though I would think the question would be Adams vs. Luther Adams (and the answer fairly clear?).

― benbbag, Tuesday, 21 October 2014 23:05 (eleven years ago)

A friend who is a Met subscriber was at opening night, and was revolted by Rudy Giuliani / Fox News etc milking the "anti-Semitic" angle in the plaza. He finds the accusations ludicrous, and as his mate is Israeli I tend to believe him.

― this horrible, rotten slog to rigor mortis (Dr Morbius), Thursday, 23 October 2014 16:22 (eleven years ago)

Furore made me check out Klinghoffer, which I'd blown off when it came out. Man I am loving this. The 2001 film version is great so far, though I'm glad I listened to the recording first before watching it (there are a lot of diegetic sound cues in the film, especially at the beginning, which distract from the opening choruses)

― Brakhage, Thursday, 23 October 2014 18:44 (eleven years ago)

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