Rolf Hind: Piano

Track Listings

1. Melancholy of Departure

2. Other Side of the Air

Tracks:

I. Relaxed Groove - Leila Josefowicz
II. Meditative - Leila Josefowicz
II. 40% Swing - Leila Josefowicz
Hallelujah Junction
Halleujah Junction
Halleujah Junction
China Gates - Nicolas Hodges
American Berserk - Nicolas Hodges
Part 1
Part 2 (A System Of Weights And Measures)
Part 3

Amazon.com

Here is a CD of chamber works by John Adams: Road Movies is for violin and piano, Hallelujah Junction is for two pianos, and the other three works are for solo piano. China Gates, the shortest piece, is simply beautiful: 4-and-a-half minutes of lyricism. American Berserk, the other miniature, is busy, jazzy and rhythmically rich. Hallelujah Junction, for two pianos, is named for a truck stop on the California-Nevada border, but Adams was thinking more of the area's past, filled with gold prospectors. Its 16 minutes are brawny and energetic; sometimes the pianos finish one-another's phrases, sometimes they form big-boned clusters. It goes through a section of plushness before a jagged last movement---it's as varied, Adams seems to be saying, as America's personality. Road Movies begins with a tempi and attitude evocative of driving down a highway, with billboards and dotted landscapes whizzing by; one might hear in the piano part the road and its turns and in the violin, the changing but much-the-same sights. The second movement is lonelier and more severe and the third is part pure minimalism sped up to a point of mania and part boogie-woogie. The CD's longest piece, Phrygian Gates, is peaceful and moody, with moments which alternately swell and ebb; the second movement goes nowhere and seems to be concerned with a tone cluster at time, and the finale is insistent minmalism, staying close enough to its original key at all times to be comfortable while rhythmically keeping us on out toes. The performances are beyond reproach, with Leila Josefowicz and John Novacek particularly splendid in their difficult Road Moves duos, but with very high praise going to the other pianists as well. This may not be everyone's cup of tea, but Adams always catches the attention. --Robert Levine

Customer Reviews:

Silly reviewers! Historical Adams.......2006-06-14

What we have here is a hodgepodge of old and (one) new material for piano. "China Gates" and "Phrygian Gates" is actually considered to be Adam's Opus 1, so to find out that his very first mature work does not resound with the same punctuation and feeling that previously works have, like "Harmonielehre" or even the recently released "Naive and Sentimental Music," does not mean that Adams is in anyway losing his "touch" or is begin lose his creative spark. Instead, these two pieces should be listened to and enjoyed for what they represent in terms of John Adams' historical work, or the work which has gotten him to where he is today.

Similarly, "Road Movies" was composed in 1995, "Hallelujah Junction" was composed in 1996, and the newest work, "American Berzerk" was composed in 2003. "Road Movies" is actually a very soothing, contemplative work, but (true) does contain the same expressiveness felt in other works of art by Adams. "Hallelujah Junction" may be the most disappointing piece on the album, but I'm not sure that it's supposed to be taken as seriously as some Adams' fans would like to take it - such as on the level with "On The Transmigration of Souls" or "The Death of Klinghoffer." Adams himself acknowledged that "Hallelujah Junction" is the name of a truck stop on US 395 and that "it was a case of a good title needing a piece, so I obliged by composing this work for two pianos."

No, this isn't Adams' best work, but I definitely think that it surely lives up to his other greatest attempts. Plus, as an album containing solely works composed by Adams for the piano and not for orchestra, this is a nice breather and definitely an excellent addition to one's collection of piano music or for fans of Adams himself.

With all due respect: boring.......2005-02-06

I respect John Adams as a composer. He has done wonderful things, which are ultimately moving. But this CD is boring. Once you leave the violin behind, and in spite of the cute titles, all sounds pretty much the same. For those who want it, nothing more than an intellectual exercise.

Response to frisbee95:.......2004-07-09

I agree. His music is getting very stale (I actually found his violin concerto to be boring). Minimalism, which is a silly term anyway, is essentially gone. I've known the music of Reich, Glass, Adams, Riley, Young etc since the late 70's, and have interviewed and met all of them during my college years. A shame, since much of their earlier output is amazing. One of the best concerts I attended was the Chicago premiere of Harmonium, conducted by Felix Slatkin, at an outdoor Grant Park concert. Adams was there, and I had a great chat with him.

For alternatives, there is always the music of Morton Feldman (particularly the works from 1977 on, which is arguably his best), some decent work by Charlemagne Palestine (Strumming Music is still the best, in my opinion) and a few others. Not to be self-promoting, but just to show that there is recent music with repetitive structures that I think, are of value, you may want to look at http://homepage.mac.com/dtoub/dbtmusic.html for some examples. Not putting my works in the same class as any of the others, but I'd like to think there's something new and interesting about it.

A great composer with all his influences showing.......2004-05-22

What I've come to love about John Adams is the way he borrows from everybody and everything. In many ways, he's the epitome of the Post-Modern composer, because he boldly appropriates other styles and idioms and finds a way to make them his own. This new CD is a prime example of how Adams uses the old to make new. "Road Movies" is clearly the work of John Adams, but the second movement resonates so close to the 2nd movement of the Copland violin sonata that it gives me the shakes. This isn't just a quote or rip-off, but a work that honors a powerful precedent: it's almost a love song to its predecessor. "American Berserk" evokes an array of composers that Adams clearly loves, especially Nancarrow and Ives. "Hallelujah Junction" is a genuinely great tune, with inflections of Gospel and Rock piano playing thrown in to make it tasty. And while this makes my third recording of "Phrygian Gates," I can't complain, as I think it's probably the best work for piano written in the last 25 years. None of these works are "easy" to play, and they're given dynamic performances and crisp recordings, making this CD a unique pleasure.

Not the best Adams CD.......2004-05-17

I am a big fan of John Adams, he is my favourite living composer, but I feel that in recent years his work has not been up to the standard of such masterpieces as Harmonielehre, Shaker Loops, El Dorado and Phrygian Gates, one of the works recorded here (again). Phrygian Gates is the main piece on this CD and it is a brilliant piece, one of Adam's best. Rolf Hind's performance is excellent, but do we really need another recording of it? There are many recordings already available for this work, as there are for its smaller companion piece - China Gates. Of the other works on the CD only Hallelujah Junction and American Berserk are premiere recordings. Road Movies was released on a CD a couple of years ago by the California Ear Unit. Again the performance of Road Movies is excellent and the piece is quite good, especially the first movement, but it is a shadow of Adams' great works. Hallelujah Junction is the standout piece of the newer works on the CD. Its sprawling arch recalls the best of Adam's orchestral output and it has a very exciting climax recalling Weill and Lizst. Still, there's something about it that just doesn't move me like his earlier work. American Berserk is the biggest disappointment on the disk, it sounds like a piece that Adams just threw off in a few minutes from a scale formula.
I am very worried about Adam's recent output, is he losing his genius I wonder? Having heard concert performances of some of his more recent, as yet unrecorded orchestral works, such as My Father Knew Charles Ives, Guide To Strange Places and On The Transmigration of Souls, I have been unmoved by them and felt they were only reasonably good at best. All these orchestral pieces and the newer chamber works have their moments, but a work like Harmonielehre is a full 40 minutes of brilliance, something Adam's hasn't achieved in a long time. Naive and Sentimental Music comes close though. I remain optimistic and eagerly await the UK premiere of his new electric violin concerto The Dharma at Big Sur at the Proms this year. Overall though, I'm disappointed with his recent output and disappointed by this CD. I don't think it was really necessary to rerecord the pieces already recorded and there are enough new orchestral pieces that could have merited inclusion on this CD. With Adam's seemingly running out of ideas, and Reich and Glass doing the same kind of music they have done since the 80's, I fear for the future of post-minimalist music. Who can take over from them now that they appear to be stuck in ruts? Michael Torke is interesting but a bit too bland most of the time, Michael Gordon can be very exciting but a bit too weird at times. Where pray is the next great composer in this tradition sprung from minimalism? I think we may have to look to the outskirts of Europe or Africa or Asia to find someone genuinely new and interesting working along the same lines. For now though we'll have to be content with Adam's pastiches, Glass' Hollywood film scores and Reich's uninspiring multimedia work, which although inventive from a multimedia point of view, doesn't actually do anything new or interesting musically. If anyone can point me in the direction of someone new and exciting out there I'd be grateful!

Average customer rating:

Toru Takemitsu: Arc; Green

Manufacturer: London Sinfonietta
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Symphonies | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Classical | Styles | Music

Classical | Imports | Stores | Music
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Toru Takemitsu: Quotation of Dream (20/21 series) - London Sinfonietta / Oliver Knussen
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Elliott Carter: Symphonia: Sum Fluxae Pretium Spei (1993-96) / Clarinet Concerto (1996) (20/21 series) - Oliver Knussen

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Release Date: 2006-11-28

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Nice brass selection except for "Eonta"

Modern Times with London Brass

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Customer Reviews:

Nice brass selection except for "Eonta".......2002-02-16

Overall, a diverse and well-performed selection. I recommend almost all the pieces, and am particularly fond of the Ruggles. But if you're a hard-core modern music enthusiast, don't get this disc for the Xenakis - the performance of Eonta is strangely flabby and punchless, kind of a "Xenakis Lite" (I've heard an excellent live performance, which was nothing like this recording). If not for the substandard Eonta, I'd have given the disc four stars.

Poul Ruders: Symphony No. 2 "Symphony & Transformation" (1995-96) / Piano Concerto (1994) - Michael Schonwandt / Danish National Radio Symphony Orchestra / Rolf Hind, Piano / Markus Stenz

Average customer rating:

Poul Ruders: Symphony No. 2 "Symphony & Transformation" (1995-96) / Piano Concerto (1994) - Michael Schonwandt / Danish National Radio Symphony Orchestra / Rolf Hind, Piano / Markus Stenz
Poul Ruders (Composer) , Michael Schonwandt (Conductor) , Markus Stenz (Conductor) , Danish National Radio Symphony Orchestra , and Rolf Hind (Piano)
Manufacturer: Da Capo [Naxos]
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music
ASIN: B00000J8YK
Release Date: 1999-06-22

Tracks:

Symphony No. 2, 'Symphony And Transformation': Leggiero alla breve
Piano Concerto: Grazioso
Piano Concerto: Larghetto intimo
Piano Concerto: Rondo prestissimo

Average customer rating:

Poul Ruders: Piano Works

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Binding: Audio CD

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Tracks:

Star-Prelude And Love Fugue: Leggiero e staccato
Star-Prelude And Love Fugue: Swinging
Piano Sonata No. 1: Maestoso
Piano Sonata No. 1: Grave Molto
Three Letters From The Unkown Soldier: March
Three Letters From The Unkown Soldier: Bells
Three Letters From The Unkown Soldier: Prayer
Piano Sonata No. 2: Vivace e ritmico
Piano Sonata No. 2: Tempo si sarabande
Piano Sonata No. 2: Leggiero e elegante
Piano Sonata No. 2: Monumentale e senca espressione

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Rolf Hind: Piano

Manufacturer: Nmc Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Tracks:

Melancholy of Departure
Other Side of the Air

Meditations: Piano Music of Olivier Messiaen

Average customer rating:

Meditations: Piano Music of Olivier Messiaen

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ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Etudes | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music

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Rasmussen: Piano Works

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Etudes And Postludes: Course
Etudes And Postludes: Clocks
Etudes And Postludes: Shimmer
Etudes And Postludes: Lamento
Etudes And Postludes: Shifts
Etudes And Postludes: Echo
Etudes And Postludes: Echo II
Etudes And Postludes: Canto
Etudes And Postludes: Clouds
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Etudes And Postludes: Chaconne
Etudes And Postludes: Chords
Etudes And Postludes: Chor
Barcarole
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Terrific budget compilation

Britten & Messiaen: Choral Works

Manufacturer: Virgin Classics
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Sacred & Religious | Classical | Styles | Music

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General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

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ASIN: B00005A9NS
Release Date: 2001-10-09

Tracks:

A Boy Was Born, Op.3: Theme - A Boy Was Born - London Sinfonietta Chor/Choristers Of St Paul's Cathedral/John Scott
A Boy Was Born, Op.3: Var I - Lullay, Jesu - London Sinfonietta Chor/Choristers Of St Paul's Cathedral/John Scott
A Boy Was Born, Op.3: Var II - Herod - London Sinfonietta Chor/Choristers Of St Paul's Cathedral/John Scott
A Boy Was Born, Op.3: Var III - Jesu, As Thou Art Our Saviour - London Sinfonietta Chor/Choristers Of St Paul's Cathedral/John Scott
A Boy Was Born, Op.3: Var IV - The Three Kings - London Sinfonietta Chor/Choristers Of St Paul's Cathedral/John Scott
A Boy Was Born, Op.3: Var V - In The Bleak Of Mid-Winter - London Sinfonietta Chor/Choristers Of St Paul's Cathedral/John Scott
A Boy Was Born, Op.3: Var VI - Noel! - London Sinfonietta Chor/Choristers Of St Paul's Cathedral/John Scott
Hymn To St. Cecilia, Op.27 - London Sinfonietta Voices
A.M.D.G: Heaven-Haven - London Sinfonietta Chor
A.M.D.G: O Deus, Ego Amo Te - London Sinfonietta Chor
A.M.D.G: Rosa Mystica - London Sinfonietta Chor
A.M.D.G: The Soldier - London Sinfonietta Chor
A.M.D.G: Prayer II - London Sinfonietta Chor
A.M.D.G: God's Grandeur - London Sinfonietta Chor
A.M.D.G: Prayer I - London Sinfonietta Chor
A Shepherd's Carol - London Sinfonietta Chor

Tracks:

Trois Petites Liturgies De La Presence Divine: Antienne De La Conversation Interieure (Dieu... - Rolf Hind/Cynthia Millar/London Sinfonietta Chor/London Sinfonietta Voices
Trois Petites Liturgies De La Presence Divine: Sequence Du Verbe, Cantique Divin (Dieu Present En... - Rolf Hind/Cynthia Millar/London Sinfonietta Chor/London Sinfonietta Voices
Trois Petites Liturgies De La Presence Divine: Psalmodie De L'Ubiquite Par Amour (Dieu Present En... - Rolf Hind/Cynthia Millar/London Sinfonietta Chor/London Sinfonietta Voices
Cinq Rechants: I. Les Amoureux S'Envolent - Rolf Hind/Cynthia Millar/London Sinfonietta Chor/London Sinfonietta Voices
Cinq Rechants: II. Ma Premiere Fois... - Rolf Hind/Cynthia Millar/London Sinfonietta Chor/London Sinfonietta Voices
Cinq Rechants: III. Ma Robe D'Amour - Rolf Hind/Cynthia Millar/London Sinfonietta Chor/London Sinfonietta Voices
Cinq Rechants: IV. Mon Bouquet Tout Defait Rayonne - Rolf Hind/Cynthia Millar/London Sinfonietta Chor/London Sinfonietta Voices
Cinq Rechants: V. Tes Yeux Voyagent... - Rolf Hind/Cynthia Millar/London Sinfonietta Chor/London Sinfonietta Voices
O Sacrum Convivium! - Rolf Hind/Cynthia Millar/London Sinfonietta Chor/London Sinfonietta Voices

Customer Reviews:

Terrific budget compilation.......2003-01-08

Excellent budget compilation featuring familiar and unfamiliar material from two well-known twentieth-century composers. Why Virgin Classics paired the tonal, traditional Britten with the more atonal, avant-garde Messiaen is beyond me. Still, the five-voice arrangement of Britten's "Hymn to St. Cecilia" on Disc 1 and Messiaen's "Trois petites liturges de la Presence divine" on Disc 2 more than justify the modest price.