West Coast
John Adams tells Donald Macleod about his decision to move to the West Coast of America and how it shaped his work. With excerpts from Shaker Loops and Naive and Sentimental Music.
Donald Macleod talks this week to America's most frequently performed living composer, John Adams, about his work. In today's programme they look at pieces influenced by life on the West Coast, from one of his earliest works, Shaker Loops, written in a beach house in San Francisco, to a symphony written in his current studio in the mountains, surrounded by giant redwoods. Adams discusses his reasons for setting out on a journey west, in an unreliable Volkswagen Beetle, from Harvard to California in 1971, and what kept him there - from the dramatic coastline to the cultural life he found there.
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Music Played
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John Adams
Shaker loops vers. for string orchestra
Conductor: John ADAMS Performer: St Luke's Orchestra
- Nonesuch.
- 7559-749453 -2.
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John Adams
The Dharma at Big Sur for electric violin and orchestra
Conductor: John ADAMS Performer: Tracy SILVERMAN - Violin Performer: BBC S O.
- Nonesuch.
- 59-75857-2.
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John Adams
Naive and sentimental music for orchestra
Conductor: Esa-Pekka Salonen Performer: Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra
- Nonesuch.
- Nonesuch 7559-79636-2.
- -2.
Broadcasts
- Mon 3 Sep 201212:00BBC Radio 3
- Mon 3 Sep 201218:30BBC Radio 3
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