Anne Midgette, the classical music critic for the Washington Post, has already named Alarm Will Sound's a/rhythmia among the year's best albums, and, for WNYC's Soundcheck, included John Adams's Dharma at Big Sur among the decade's best. Now, on her Post blog, she says of Adams, "if there was a composer to whom the decade belonged, I'd say it was him." Audiophile Audition gives his latest, Doctor Atomic Symphony, four stars.
Anne Midgette, the classical music critic for the Washington Post, has added a slight spin on the best-of-the-decade lists that have come of late. She had recently published her list of the Best Classical Albums of 2009 in the Post and included Alarm Will Sound's Nonesuch debut, a/rhythmia at No. 6. She also offered Soundcheck, a program of New York public radio station WNYC, her list of the Top 10 Classical Albums of the Decade, with John Adams's Dharma at Big Sur / My Father Knew Charles Ives coming in at No. 7. Now, on her Washington Post blog, The Classical Beat, she has taken that a step further, suggesting, "if there was a composer to whom the decade belonged, I'd say it was him." Read more at voices.washingtonpost.com.
---
The Times of London recently named Adams most recent release, Doctor Atomic Symphony, the decade's greatest classical recording. Audiophile Audition now adds its review, giving the album four stars. "I was pleased to find revolt and innovation still alive in composer John Adams," writes reviewer Peter Bates.
The album, featuring performances by the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra and conductor David Robertson, also includes Adams's Guide to Strange Places. "Like the Doctor Atomic Symphony, Guide to Strange Places is a thrilling, frenetic whirlpool of aural constructions and destructions," says Bates. "It’s a great piece to play over and over, as you try to figure out how Adams assembled his various musical effects, while consistently maintaining dramatic flow."
Read the complete four-star review at audaud.com.
- Log in to post comments
