Naïve and Sentimental Music

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Naïve and Sentimental Music is a symphonic work by the American composer John Adams. The title of the work alludes to an essay by Friedrich Schiller, On Naïve and Sentimental Poetry , that contrasts a creative personality that creates art for its own sake (the "naïve") versus one conscious of other purposes, such as art’s place in history (the "sentimental"). [1] The composer cites both the slowly developing harmonies of Bruckner's Fourth Symphony and the atmosphere of the Sonoma coastline (where the piece was composed) as inspirations for the work. [2] The piece was co-commissioned by the Los Angeles Philharmonic, the Ensemble Modern, the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, and the Sydney Symphony Orchestra. It received its first public performance by the Los Angeles Philharmonic conducted by Esa-Pekka Salonen on February 19, 1999. A recording by Salonen and the Los Angeles Philharmonic was subsequently released by Nonesuch Records. [1]

Orchestra large instrumental ensemble

An orchestra is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families, including bowed string instruments such as the violin, viola, cello, and double bass, brass instruments such as the horn, trumpet, trombone and tuba, woodwinds such as the flute, oboe, clarinet and bassoon, and percussion instruments such as the timpani, bass drum, triangle, snare drum and cymbals, each grouped in sections. Other instruments such as the piano and celesta may sometimes appear in a fifth keyboard section or may stand alone, as may the concert harp and, for performances of some modern compositions, electronic instruments.

Composer person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition

A composer is a musician who is an author of music in any form, including vocal music, instrumental music, electronic music, and music which combines multiple forms. A composer may create music in any music genre, including, for example, classical music, musical theatre, blues, folk music, jazz, and popular music. Composers often express their works in a written musical score using musical notation.

John Adams (composer) American composer

John Coolidge Adams is an American composer, clarinetist, and conductor of classical music and opera, with strong roots in minimalism.

Contents

Structure

The piece has a duration of approximately 48 minutes, and has three movements:

I. Naïve and Sentimental Music. The first movement opens with a meandering melody over simple chords that subsequently undergoes a variety of symphonic transformations.

II. Mother of the Man. This movement consists of slowly evolving harmonies punctuated by chords from an amplified steel guitar.

III. Chain to the Rhythm. In a minimalistic vein, the last movement uses rhythmic fragments that gradually build up to a thunderous climax.

Minimalism movements in various forms of art and design

In visual arts, music, and other mediums, minimalism is an art movement that began in post–World War II Western art, most strongly with American visual arts in the 1960s and early 1970s. Prominent artists associated with minimalism include Donald Judd, John McCracken, Agnes Martin, Dan Flavin, Robert Morris, Anne Truitt, and Frank Stella. It derives from the reductive aspects of modernism and is often interpreted as a reaction against abstract expressionism and a bridge to postminimal art practices.

Instrumentation

The work is scored for 4 flutes (3, 4 double piccolos), 3 oboes (3 doubles English horn), 3 Bb clarinets (3 doubles bass clarinet 2), bass clarinet, 3 bassoons (3 doubles contrabassoon), 4 horns in F, 4 trumpets, 3 trombones, 2 tubas, amplified steel string guitar, piano, celesta, keyboard sampler, 2 harps, 5 percussion (including 3 who are principally mallet players), and strings. [1]

Western concert flute transverse woodwind instrument made of metal or wood

The Western concert flute is a transverse (side-blown) woodwind instrument made of metal or wood. It is the most common variant of the flute. A musician who plays the flute is called a flautist, flutist, flute player, or (rarely) fluter.

Piccolo small musical instrument of the flute family

The piccolo is a half-size flute, and a member of the woodwind family of musical instruments. The modern piccolo has most of the same fingerings as its larger sibling, the standard transverse flute, but the sound it produces is an octave higher than written. This gave rise to the name ottavino, which the instrument is called in the scores of Italian composers. It is also called flauto piccolo or flautino.

Oboe musical instrument of the woodwind family

Oboes belong to the classification of double reed woodwind instruments. Oboes are usually made of wood, but there are also oboes made of synthetic materials. The most common oboe plays in the treble or soprano range. A soprano oboe measures roughly 65 cm long, with metal keys, a conical bore and a flared bell. Sound is produced by blowing into the reed at a sufficient air pressure, causing it to vibrate with the air column. The distinctive tone is versatile and has been described as "bright". When the word oboe is used alone, it is generally taken to mean the treble instrument rather than other instruments of the family, such as the bass oboe, the cor anglais, or oboe d'amore

Critical reception

In his review of the world premiere, Mark Swed, music critic for the L.A. Times, praised the work for its grand reach, stating that while stylistically it resembled Adams’s earlier works, "Everything is bigger and better". [3] For the New York Premiere, Bernard Holland, music critic for the N.Y. Times, found the piece "Unlovely, yet compelling" in its multiple layers of sound and rhythm. [4] Five years later, in its local premiere with the San Francisco Symphony, Joshua Kosman, music critic for the S.F. Chronicle, praised the work in its scope and composition, writing that it "takes its rhetoric and sense of scale from the symphonies of Bruckner, Mahler and Sibelius, and its musical content from the nexus of pop melody and old-style minimalism a la Steve Reich". [5] It was nominated for a Grammy Award in 2003 for "Best classical contemporary composition". [1]

Grammy Award accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States

A Grammy Award, or Grammy, is an award presented by The Recording Academy to recognize achievements in the music industry. The annual presentation ceremony features performances by prominent artists, and the presentation of those awards that have a more popular interest. The Grammys are the second of the Big Three major music awards held annually.

Notes and references

  1. 1 2 3 4 Naive and Sentimental Music John Adams. Retrieved 2011-04-23.
  2. Adams, John. Hallelujah Junction: Composing an American Life, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2008, pp. 255-256.
  3. Swed, Mark. "Bigger Proves Better in Adams’ Grandiose World", Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles, February 22, 1999.
  4. Holland, Bernard. "Mind Games of the Baroque And Minimalist Shock", The New York Times, New York, March 16, 1999.
  5. Kosman, Joshua. "Adams' 'Naïve' masterpiece takes adventuresome path", San Francisco Chronicle, San Francisco, October 22, 2004.

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