Adams, John / Portrait (Road Movies, John’s Book of Alleged Dances, Shaker Loops, performed by Angèla Dubeau & La Pietà)
Label: Analekta

Larry K.
Reviewed: 2011-09-02

ANGÈLA DUBEAU & LA PIETÀ: JOHN ADAMS PORTRAIT
Label: Analekta 2011

Angèla Dubeau, a renowned Canadian violinist (playing on a 1733 Stradivarius) has performed worldwide with her all-female, highly regarded string ensemble, varying in size according to the piece played. Prize-winning pianist, Louise Bessette, joins them here. Adams, a contemporary American composer, unites serious and popular music, but borrows from minimalist techniques (tonal grounding, repetition of subtly changing cells, references to Indonesian gamelan). Adams’ Road Movies for violin and piano starts with a driving (not “relaxed”) Mvmt I, recycling material; Mvmt II is “a simple meditation of several small motives. A solitary figure in an empty desert landscape.” Mvmt III is jagged perpetual motion. John’s Book of Alleged Dances is a playful collection of etudes for string quartet, which can be played in whole or in part in any order the performers choose. Shaker Loops “assigns loops of melodic material of differing lengths to the seven instruments, thereby creating a constantly shifting interplay among the parts.” The outer mvmts emphasize tremolo and trill; the second section features glissandi in a static pool of sound; Part III is melodic (cellos) and Part IV uses “floating harmonics.”

1. [5:06] Road Movies for violin and piano 1. Relaxed Groove. Driving piano bass and violin 2-note stabs.
2. [5:58] Road Movies for violin and piano 2. Meditative. Quiet, modal melody is traded between piano and violin
3. [5:07] Road Movies for violin and piano 3. 40% Swing. Presto, agitated, jagged, repeated, brief motifs
4. [1:11] John’s Book of Alleged Dances. Hammer & Chisel. Up and down the registers with ticking in the background
5. [4:43] John’s Book. Habanera. Sultry night, palms sway in the darkness
6. [4:56] John’s Book. Ständchen: The Little Serenade. “The Little Train Could,” Does.
7. [2:23] John’s Book. Judah to Ocean. All aboard, the trolley jolly roles.
8. [2:28] John’s Book. Dogjam. Hoe-down and pizzicato accompaniment.
9. [3:02] John’s Book. Rag the Bone. Silly skeletons shake, rattle and hop.
10. [8:17] Shaker Loops. Shaking and Trembling. Tremolos hover in one harmony for long periods before pleasantly modulating; honey bees hum in final minutes
11. [5:16] Shaker Loops. Hymning Slews. Dissonant strings evoke a still lake on a hot, lazy afternoon
12. [7:14] Shaker Loops. Loops and Verses. Repetitive, rhythmic tenor motif sounds against plaintive violin and cello melodies; then all join in the surging motif before slowly fading away.
13. [4:00] Shaker Loops. A Final Shaking. Quivering, shimmering soprano strings give way to insistent tenor rapid one-note bowings, as a grain-laden freight train approaches and then fades into the distance.