John Adams's latest opera, A Flowering Tree, described by The New Yorker as "one of the most lush and beautiful of his works," receives its New York premiere as part of Lincoln Center's Mostly Mozart festival tonight. The composer, the festival's artist-in-residence, conducts. He'll lead the International Contemporary Ensemble in an all-Adams program there next week.
John Adams's latest opera, A Flowering Tree, described by The New Yorker as "one of the most lush and beautiful of his works," receives its New York premiere as part of the Mostly Mozart festival at Lincoln Center's Rose Theater tonight. The composer, who is the festival's artist-in-residence this year, conducts the Orchestra of St. Luke's. Soprano Jessica Rivera and tenor Russell Thomas reprise the roles they originated and performed on the recent Nonesuch recording of the opera, and baritone Sanford Sylvan joins the cast for his Mostly Mozart debut, replacing Eric Owens. Also returning from the original production and recording is the Schola Cantorum de Venezuela, under artistic director María Guinand. Performances continue on Friday and Sunday, all part of Lincoln Center’s 50th Anniversary Celebration.
Adams will conduct a different ensemble next Monday when he leads the International Contemporary Ensemble in an all-Adams program, featuring Gnarly Buttons for solo clarinet and chamber orchestra with soloist Michael Collins, the clarinetist who premiered the work in 1996 and makes his Mostly Mozart debut; 1978's Shaker Loops; and Son of Chamber Symphony, which was premiered by Alarm Will Sound in 2007.
For more information on all of these performances, visit new.lincolncenter.org.
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Adams spoke with New York public radio station WNYC about A Flowering Tree, a folkloric love story, and its place in his repertoire, coming as it does after Doctor Atomic, which examines the creation of the first atomic bomb. "I felt this real need to kind of reconnect with the natural world," says the composer, "and in this case the sort of prehistoric world, which is the world of fable and folklore." You can listen to the segment at wnyc.org.
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Collaborating with Adams on A Flowering Tree is his longtime creative partner Peter Sellars. The two adapted the opera's libretto from a South Indian folktale and poems translated by A.K. Ramanujan, and Sellars directs the piece. He also spoke with WNYC for the story above and is the subject of a feature profile in New Jersey's Star-Ledger, written by Ronni Reich. "Since bursting onto the opera directing scene in the 1980s," says Reich, "Sellars has become one of the strongest, busiest voices in contemporary opera and theater, constantly re-imagining classics and realizing new pieces."
In the article, Sellars reflects on his working relationship with Adams and their shared interest in working from a global palette. Says Reich, "For Sellars, the works are about 'rich harmony,' musically and otherwise."
Read the article at nj.com.
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