OT: John Adams Harmonielehre with St. Louis Symphony Orchestra/Robertson

[sbugala]

John Adams is one of my favorite composers after Mahler.  The Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra has released a download of Adams' Harmonielehre, and I think it's amazing.  Although De Waart's San Francisco Symphony rendition is superb, and Rattle's is pretty good, I think this new one has a clarity and impact that now makes it the best of the three.  The download's sound quality is very good, probably better than some of the recent Vonk discs with the SLSO on Pentatone.  (If this was a Classicstoday review, I'd give this a 10/8) The recording's main problem, if it can be called that, is that it needs to be turned up for maximum impact. 


I was present at both performances that comprise this recording, and I can attest it's a good reflection of the concerts.  The brass (especially the trombones) are amazing, but so are the horns and percussion section.  There are intricate details I've never been aware of in the orchestration.  Adams has been labeled in the past as a minimalist bored with minimalism.  Harmonielehre shows how gifted Adams is as a composer. 

For anyone interested, here's more info: http://www.slso.org/adams/  I got mine from amazon for $8 or $9.  It's my first download, but hopefully not the last.