John Adams at the 92nd St. Y
Monday night’s event with John Adams looks promising, with conversation as well as music on the program. Here’s a link to information on the event, including directions to the 92nd St Y. When you are there you may want to check out a calendar of other future events at the venue. After you attend the event, would you be so kind as to write a brief blurb about it as a comment to this post? I am disappointed that I won’t be there with you so I’d appreciate your descriptions & evaluations of the event.
P.S. There are several other Doctor Atomic-related events, including symposia and an exhibit, at the CUNY Grad Center in the upcoming days. Check out the Free Events page for listings…
17 comments
Hey Zoe,
I have temporarily misplaced my ticket (I’m pretty sure my friend accidentally took the folder that I had put it in), but just in case I can’t get it back in time for the performance, is it possible for me to buy the ticket at the door?
Alyssa, I think there are still tickets available. It will cost you $10, I believe. Follow the link in the main post (above) and that will take you to the site where you can buy a ticket on-line.
Did you know statistics say that people who listen to opera tend to be wealthy? Just a random fact=)
Well, anyways, I am not a big opera fan, but there were a couple things that caught my attention. He talks about how his parents never graduated from college, and his mom did not even attend college. Very familiar to many people who have stories, I would say. Well, he grew up with music as well as literature in place of his parents. He said he puts words to music as a key to his imagination.
John Adams talks about his first set of work called “Harmonium”, which I believe he said he composed when at the year of 1979-1980. This song by John Adams was based on poetry. Well, it came from poetry.
Honestly, it was very difficult to pay attention. I found him extremely boring, and the only things that really caught my attention were the opera singers. Adams spoke about a girl named Alice and her poetry. He said that Alice’s poetry introduced himself to Doctor Atomic. Alice had an amazingly keen ear for mixing philosophical thinking with ordinary languages. A unique talent. After listening to her performance, it was very… interesting. An explanation as to how it really was is difficult to write. It was beautiful and something that one would have to actually watch.
Besides her performance and several others, I actually started to fall asleep, haha (not lying). [Although I am surprised that I did not sleep from the beginning (I had only slept for an hour the night before)].
Zoe, unless you like opera, and John Adams, I don’t think you missed much, but then again, that’s just my opinion.=)
Excellent comment Joe.
I disagree, Joe. I’d also like to see some sources, haha. I thought that although the discussion between the two men (and some music in between) wasn’t the most exciting thing we’ve seen this semester, it did prove to be a great introduction to “high art”. Sasha Cooke sang amazingly well, and her performance alone made the night worthwhile. John Adam’s passion for poetry, and the pieces that inspired and made Dr. Atomic possible was genuine and contagious. Although exhausted from a long day, I left the 92Y a little smarter, a little more awake, and a lot more excited about seeing Dr. Atomic.
Well, i guess its just my opinion on things. I didn’t really view this as “high art”. Maybe it’s because it wasn’t too interesting or appealing to me. I’m glad that you left 92Y a little smarter and more awake though. Sadly, I’m not too enthused about seeing Dr. Atomic, but maybe after I watch it, I’ll love it.
Was there any discussion about the connections between the opera’s subject (or style) and what’s going on in the world today? I am curious about why the subject of the atomic bomb and the Manhattan Project has become such a potent theme in today’s art and a source of poetry and meaning in today’s world.
I don’t recall Adams making any serious connections between the subject or style and the world today. I might be wrong about that (feel free to correct me) because the language they were using to discuss the opera was well out of my field of knowledge and the discussion seemed to drag on for quite a while. Adams did mention that he liked to focus his operas on a short period of time about specific events (in reference to his Nixon in China opera that revolved around a brief 3-day scene), but that aspect seemed to be more of Adam’s personal composing preference versus complying with contemporary art.
I guess the moral dilemma behind the Manhattan Project attracted Adam’s interest. He did say that we refer to the nuclear bombs as “weapons of mass destruction” and in other terms that seem to lessen the actual power of these bombs. I think its coming up in our culture today because there is always that fear of foreign relation instability and that at any time the entire world could be destroyed by atomic forces in the wrong hands.
I think Walter was right in that John Adams didn’t connect with the world much today, except for maybe the subject of war. I remember him and the interviewer talking about WWII for like a half an hour about the Manhattan Project, Hiroshima, and how the highest amount of deaths were of civilians. There was also a short clip with a man singing about God. He wanted God to punish him by literally knocking and burn him. In the video the man had an internal conflict. He was trying to walk towards the light, but took a long time to. Honestly, I thought the clip was confusing because the light surrounded a dark circle. I was wondering if he was walking towards the light or the darkness.
Anyway, I’m glad Chang enjoyed it, but I would have to agree with Joe’s comment. In my opinion, it was hard to concentrate and stay awake. The singing was amusing, but I didn’t understand the hidden meanings of the songs. I felt myself zoning out for most of the talk, mainly because I had no idea what they were talking about. When the audience laughed, I didn’t know what they were laughing about, so I felt like I didn’t belong there. Aside from hearing about how the atomic bomb was made, watching CUNY students fall asleep were pretty amusing as well.
I guess I am not one to greatly appreciate opera that much. I agree with Walter of how complicated the language seemed, and the conversation between the two men seemed to drag on. I remember John Adams said he focused on three days only for the time Nixon was in China because he had more to focus on each scene during a shorter time period as opposed to the fact that he would have to glaze over certain details if it was over a longer time span. The only highlight for me was when the woman sang. Her voice was amazing and she could reach all the different high notes.
Like Leila and Walter I do not remember him talking much about the connection of the opera’s subject to today’s world. He talked about himself for a while like how he was brought up. Then he went on to talk about one of his work Nixon and China. The clip I found really amusing because the Chinese Communist were Caucasians wearing heavy layers of costume makeup and eyeliner which still did not make them look Asian. I thought the airplane landing was also quite cheesy and I’m sure the audience did too because there was some chuckling at that scene. The singing in the clip was slightly difficult for me to understand. I still think its amazing how John Adams manages to make operas based on a political event in history. It has to be difficult to come up with the lyrics to make the opera interesting. As for Dr. Atomic, they did talk about the Manhattan Project and how they gathering many scientists from all over the world to create the atomic bomb. They also mentioned the testing on the bomb in New Mexico and how the bomb dropped in Nagasaki was different from Hiroshima. The tested one in New Mexico and Nagasaki was plutonium and Hiroshima bombing with uranium. I think after they stopped talking about WWII, I lost interest and his discussion became difficult for me to follow. Similar to Joe’s opinion, I also thought he was extremely boring and I did end up falling asleep for a short time. Then I woke up to a girl performing which she sang beautifully but I still had trouble understanding what she was saying. They also had another clip of a man walking towards the light like Leila mentioned. I honestly had no idea what was going on. I thought this was a clip to Dr. Atomic and the light was the atomic bomb? Then after reading Leila’s comment I realize I am completely wrong haha. I also agree with Leila’s comment about the audience laughing at jokes which I don’t think the students understood. I did not enjoy the discussion so I’m even less thrilled about the opera. I’m worried I won’t be able to understand the lyrics when the performers are singing.
I agree with Lelia and Joe. The whole thing was very boring. In the beginning, I thought the show would be interesting. The stage had two chairs for John Adams and the host. It was like watching a talk show live. The two talked about war. But the as the night went on, it became more and more boring. Like Walter said it did not connect with today’s world. But, like Chang said, Sasha Cooke’s singing was beautiful. I agree with Lelia. The clip with the man was confusing. The lyrics of the song were on the screen so I was able to see what it was about. But He kept walking towards the light and then stopping. I had been anticipating the opera but I was disappointed.
Yes this “show” or talk was boring, but there were a few interesting things that went on. The first clip of the Nixon in China was very different. The singing was strange. I couldn’t understand a word he was saying. When the lady in the blue shirt came out and sang, it was a lot better. Her voice was really nice and the song was beautiful. It was nice to have the lyrics printed out in the pamphlets. It was a whole lot easier to appreciate the song. Whereas in the first clip, there were no subtitles or printed out lyrics. The last song that they showed us, was okay. The words were interesting, however the scene itself was confusing like what Heajung and Lelia said. The way he sang was strange and something I’m not used to. I’m looking forward to the opera, however this event wasn’t something I would want to go to again.
Atomic bombs. Nuclear winter. Imminent apocalypse. What are….things that put us to sleep? I arrived at the 92nd street Y with certain expectations on Monday night, most of which were met. A self-proclaimed philistine, I had no appreciation of opera prior to watching John Adams being interviewed about his latest composition, Doctor Atomic. Overall, the discussion was more soporific than inspiring. I gained no further insight into the creative genius required to compose what Dennis Overbye has called “immortal.” Instead, I was subjected to the ramblings of Mr. John Adams—the night felt oddly like a session of therapy, to be quite frank. The various clips of Dr. Atomic that were peppered throughout the night provided some relief, but their utterly terrible cinematography discouraged me from deeming them a source of solace. The night’s sole “highlight” was the live performance of a Ms. Sasha Cooke, whose soothing vocals were masterfully accompanied by Linda Hall on piano. At one point, John Adams proclaims his opera, “is not really about a physics experiment—it’s about corrupting the planet.” Well Mr. Adams, for this night, you have corrupted any hopes I might have had of opera being entertaining.
I agree with everyone who said that it was uninteresting. The majority of the event consisted of the two men talking and it seemed like a waste to keep my eyes on them the entire time, partly because the lights were so bright. The only things that I enjoyed were the clips shown. The first one with Nixon was amusing, especially when both characters froze in the middle of their handshake. At first, I thought the scene was a photograph but then they started to move a few seconds later. The woman singing was nice, but I feel that I would be more into it if I knew the words that were coming out of her mouth. Maybe it was just me who could not understand what she was saying, although I felt the passion in her singing.
Well I haven’t heard from everyone yet but thanks to those who wrote it. While a majority of you struggled to prop your eyelids up, a minority (Chang and Lynn) found yourselves unexpectedly engaged, and all of you responded well to the singing (a.k.a., the art) while many of you responded negatively to the talking (a.k.a., the explanation).
And now, a technical note, for those of you concerned about being able to understand the opera lyrics when we go to the show. Typically the Metropolitan Opera provides “Met Titles”, which are a neat kind of subtitling technique in which the song lyrics appear in English on a little LED screen on the seatback in front of you. So, you can see the words, and watch the opera, at the same time. This is done whether the opera is in English or Italian or whatever. So you will see the words as they’re being sung. No programs to fumble with.
I can’t say whether the opera will prove to be entertaining, enlightening, educational, engaging, or any other ‘e’ word. But I can suggest that you remain open-minded, by which I mean open to the possibility that, if you give yourself over to the experience, you might come out the other side of it different than when you went in.
As a late noter:
I agree with most of people who said that the talk was boring as well as the opera itself. The idea of opera is interesting to me, however, I do not think I can sit through the whole thing without thinking: “What the heck is that person singing?” When I saw the scene with Nixon and the Chinese, I had a hard time catching humors.
The talk itself seem to be dragging the whole time and although I tried my best effort to stay up, I failed miserably. I would have to say that the singing of Sasha Cooke made this event- well, an event I would say.
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