Glass: Einstein on the Beach
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Composer: Philip GlassConductor: Michael Riesman
Performer: Philip Glass Ensemble
Performer: Philip Glass
Performer: Iris Hiskey
Performer: Marc Jacobi
Performer: Phillip Gavin Smith
Performer: Bruce Burroughs
Performer: Connie Beckley
Performer: Dana Reitz
Performer: David Woodberry
Performer: Forest Warren
Performer: Frank Conversano
Performer: George Andoniadis
Performer: Grethe Holby
Performer: Jeannie Hutchins
Performer: Marie Rice
Performer: Richard Morrison
Performer: Ritty Ann Burchfield
Performer: Ronald Roxbury
Edition: Music CD
Audio: English (Unknown)
Format: Box set, Import
CD Release Date: 1993-01-21
Music Label: Sony Bmg Europe
Soundtracks:
- Knee Play 1
- Act One: Scene 1: Train
- Act One: Scene 2: Trial
- Knee Play 2
- Act Two: Scene 1: Dance 1
- Act Two: Scene 2: Night Train
- Knee Play 3
- Act Three: Scene 1: Trial/Prison
- Act Three: Scene 2: Dance 2
- Knee Play 4
- Act Four: Scene 1: Building
- Act Four: Scene 2: Bed
- Act Four: Scene 3: Spaceship
- Knee Play 5
Music reviews of Glass: Einstein on the Beach
Music Review: Incessant, hypnotic rhythms and soundscapes. And mondegreens. 75/100
Rating: 4 Stars
I think I first may have heard excerpts from this opera on a show like "The science show" on ABC Radio National. There were possibly two passages which got played. Can't say for sure that I know which ones they are, having now listened to the opera. On "The science show" I recall what sounded like vocals repeating the phrase "Boogedy boogedy boogedy" and another passage, from memory, featuring counting. That I didn't recognise those passages on this album suggests to me, perhaps, that "The science show" used a later recording of this opera. Might check that out later sometime. In any case, I chose to get the first recording of this opera, and this is it, I think. Conducted by Michael Riesman, according to the cd notes. Wikipedia mentions the later release having a longer playing time, due to improved capacity of new formats, like CD. My 4 cd collection here has running times of 44:31 minutes, 40:01, 42:11 and 38:15. Apparently the newer recording is
almost half an hour longer, and captures the entire opera. My cd is listed as a 2003 release of the original vinyl album.
The set has variations on themes and repetition of lyrics etc. If musical and lyrical repetition is not your cup of tea, this release may not be for you. Musically, you get hypnotic, incessant rhythms and soundscapes. Perhaps some touchstones for this kind of music may the scores of Peter Greenaway movies (by Michael Nyman) or John Carpenter's classic score to his slasher movie "Halloween". Even the Cocteau Twins' "Blue Bell Knoll" is brought to mind, at times. The sound on this release has warmth and - for me at least - the lyrics function as background noise, with their repetitiveness. There is an intimate quality to the sound here, especially the voices. Tracks with 'nonsense' lyrics may be preferable to those who are bugged by the boring lucid lyrics. I imagine one voice which features regularly on tracks here as being an African American woman. Another voice which gets heard at times is what I imagine to be an older white man. The African
American woman especially repeats phrases over more than one track. One aspect I like to this opera is that at times you get an effect I first heard in the classic "Murder mystery" by The Velvet Undergroud...namely, sensual, overlapping lyrics. Both voices are reading from a different page, so to speak.
The cds:
CD 1 -
Knee play 1 - ">(.)" On second listen I liked this track more. Runs 3:52. Has soothing organ notes, male and female choir counting numbers; then an intimate female voice in one ear, moving to the other ear, giving repetitive spoken words. Has a "Murder mystery" vibe to it in that respect (that Velvet Underground song I mentioned earlier) as well as Max Q's classic "Way of the world" (which featured INXS lead singer Michael Hutchence). Genteel tempo, with nice long notes by the choir...not sure if they are singing actual words or not. Choir sings some pretty melodies...not sure if it scales...a la "do re mi" etc.
Act 1: scene 1 - 17:19. Jaunty track, with 2 synth sounds...one in each ear. Two female voices...touch of Ita Buttrose to that (the lispy Australian media personality). Can't really say I made out the lyrics...some guesses for some phrases include: "upside down", "garbage face", "some say garbage" and "bye bye Stacey". Apologies if these guesses are somewhat wayward. Musically, you hear a woodwind sound...a recorder, perhaps? Sometimes you hear brass sounds...sax, perhaps.
Act 1: scene 2 - 23:19. Mellower piece. Two female voices singing "Me me me" (or something!). Woodwind type sound (recorder?). Later some robot like male voices reciting lines. A boy's voice is heard at the end. Before then you get some comments which sound a little gay. Maybe a xylophone features in this track too. I like the bit with the violin playing solo but later it sort of made me feel nauseous (!). Portentous choir.
CD 2 -
Knee play 2 - 6:49. Solo violin. A female voice in each ear...the same woman, but asynchronous. Each voice has a cyclical spoken word lyric...similar or identical to such lyrics as featured in the first cd. Similarity to "Murder mystery" in this way, but not as creepy as that Velvet Underground song, if you let its lyrics seep into you. Voices have an intimate quality. One voice reads what sounds like an advertisement!
Act 2: scene 1 - 13:39. Throbbing, heaving vocals and synthesiser. Woodwind/recorder type type instrument. Bassy synthesiser with a sort of disco rhythm (?)...or Space Invaders rhythm? Another track where I sort of felt like I could make out actual words...here goes..."rip their carpet", "rugby", "Rodney", "rumpy pumpy" (?!). Two female singers feature, but not ones previously heard, I don't think.
Act 2: scene 2 - 13:52. ">(.)". Likeable enough to consider adding to my list of the greatest American songs of all time...might be one to tack near the end of my list. Synthesiser, more singsong voices here. Male voice starts off with "baa baa" or something of the sort. Two female voices have a Blue Bell Knoll vibe to them...maybe they sing in Spanish too, at times. Obscure lyrics. Swirling synthesiser. Last few minutes are instrumental...has a digital phone ring sort of sound at one time. Another track where counting numbers features.
Knee play 3 - 5:38. From "(.)" to ".". Another track I think deserves a spot in my US songs list...higher up than the previous track, I think. This may the piece which is sampled by The Science Show...but on this version of the opera the sound is not as light and ethereal as the version I heard on the radio (albeit in glorious mono!). The counting bit here sort of sounded like Ita Buttrose saying "I want a sip"! Other parts here sounded like "wackity" and "wonderfully". Of course, this was all numbers being spoken...albeit at a very fast pace. Male and female voices sing a capella. Especially nice are the hymnal parts...again, the scales are perhaps brought to mind for me ("do re mi" etc.)...though maybe I am being confused here. Also lovely is is the depth in these hymnal parts...subtle registers playing off each other (if "registers" is the right musical term to use here).
CD 3 -
Act 3: scene 1 - 18:16. Initially organ type humming chords then dinky synthesiser notes. Choral counting numbers by male and female voices. A lone female voice utters repetitive lines in your left ear then migrates to the right hand side. Later you get a swirling synthesiser. Near the end there is intimate symphonic music and feint, sensual voice. Perhaps that feint voice delivers narratively important information as far as the opera goes (?).
Act 3: scene 2 - 17:10. The most rigid piece so far. Fiddles appear and a low end synthesiser. Male and female voices are heard in a choir. The female again seems to say "rugby". A more disturbing mondegreen is "rim me". Hmm! Just by the by, I looked up "mondegreen" on Wikipedia. and it mentioned a related term..."Soramimi". Some fun to be had reading that! Anyway, other mondegreens of mine on this track include "many" and "penny farthing".
Knee play 4 - 6:45. "[.]". Fiddle only, male choir (with low and high registers) singing scales, then alternating with prettyish "nasi goreng" (?!).
Just by the by, I fell asleep for parts of the 2nd and 3rd track on this cd (on my second listen to it, I think). Due to that, I relistened to the entire cd again and didn't find that a chore. So, this speaks well for the opera's replayability, I think. And it also speaks well for the music, perhaps. By that I mean if the music was truly a torture on the ears, then it would be hard to feel peaceful enough to fall asleep to the music, yeah?
CD 4 -
Act 4: scene 1 - 7:30. Electro style...sort of like a video game track, symphonic music (it features an instrument like an oboe, for instance...guessing here). Swirling sound at times, having morse code type bleeps (maybe like as if done by a mobile phone). Vocalisations? Short outro on keyboard has a sort of harpsichord sound to it. Track is sort of avant garde at times, with brass instruments.
Act 4: scene 2 - 11:48. ".". Pleasant, soothing organ notes...simple, and having a bit of a harpsichord sound to it. Low end throb on the synth. Ethereal female voice on the high end...she sounds sharp at times.
Act 4: scene 3 - 13:22. Brings to mind something like Michael Nyman's score for the film "A zed and two noughts"...so, could have been influenced by Glass on that front. Has that lively Nyman feel in any case. Keyboard plays notes on the high and low end. Choir with male and female voices counts. There is a sort of piano accordion sound to one of the instruments...might the real deal or the synth. A sax sound can be heard too. Music is 'wavey' at times. In the middle there is a passage with no vocals...violins feature and maybe the harpsichord.
Knee play 5 - 5:33. ">[.]". Soothing low end organ notes, with a female choir counting. The woman who sounds African American reappears, as does, later, the man who sounds like a white, middle aged person. You get a vocal collage here. Later it sounds like a children's choir is utilised. That part sounds nice, as does the fiddle playing. On the left hand side of the speakers, I think I noticed the African American woman misspeaking...she says "These are my days"...should be "These are the days". A track like this reminds me of the one Velvet Underground song I consider to be a classic..."Murder mystery". Would like this song more on that level without the middle aged white guy's part on this track. The female vocals sound pleasant, in any case...on the left hand side with the African American woman, and the counting choir too.
Recommendations:
Michael Nyman scores...I have his score to "The cook, the thief, his wife and her lover". That's pretty symphonic and choral too...not so avant garde though. Haven't checked out his score to "A zed and two noughts", though it is on my radar.
Cocteau Twins - Blue Bell Knoll. Ethereal female vocals and lively synth music...not sure, but I think that they may be singing Gaelic or Welsh...something like that...perhaps.
The Velvet Underground - The Velvet Underground. Mainly for "Murder mystery", which is a great example of competing spoken voices...though I think that the rest of the album is excellent too.
Enya...I like her swirling, ethereal synth pop. E.g. songs like the classic "Caribbean blue", or "Orinoco flow".
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