From Amazon.com
One of the most important operatic and symphonic composers of his generation, John Adams here gives an intimate look at his musical core through these two large chamber pieces. The 11 pieces of
John's Book of Alleged Dances are performed by Kronos Quartet and have a phenomenally heartfelt, countrified feel but always remain strongly and unmistakably the work of a polystylistic string quartet.
Gnarly Buttons is Adams's paean to the clarinet, which his father taught him to play. Adams composed the piece for British virtuoso Michael Collins but enlivens its crooks and swerves with a chamber ensemble, mixing a banjo, samplers, double reeds, and brass. Collins plays with warm, woody tones when the dust is low but bursts to higher, sharply keeled notes as the ensemble takes on new passions. It's great to hear Adams again--it seems after a long spell--involved in chamber music. This is fun stuff, without giving an inch on the level of high-caliber execution.
-- Andrew Bartlett
