I Was Looking at the Ceiling &: John Adams, Welly Yang, Seppo Kantonen, Jari-Pekka Karvonen, Marin Mazzie: Amazon.ca: Music

1. I Was Looking at the Ceiling and Then I Saw the Sky - John Adams

2. Sermon on Romance - Darius de Haas, Angela Teek

3. Consuelo's Dream - Audra McDonald

4. Mike's Song About Arresting a Particular Individual - Richard Muenz

5. Tiffany's Solo - Marin Mazzie

6. Song About the On-Site Altercation - Marin Mazzie, Michael McElroy, Richard Muenz, Angela Teek

7. Song About the Bad Boys and the News - Audra McDonald, Angela Teek

8. Your Honor My Client He's a Young Black Man - Michael McElroy, Welly Yang

9. Leila's Song: Alone (Again or at Last) - Angela Teek

10. Three Weeks and Still I'm Outta My Mind - Darius de Haas, Angela Teek

11. Crushed by the Rock I Been Standing On - Darius de Haas, Marin Mazzie, Audra McDonald, Welly Yang

12. Dewain's Song of Liberation and Surprise - Michael McElroy

13. Este Pais!/This Country - Audra McDonald, Michael McElroy

14. One Last Look at the Angel in Your Eyes - Audra McDonald, Michael McElroy

15. Finale - All

On this CD:

I Was Looking at the Ceiling and Then I Saw the Sky, songplay
Composed by John Adams
with Welly Yang, Seppo Kantonen, Seppo Kantonen, Jari-Pekka Karvonen, Marin Mazzie
Conducted by John Adams

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Customer Reviews

11 Reviews

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

Average Customer Review

3.4 out of 5 stars (11 customer reviews)

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4.0 out of 5 stars credible effort, April 21 2001

By	Sean M. Kelly (Portland, Oregon United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

It took me several listens to gather the full effect of what Adams was trying to accomplish on this opera/musical. I'm not sure that this recording fully harnesses it all, but it is an excellent recording.

As most people know, the recording is based on the 1994 major earthquake in California, and the structure of the recording reflects this, as movements 2-14 are meant as either solos or duets to reflect points of view. These pieces are sandwiched by ensemble numbers (part 1 and 15) that show off some of Adams' minimalist leanings but quickly switch over to pop and jazz sensibilities.

At moments, it's difficult to follow the flow of the action, especially on those parts that have no dialogue to connect sections. I suppose that is a nit-pickey point, all in all, but it was a noticable flaw as i heard it.

With Adams conducting, the cd shows off a different side of Adams. No, he's no Lloyd-Webber or Sondheim (thankfully) but the performance IS an interesting melding of opera and musical. While this concept, in my opinion, pales in comparison to his other operatic works, the work is a confident one, and is well worth listening to.

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5.0 out of 5 stars Unexpected pleasures, Dec 4 1999

By	D. G. H. Haslett "dghhaslett" (Berlin) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This work falls between two stools - on the one hand the style is eclectic, encompassing gospel, rock, sprechstimme, opera, musical theatre. On the other it could have been written by no one but Adams. He takes a variety of musical styles and makes them his own. I was initially puzzled by it but many subsequent hearings have confirmed that here is a wonderful piece of musical theatre, finding a depth of emotion that is light years ahead of the vacuousness of modern musical theatre (no names....!) If it recalls anyone other than the composer himself then it would be Sondheim - there is something of the New York composer in the small musical cells, subjected to numerous repetitions; but Adams' melodic gift is greater. As the wonderful title of the piece indicates, this is a piece about trnscending the mundane and finding spirituality in the most unlikely situations. I have played it countless times and it never fails to move and excite.

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2.0 out of 5 stars Uch!, Aug 12 1999

By A Customer

Is this what we can expect from Mr. Adams in the future? I hope not, he's no match for the folks on Broadway.

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Most recent customer reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Typically subtle pop-inflected Adams, but no West Side Story
When this was playing up in Berkeley, Paul Hertelendy of the San Jose Mercury News compared it to Bernstein's West Side Story -- i.e. Read more

Published on Mar 23 1999

5.0 out of 5 stars Something different... and wonderful
When I first heard this piece, a huge smile filled my face. I picked it up expecting another Nixon in China or Klinghoffer (which I loved), but what I got was wonderfully fresh... Read more

Published on Mar 14 1999