John Adams | Girls Of The Golden West | CD

John Adams is an American minimalist composer and conductor, born in 1947, who moved to San Francisco in 1971 and teaches composition at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. Among his works are the operas Nixon in China (1987) and Doctor Atomic (2005), along with Harmonielehre (1985) and Shaker Loops (1978). He also wrote On the Transmigration of Souls (2002), a choral piece that won a Pulitzer Prize.

Girls of the Golden West is an opera by John Adams with a libretto by Peter Sellars. It tells the story of the Gold Rush through the words and deeds of real people, and this CD is a recording made live in performance on 27 and 29 January 2023 by the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra and the Los Angeles Master Chorale, conducted by the composer. Dmitriy Lipay produced the recording, Robert Hurwitz was executive producer, and it was released by Nonesuch on 26 April 2024.

Track List

Disc 1

1. It Was a Driving, Vigorous, Restless Population
2. Wagon Ride - Ned Peters Was a Hustler
3. My Name Is Joe
4. Now He Consoles Himself
5. A Gambler's Life I Do Admire
6. Josefa, You Remember
7. It's Bone, It's Backbone
8. Comin' Up from Red Dog

Disc 2

1. The Raven
2. The Attack On the Mexicans
3. It Seems Like Midnight
4. What Is This Celebration to Me?
5. This Very Nearly Was the Cause
6. Ven Esta Noche
7. Blessed and Praised
8. I'm Going Far Away from My Creditors
9. The Downieville Mob
10. Tú Me Quieres Alba
11. It's Four Long Years (Lousy Miner)
12. Sometimes I Lounge Forlornly to the Window