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Play (composition)

October 31, 2023

For other compositions, see Play.

Play is a piece for orchestra in three movements by the American composer Andrew Norman. The work was commissioned by the Boston Modern Orchestra Project, for whom Norman was then composer-in-residence. It was first performed on May 17, 2013 by the orchestra under the conductor Gil Rose.[1] The revised version was premiered by the Los Angeles Philharmonic conducted by Gustavo Dudamel on October 28, 2016.[2]

Composition edit

Play has a duration of roughly 45 minutes and is composed in three movements:

  1. Level 1
  2. Level 2
  3. Level 3

Norman scholar and collaborator Anne Lanzilotti writes, "Structured in three movements—or 'Levels,' as they are titled—it is an intricately planned work dealing with themes of control, free will, hidden messages, and of course, playfulness. The key elements of Play are the things that inspire me in Norman’s music: physicality, the use of form to create narrative, and an interest in the experience of live performance."[2]

The composition also utilizes various extended techniques for strings.[3]

Reception edit

Play has received an extremely positive critical response. Reviewing the world premiere, David Wright of the Boston Classical Review wrote, "No matter how complex and seemingly chaotic the music became, Norman's contrapuntal skill and imaginative handling of the large orchestra were evident throughout." He added, "A single hearing can hardly do a piece like Play justice, but the work's ambition and brilliant performance earned it warm and prolonged applause."[1] Reviewing a recording of the work, the music critic Alex Ross called it "a sprawling, engulfing, furiously unpredictable piece in three symphonic movements."[4] Tom Huizenga of NPR similarly called it "witty, playful, surprisingly transparent — aside from the bazillion little things going on — and probably thrillingly difficult to pull off."[5] David Weininger of The Boston Globe wrote:

Play [...] is being talked about as the most important long orchestral work of the 21st century. That kind of hype can often be misleading, but in this case it's quite likely accurate. The 45-minute, three-movement work, which encompasses various meanings of play — some lighthearted, some sinister — begins in an almost spastic fit of energy; musical ideas ricochet off one another furiously, almost too quickly. But embedded in the chaos are two scales: one ascending, the other descending. Their interaction and gradual transformation create the piece's overarching structure as the music progresses through three "levels," though it never loses its reckless feel.[6]

In 2017, Play won the Grawemeyer Award for Music Composition.

Recording edit

The Boston Modern Orchestra Project launched a Kickstarter campaign on June 13, 2013 to raise $8,000 for a recording of Play, in addition to Norman's orchestral work Try. The campaign closed on June 30, 2013 having successfully raised $9,525.[7] A recording of the work was subsequently released through the orchestra's label BMOP/Sound.[6] The BMOP recording was later named one of the best classical music recordings of 2015 by David Allen of The New York Times and was nominated for the 2016 Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Classical Composition.[8][9][10]

References edit

  1. ^ a b Wright, David (May 18, 2013). "BMOP celebrates youngish composers in season closer". Boston Classical Review. Retrieved December 24, 2015.
  2. ^ a b Lanzilotti, Anne (October 25, 2016). ""Cut to a Different World": Andrew Norman". Music & Literature.
  3. ^ Play Techniques —— VVVVVV shaken not stuttered |||| | | ||
  4. ^ Ross, Alex (January 5, 2015). "CD of the Week: Andrew Norman's Play". The Rest is Noise. Retrieved December 24, 2015.
  5. ^ Huizenga, Tom (January 31, 2015). "Bach, Brits And A Bodacious Boston Orchestra: New Classical Albums". Deceptive Cadence. NPR. Retrieved December 24, 2015.
  6. ^ a b Weininger, David (March 15, 2015). "Andrew Norman, 'Play'". The Boston Globe. Retrieved December 24, 2015.
  7. ^ "Andrew Norman – Play". Kickstarter. Retrieved December 24, 2015.
  8. ^ "The Best Classical Music Recordings of 2015". The New York Times. December 10, 2015. Retrieved January 15, 2016.
  9. ^ "2016 Grammy Awards: Complete list of nominees". Los Angeles Times. December 7, 2015. Retrieved January 15, 2016.
  10. ^ Oteri, Frank J. (December 7, 2015). "About Those 2016 Grammy Nominations". NewMusicBox. Retrieved January 15, 2016.

External links edit

  • Official website
  • BMOP
  • Andrew Norman’s ‘Play,’ a Symphony That Levels Up review on New York Times

October 31, 2023
play, composition, other, compositions, play, play, piece, orchestra, three, movements, american, composer, andrew, norman, work, commissioned, boston, modern, orchestra, project, whom, norman, then, composer, residence, first, performed, 2013, orchestra, unde. For other compositions see Play Play is a piece for orchestra in three movements by the American composer Andrew Norman The work was commissioned by the Boston Modern Orchestra Project for whom Norman was then composer in residence It was first performed on May 17 2013 by the orchestra under the conductor Gil Rose 1 The revised version was premiered by the Los Angeles Philharmonic conducted by Gustavo Dudamel on October 28 2016 2 Contents 1 Composition 2 Reception 3 Recording 4 References 5 External linksComposition editPlay has a duration of roughly 45 minutes and is composed in three movements Level 1Level 2Level 3 Norman scholar and collaborator Anne Lanzilotti writes Structured in three movements or Levels as they are titled it is an intricately planned work dealing with themes of control free will hidden messages and of course playfulness The key elements of Play are the things that inspire me in Norman s music physicality the use of form to create narrative and an interest in the experience of live performance 2 The composition also utilizes various extended techniques for strings 3 Reception editPlay has received an extremely positive critical response Reviewing the world premiere David Wright of the Boston Classical Review wrote No matter how complex and seemingly chaotic the music became Norman s contrapuntal skill and imaginative handling of the large orchestra were evident throughout He added A single hearing can hardly do a piece like Play justice but the work s ambition and brilliant performance earned it warm and prolonged applause 1 Reviewing a recording of the work the music critic Alex Ross called it a sprawling engulfing furiously unpredictable piece in three symphonic movements 4 Tom Huizenga of NPR similarly called it witty playful surprisingly transparent aside from the bazillion little things going on and probably thrillingly difficult to pull off 5 David Weininger of The Boston Globe wrote Play is being talked about as the most important long orchestral work of the 21st century That kind of hype can often be misleading but in this case it s quite likely accurate The 45 minute three movement work which encompasses various meanings of play some lighthearted some sinister begins in an almost spastic fit of energy musical ideas ricochet off one another furiously almost too quickly But embedded in the chaos are two scales one ascending the other descending Their interaction and gradual transformation create the piece s overarching structure as the music progresses through three levels though it never loses its reckless feel 6 In 2017 Play won the Grawemeyer Award for Music Composition Recording editThe Boston Modern Orchestra Project launched a Kickstarter campaign on June 13 2013 to raise 8 000 for a recording of Play in addition to Norman s orchestral work Try The campaign closed on June 30 2013 having successfully raised 9 525 7 A recording of the work was subsequently released through the orchestra s label BMOP Sound 6 The BMOP recording was later named one of the best classical music recordings of 2015 by David Allen of The New York Times and was nominated for the 2016 Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Classical Composition 8 9 10 References edit a b Wright David May 18 2013 BMOP celebrates youngish composers in season closer Boston Classical Review Retrieved December 24 2015 a b Lanzilotti Anne October 25 2016 Cut to a Different World Andrew Norman Music amp Literature Play Techniques VVVVVV shaken not stuttered Ross Alex January 5 2015 CD of the Week Andrew Norman s Play The Rest is Noise Retrieved December 24 2015 Huizenga Tom January 31 2015 Bach Brits And A Bodacious Boston Orchestra New Classical Albums Deceptive Cadence NPR Retrieved December 24 2015 a b Weininger David March 15 2015 Andrew Norman Play The Boston Globe Retrieved December 24 2015 Andrew Norman Play Kickstarter Retrieved December 24 2015 The Best Classical Music Recordings of 2015 The New York Times December 10 2015 Retrieved January 15 2016 2016 Grammy Awards Complete list of nominees Los Angeles Times December 7 2015 Retrieved January 15 2016 Oteri Frank J December 7 2015 About Those 2016 Grammy Nominations NewMusicBox Retrieved January 15 2016 External links editOfficial website BMOP Andrew Norman s Play a Symphony That Levels Up review on New York Times Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Play composition amp oldid 1178177568, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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