Week 2
Continuing our listening theme, Uncovering Minimalism, I'm keen to share the first key minimalist work that I was introduced to growing up, John Adams' 'A Short Ride in a Fast Machine'. If you haven't already, read last week's article, where I establish a definition and an understanding based off of what I understand minimalism within music to be: it is repetitive, simple, gradual, voices are limited and features a layered texture. This work, I feel, is very much the embodiment of all of those minimalist fundamentals which I have established. This work is characterised by its simplicity, repetition and gradual transformation.
John Adams: A Short Ride in a Fast Machine
John Adams' 'A Short Ride in a Fast Machine' is a work that I was first introduced to through the BBC's project 'BBC Ten Pieces', a project which really opened my eyes to the world of classic music, growing up. The imagery that Adams sets to portray in this piece jumped out at me immediately. Adams illustrates this electrifying sense of excitement, thrill and most importantly - speed! Here is the video that introduced me to Adam's 'A Short Ride in a Fast Machine', captured and imagined brilliantly by the BBC:
John Adams, who is he?
Adams, another USA-born composer comes from Worcester, Massachusetts and started life as a clarinettist growing up in a musical household where his father, a jazz clarinettist, taught him to play. Adams began composing his own music from the age of 10 and went on to study at Harvard University, where he studied under the guidance of Leon Kirchner and Roger Sessions. His early compositions have modernist attributes, but as a student he had a growing fascination for Steve Reich and his emerging style of music, minimalism. Adams' first major minimalist breakthrough was 'Shaker Loops', a work written for string quartet and something I will return to later within this series.
What influenced this work?
'Short Ride in a Fast Machine' was inspired by the exhilarating experience of living in the moment of a high-speed ride in a sports car. Adams programmatically sets out to capture the theme of the thrill of travelling at high-speed, something that perhaps is tricky to express through words but is so masterfully achieved by him in this work. The work was commissioned for the opening of the Great Woods Festival by the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra in 1986.
This fusion of a programmatic brief whilst maintaining fundamental minimalist technique creates a work which has real dynamism and engagement to it. Central to the piece is the relentless woodblock pulse that sets the wheels in motion. It represents steady, rhythmic but mechanical nature of this 'fast machine' in motion. The rapid yet repetitive motifs symbolize the constant movement and shifting gears of the car. The orchestration and texture progressively grows in intensity and illustrates the increasing pace and thrill of the ride. All of this draws the listener to immerse themselves in the sensation of forward propulsion, capturing the essence of the high-speed, exhilarating journey, all whilst embodying minimalist techniques and rhythmic elements within.
Adams draws upon the influence that listening to the works of Steve Reich, Terry Riley and Philip Glass had on him.
The Music
Here is a fantastic study score published by Boosey & Hawkes which I will make reference to throughout this section:
Adams structures 'Short Ride in a Fast Machine' in a way which embodies the key elements of minimalism, whilst remaining accessible to wider audiences - hence why I think the BBC chose to include it in their 'BBC Ten Pieces'. The fact it has a programmatic body which shaped Adams' construction of this work makes it easy for audiences to listen to. Especially considering the duration of the piece is only 4 minutes 30 seconds, it really isn't long - yet this journey is captured perfectly over the course of the ride.
I've already referred to the persistent woodblock which we hear throughout the piece, but it really is central to Adams' portrayal of the relentless mechanical nature of the Fast Machine he is illustrating. It plays a driving pulse which is always on the beat, and persists despite irregular time signatures appearing.
Repetition throughout the ensemble in individual layers is also key. This is a key minimalist feature which Adams embraces. What is interesting to see is the way these layers, despite many of them having a syncopated nature (achieved through rhythm, sforzando markings or accented articulations), co-exist on top of each other to paint the image of a complicated mechanical machine. Adams plays with the synchronicity of these layers when the climax is reached in the middle of the work - the work speeds into a form of organised chaos at this point.
The use of forces in this work is interesting, Adams uses a full orchestra whilst mixing in two synthesizers, an uncommon use of instrumentation in a traditional orchestral setting. It perhaps aids Adams' portrayal of the fast machine, allowing him to craft sounds that he otherwise wouldn't be able to achieve with purely acoustic instruments. It is interesting to see a heavy focus on the brass section, perhaps painting a majestic, soaring atmosphere that you might associate with travelling at high speed.
Fun Fact
While researching John Adams, the first person to come up on Google is John Adams: The second serving president of the United States from 1797 to 1801 - and was the first president to reside in the White House! Just shows what could be going on in our lives in a parallel universe...
Concluding Thoughts
'Short Ride in a Fast Machine' by John Adams is a masterful example of minimalism at its best, showcasing the power of simplicity and repetition. This piece not only stands as a significant work in the minimalist genre, but also offers the listener the exhilarating and thrilling experience of riding in a 'Fast Machine'. A work with a clear story-telling narrative achieved through clear programmatic writing whilst maintaining an authentic minimalist style. In the coming weeks, I will be exploring more of Adams' work in the series to fully appreciate his contribution to the minimalist genre.
