Customer Reviews

Glass: In the Upper Room

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

 

 

Philip Glass's 1986 ballet "In The Upper Room" is arguably the composer's greatest dance work and one in long line of successful collaborations with renowned choreographer Twyla Tharp.
Five movements of this dynamic work were initially released on the 1986 Glass album "Dance Pieces" with the original orchestration enhanced by synthesized sounds to give the music a more 'commercial' vibe.
Now, 23 years after its debut, Philip Glass and his label Orange Mountain Music have released the full nine-movement original scoring of "In The Upper Room" for the first time ever. This new recording strips away the synthesized enhancements and presents the music as Glass originally intended.
Musically, the ballet is full of trademark Glass elements with its short repeated phrases, arpegiated rhythms and strong orchestrations. This is especially apparent in the fourth and ninth movements with their triumphant upbeat themes and variations. Indeed, this can also be said of the rest of the work as the full version is a revelation compared to the individual movements released on the "Glass Pieces" album.
Long time Glass fans will find this CD to be a real treat and a worthwhile addition to their collection. For those just discovering Philip Glass, this is one CD that can be recommended as a solid introduction to his theater work. The only minor complaint I have is the fact that this CD runs for under 40-minutes. The high quality of the music does more than make up for this CD's short length and shows Philip Glass at a high point in his creative powers.

"In the Upper Room" is a secular modern dance piece from 1986, it's title being inspired by a highly spiritual song: "In the Upper Room", sung by Mahalia Jackson.

It's one of the most beautiful dance scores I've ever listened to; While Twyla Tharp's original choreography is one of my all time favorites. It plays beautifully with traditional mythic symbols, and elements from classic and modern dance.

Some of the pieces have been released previously on another CD, but incomplete, and reinforced with synthesized tracks. While I love listening to those synthesized tracks too, it's amazing to listen to the original acoustic score, the way it was originally intended by the composer.

I've been waiting for a complete "Upper Room" ever since seeing the American Ballet Theater version premiere in 1988. I can never forget the stunned reaction of the audience at the close of the work, followed immediately by an explosion of thunderous applause, cheering, and a standing ovation (standing ovations being somewhat rarer in 1988 than today). It's that kind of work.

I'm happy to say that for dances I-VIII this version improves on the synthesizer-enhanced tracks Tharp used for performances in those days (and which subsequently became available on "Dancepieces"). The result on dance IX, which had the heaviest and most obvious synthesizer track, is less happy for me. Something is missing from the overall feel that I've become so familiar with over the years....but that's perhaps just me.

Anyway, for the Glass enthusiast this will be a treasured addition; for the novice, you could pick many much worse starting points for a journey into Glass. Highly recommended.

Folks, I must confess, I bought this anticipating bliss. Must say I was disappointed. Heresy, I much prefer the older synthesizer versions, with the pulsating bass beat and a total sense of aliveness and passion.

This version sounds like a chamber ensemble, very genteel with its soul ripped out.

It may be more "authentic" but that doesn't make it better IMHO.

This is music, recently re-recorded and conducted by long-time Glassman Michael Riesman, originally written for a Twyla Tharp ballet done back in the mid 1980s. As a result of its time frame, the music is more akin to the purist minimalism of the time, which is a style of music based on gradual change over more rapid repetition. It is a beautifully hypnotic approach to music, and one that is absent from much of Glass's more recent orchestral works.

There is a difference between this score and that of the original music. This recording is all acoustic, whereas the original used synthesizers to "thicken" the sound for the thirteen dancers.

If you have the album "Dance Pieces", you have five of the nine movements of this work as it was originally recorded. This CD contains all nine movements, and, of course, without the synthetics, is somewhat more sparse in nature.

Some movements are performed with strings, others with brass and woodwinds. I think my favorite is the brass work in the third movement, short as it may be. But the work is at its best when all three elements (strings, winds, and brass) combine to create an elegant orchestral layering of sounds, hypnotic yet beautiful, repetitive yet eternal in its cyclic nature. This is best seen in "Dance IV" and the gorgeous concluding "Dance XI", which also includes a female vocalist.

The only real sad part is the brevity of the recording. Although 38 minutes was a standard album length in the pre-CD age, it just seems like it is over and done all too quickly.

(4.5 stars out of 5)

MC Mahan

The Houston Ballet Company recently revisited this work and dance arrangement with great acclaim. I feel this work and music score is contemporary without being precotious. How effortlessly dancers find this music complimentary to their moves, and Twyla Tharp choreography completes the painting. Nice to be able to relive this piece in performance.

The final movement of In the Upper Room (Dance IX) is, pure and simple, one of the most gorgeous pieces of music ever written. When seen live with the Twyla Tharp dancers, it provides one of the most powerful finales in recent dance history (along with Eliot Feld's The Consort). The other numbers are also well worth hearing in their own right, and provide a fine buildup to IX.

Just like with the new release of 'Koyaanisqatsi' it is great to finally get a complete recording of 'In the Upper Room'. Additionally, this is (I believe) presented in the original instrumentation which does not include the synthesized instruments heard in some of the tracks in the original release.

Perhaps someone who already owns the original release might question whether this is worth the purchase and I can wholeheartedly say that it is. Obvisouly with this CD you get the complete version but with the different orchestration only a few of the shorter pieces of this 'Upper Room' will seem the same as ones from the original. In this new release you get to hear not only the unreleased tracks but you also get a few of the other parts in different orchestration so it really is a 'new' release in many ways. You won't want to replace your old version because it is still so different and enjoyable in its own right (the last movement is an especially drastic change between the two). There is just so much new on this CD with different orchestrations and new tracks that I never felt I was buying the same thing a second time and both versions still get plenty of play time.

Upon listening to this new version I could not help but think I had heard track 4 before. After some listening I realized that track 4 from this new CD sounds very much like track 4 from 'Songs from Liquid Days' but with different instrumentation. Regardless, it doesn't at all detract from the greatnes of this work and is a pure pleasure to have it in completed form with the intnded instrumentation.

A few minutes of this is plenty. Glass long milked this particular genre for all it was worth. Some reviewers here have complained that the CD is too short. Given the paucity of musical content, it is, in my opinion, far too long. He offers no development per se; but only rhythmic and very soon predictable chord changes, with occasional varying of dynamics. Maybe you have to be smoking something illegal to think that this is profound.

This is, at least ,largely, a re-recording of original work, and those wishing to hear what they remembered,rather than a slightly colder, computer generated feel, customers may wish to purchase the other CD's with these tracks available.

Glassworks
Dancepieces
Glass: Dancepieces
Dancepieces

-RC