I've always known it from recordings and like it -- I think it is an
important piece, just by virtue of being a "mash-up."
I do think that Foss' own recording, with Buffalo for Nonesuch, is a bit
more convincing than Bernstein's, which seems
more exploratory and tentative.

Happy New Year!

Uncle Dave Lewis

On Thu, Dec 31, 2015 at 6:16 PM, Steven Smolian <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

> I was at that concert and hated the piece. PDQ Bach it wasn't, nor had it
> the snarkiness of Alfred Schnittke nor the dry gumor of Cage. It seemed a
> mash-up with no apparent connections of the inserts to one another nor to
> the musical framework.
>
> Steve Smolian
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Association for Recorded Sound Discussion List
> [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Tom Fine
> Sent: Thursday, December 31, 2015 4:41 PM
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: [ARSCLIST] World premiere of "a totally terrible piece of music"
>
> It's not often that a scathing review like this gets written:
>
> https://www.dropbox.com/s/4qbixnsusqkd5c2/World%20Journal%20Tribune%20670428
> %20Lucas%20Foss%20piece%20booed%20by%20NYPO%20audience.pdf?dl=0
> or that people jeer at a NY Philharmonic concert!
>
> Listen and judge for yourself:
>
> https://soundcloud.com/tom-fine-1/ny-philharmonic-concert-april-27-1967-luka
> s-foss-phorion-world-premiere/s-LZz7Y
>
> Recording found on a yard-sale reel tape, the review was included in the
> box. Surprisingly good fidelity for quarter-track off-air taping, although
> the channels were reversed and there's considerable edge warp on the
> ancient
> acetate-backed 1-mil tape.
>
> Happy New Year!
>
> -- Tom Fine
>