Rusty Banks

Does Michael Daugherty’s “Dead Elvis” pay respect to Elvis, mock Elvis, or both? How?

Other Comments?

The first work we studied in Music and Culture was Louis Andriessen’s Racconto dall’Inferno. A remarkable performance, the concert was also notable in its quick distribution on iTunes. A majority of our guided listening focused on text painting. It is easy to note that Andriessen is adept at text painting, but that leaves the following questions:

1) Does the piece have merit as music, without consideration of the text?

2) Is an experience of the piece valid if you cannot understand the text (or do not have a translation)?

Also, any comments or questions about this work, or Steve Reich’s Check it out”¦ from City Life are welcome.