THOMPSON, Virgil: The Plow & The River That Broke The Plains

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The Plow that Broke the Plains (more info)
Composed by: Virgil Thomson
Conducted by: Angel Gil-Ordonez
Recording date: 11-12 June 2005
Produced by: Zakar, Steven K.


1.   Prelude - 4:04
2.   Pastorale (Grass) - 1:20
3.   Cattle - 2:07
4.   The Homesteader - 2:48
5.   Warning - 1:30
6.   War and the Tractor - 3:55
7.   Speculation (Blues) - 2:55
8.   Drought - 1:46
9.   Wind and Dust - 2:04
10.   Devastation - 4:23


The River (more info)
Composed by: Virgil Thomson
Conducted by: Angel Gil-Ordonez
Recording date: 11-12 June 2005
Produced by: Zakar, Steven K.


11.   Prelude - 0:40
12.   First Forest - 1:01
13.   A Big River - 2:46
14.   Cotton Pickers - 2:43
15.   Ruins - 1:19
16.   Logging - 2:00
17.   Coal - 2:37
18.   Floods - 7:39
19.   Requiem - 1:14
20.   Tenancy - 3:21
21.   Finale - 3:23

Reviews

Homespun classics (Nov 10, 2007)
Reviewer:emma choi
Hats off to Naxos for making available Virgil Thomson’s soundtracks to the New Deal documentaries The Plow that Broke the Plains and The River, which respectively explored the Dust Bowl era and flood control of the Mississippi River. Thomson’s quintessentially American music — bold, brash and emotionally direct — provided the perfect accompaniment to these... Hats off to Naxos for making available Virgil Thomson’s soundtracks to the New Deal documentaries The Plow that Broke the Plains and The River, which respectively explored the Dust Bowl era and flood control of the Mississippi River. Thomson’s quintessentially American music — bold, brash and emotionally direct — provided the perfect accompaniment to these groundbreaking, socially orientated films. The composer applied his kaleidoscopic musical palette to both projects, mixing folk, country, jazz and classical forms to create sound pictures keenly attuned to the onscreen action. He also made witty and ironic use of homespun instruments such as banjo, guitar and harmonium. The result was music of deceptive simplicity that nevertheless communicates with great power and clarity without overpowering the visuals. In their vivid and unpretentious evocation of American spirit and rhythms, Thomson’s soundtracks provided a refreshing alternative to the lushly orchestrated scores that dominated Hollywood in the thirties and forties.

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Virgil Thomson - one of America's underrated masters (Oct 28, 2007)
Reviewer:Fred
Around the same time that Aaron Copland began his attempts to meld American folk song stylings with European "neo-classical" composition methods Virgil Thomson composed in a similar manner two film scores for the FDR administration promoting New Deal agricultural programs. The Plow that Broke the Plains actually predates Billy the Kid and Appalachian Spring and is not quite as grand a piece as... Around the same time that Aaron Copland began his attempts to meld American folk song stylings with European "neo-classical" composition methods Virgil Thomson composed in a similar manner two film scores for the FDR administration promoting New Deal agricultural programs. The Plow that Broke the Plains actually predates Billy the Kid and Appalachian Spring and is not quite as grand a piece as either of those, nor as complete a synthesis, but it nonetheless deserves as wide recognition. Thomson uses more actual bits of 18th century Americana (folk tunes, Stephen Foster songs, hymns and marches) than Copland (who often made up his folk songs) and throws in authentic instrumentation like steel-string guitar, banjo and harmonium. This material gets developed in many striking ways - with spiky counterpoint and strange pungent harmonies. A good example is right at the top where a near quotation of the opening of Brahms' first Symphony leading directly into the "Old 100th" hymn tune. Themes alternate in this manner and get combined an eventually the "Old 100th" receives a stunning set of variations in the "Wind and Dust" movement.

The River presents the tunes more faithfully to their original forms and not as elaborately varied as in the Plow and a bit more separate from the "European" music. Divorced from the images; the work can sometimes seem a bit episodic, but it remains a quite interesting work on its own merit. The highlight is the section called "Floods" where the flood waters are evoked by somber swirling contrapuntal string writing.

The Washington based Post-Classical Ensemble is dedicated to bringing stuff like this out of the shadows (although a suite derived from the score has been recorded a few times, these are their first complete recordings). They are certainly a group to keep an eye on. This is a wonderful disc and I hope the Naxos American Classics series will soon feature more from Virgil Thomson, one of America's neglected masters. (read more)