{{Short description|Andrew Norman orchestral work}} {{For|other compositions|Play (disambiguation){{!}}Play}} {{italic title}} [[File:Andrew_Norman_at_2014_Cabrillo_Festival_of_Contemporary_Music.jpg|thumb|Norman speaks at the 2014 Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music]] '''''Play''''' is a piece for orchestra in three movements by the American composer Andrew Norman. The work was commissioned by the Boston Modern Orchestra Project, for whom Norman was then composer-in-residence. It was first performed on May 17, 2013 by the orchestra under the conductor Gil Rose.<ref name="Boston Classical Review">{{cite web |last=Wright |first=David |title=BMOP celebrates youngish composers in season closer |work=Boston Classical Review |date=May 18, 2013 |url=http://bostonclassicalreview.com/2013/05/bmop-celebrates-youngish-composers-in-season-closer/ |access-date=December 24, 2015}}</ref> The revised version was premiered by the Los Angeles Philharmonic conducted by Gustavo Dudamel on October 28, 2016.<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal|last=Lanzilotti|first=Anne|date=October 25, 2016|title="Cut to a Different World": Andrew Norman|url=http://www.musicandliterature.org/features/2016/10/25/cut-to-a-different-world-andrew-norman|journal=Music & Literature}}</ref>
==Composition== ''Play'' has a duration of roughly 45 minutes and is composed in three movements:
{{Ordered list|type=upper-roman |Level 1 |Level 2 |Level 3 }}
Norman scholar and collaborator Anne Lanzilotti writes, "Structured in three movements—or 'Levels,' as they are titled—it is an intricately planned work dealing with themes of control, free will, hidden messages, and of course, playfulness. The key elements of ''Play'' are the things that inspire me in Norman’s music: physicality, the use of form to create narrative, and an interest in the experience of live performance."<ref name=":0" />
The composition also utilizes various extended techniques for strings.<ref>[http://www.shakennotstuttered.com/play-techniques Play Techniques —— VVVVVV shaken not stuttered |||| | | ||]</ref>
=== Instrumentation === The piece is scored for the following orchestra:<ref>{{Cite web |title=PSNY: Andrew Norman - Play |url=https://www.eamdc.com/psny/composers/andrew-norman/works/play-5/ |access-date=2024-02-12 |website=www.eamdc.com}}</ref>
{{col-begin}} {{col-4}} '''Woodwinds''' : {{Hanging indent | 3 Flutes (2nd and 3rd doubling piccolo)}} : 2 Oboes : 1 English Horn : {{Hanging indent | 3 Clarinets (3rd doubling E{{music|flat}} clarinet)}} : {{Hanging indent | 3 Bassoons (3rd doubling contrabassoon)}}
'''Brass''' : 4 Horns : 3 Trumpets : 2 Trombones : 1 Bass trombone : 1 Tuba {{col-4}}
'''Percussion (4 players)''' : 2 Vibraphones : 4 Bongos : 5 Temple blocks : 3 Splash cymbals : 5 Tin cans : Brake drum : 2 Kick drums : Washboard : Tam-tam : 2 Slapsticks : Crotales : 5 Log drums : 4 Opera gongs : 4 Small tom-toms {{col-4}} '''Percussion (cont'd)'''
: Spring coil : Triangle : Guiro : Tubular bells : Xylophone : 4 Woodblocks : 5 Cowbells : Ratchet : Bass drum : 2 Glockenspiels : 4 Suspended cymbals : Sandpaper blocks {{col-4}}
'''Strings''' : 16 Violin I : 14 Violin II : 12 Violas : 10 Cellos : 8 Double basses {{col-end}}
==Reception== ''Play'' has received an extremely positive critical response. Reviewing the world premiere, David Wright of the ''Boston Classical Review'' wrote, "No matter how complex and seemingly chaotic the music became, Norman's contrapuntal skill and imaginative handling of the large orchestra were evident throughout." He added, "A single hearing can hardly do a piece like ''Play'' justice, but the work's ambition and brilliant performance earned it warm and prolonged applause."<ref name="Boston Classical Review" /> Reviewing a recording of the work, the music critic Alex Ross called it "a sprawling, engulfing, furiously unpredictable piece in three symphonic movements."<ref>{{cite web |last=Ross |first=Alex |author-link=Alex Ross (music critic) |title=CD of the Week: Andrew Norman's Play |work=The Rest is Noise |date=January 5, 2015 |url=http://www.therestisnoise.com/2015/01/cd-of-the-week-andrew-normans-play.html |access-date=December 24, 2015}}</ref> Tom Huizenga of NPR similarly called it "witty, playful, surprisingly transparent — aside from the bazillion little things going on — and probably thrillingly difficult to pull off."<ref>{{cite web |last=Huizenga |first=Tom |title=Bach, Brits And A Bodacious Boston Orchestra: New Classical Albums |work=Deceptive Cadence |publisher=NPR |date=January 31, 2015 |url=https://www.npr.org/sections/deceptivecadence/2015/01/31/382130287/bach-brits-and-a-bodacious-boston-orchestra-new-classical-albums |access-date=December 24, 2015}}</ref> David Weininger of ''The Boston Globe'' wrote:{{quote|''Play'' [...] is being talked about as the most important long orchestral work of the 21st century. That kind of hype can often be misleading, but in this case it's quite likely accurate. The 45-minute, three-movement work, which encompasses various meanings of play — some lighthearted, some sinister — begins in an almost spastic fit of energy; musical ideas ricochet off one another furiously, almost too quickly. But embedded in the chaos are two scales: one ascending, the other descending. Their interaction and gradual transformation create the piece's overarching structure as the music progresses through three "levels," though it never loses its reckless feel.<ref name="Boston Globe">{{cite web |last=Weininger |first=David |title=Andrew Norman, 'Play' |work=The Boston Globe |date=March 15, 2015 |url=https://www.bostonglobe.com/arts/2015/03/14/andrew-norman-play/P1wguypapg0twdPwjXDUuL/story.html |access-date=December 24, 2015}}</ref>}}
In 2017, ''Play'' won the Grawemeyer Award for Music Composition.
==Recording== The Boston Modern Orchestra Project launched a Kickstarter campaign on June 13, 2013 to raise $8,000 for a recording of ''Play'', in addition to Norman's orchestral work ''Try''. The campaign closed on June 30, 2013 having successfully raised $9,525.<ref>{{cite web |title=Andrew Norman – Play |work=Kickstarter |url=https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/bmopsound/andrew-norman-play |access-date=December 24, 2015}}</ref> A recording of the work was subsequently released through the orchestra's label BMOP/Sound.<ref name="Boston Globe" /> The BMOP recording was later named one of the best classical music recordings of 2015 by David Allen of ''The New York Times'' and was nominated for the 2016 Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Classical Composition.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Best Classical Music Recordings of 2015 |work=The New York Times |date=December 10, 2015 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/11/arts/music/best-classical-recordings-2015.html |access-date=January 15, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=2016 Grammy Awards: Complete list of nominees |work=Los Angeles Times |date=December 7, 2015 |url=http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/music/posts/la-et-ms-grammys-2016-nominees-winners-list-story.html |access-date=January 15, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Oteri |first=Frank J. |title=About Those 2016 Grammy Nominations |work=NewMusicBox |date=December 7, 2015 |url=http://www.newmusicbox.org/articles/about-those-2016-grammy-nominations/ |access-date=January 15, 2016}}</ref>
==References== {{Reflist|30em}}
==External links== *[http://andrewnormanmusic.com/archives/220 Official website] *[http://www.bmop.org/audio-recordings/andrew-norman-play BMOP] *[https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/16/arts/review-andrew-norman-play-a-symphony-that-levels-up-cincinnati.html Andrew Norman’s ‘Play,’ a Symphony That Levels Up review on New York Times]
{{Andrew Norman}}
Category:Compositions by Andrew Norman Category:2013 compositions Category:Contemporary classical compositions Category:21st-century symphonies Category:Kickstarter-funded albums Category:Music commissioned by the Boston Modern Orchestra Project