Recordings

John Adams’ rock musical, conceived by Peter Sellars and with a libretto by June Jordon, is a vision of street life in Los Angeles and the Northridge earthquake’s effect on it, a study of crime and transfiguration. Arty lyrics, too-sophisticated songs and a staging still in evolution gave it a bad name when it was premiered at Berkeley three years ago. But as recorded here--with a terrific cast that includes the current darling of Broadway, Audra McDonald, and some crackerjack Finnish instrumentalists--after it had some time to settle in, “Ceiling/Sky” proves surprisingly strong musically. It’s still uneven, perhaps, but this CD, containing about three-quarters of the score, is the show’s best music, and the best of that has real staying power. All of it, though, has a way of growing on you.

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