Ives

There's always been a crossover appeal among avant, jazz artists with renegade contemporary classical composers. As with various musical forms, and perhaps life in general, rules are sometimes meant to be broken. String Quartet features a 1979-penned composition by Morton Feldman, recorded by the highly-regarded Dutch group known as the Charles Ives Ensemble.

When violinist Hilary Hahn and pianist Valentina Lisitsa began working together on Charles Ives' violin sonatas, they commenced with the Third Sonata, which they took on tour in 2008. A second tour with the First, Second, and Fourth sonatas followed, and by 2010, the duo was ready to record all four works for Deutsche Grammophon.

Pulitzer and Erasmus Prize-winning composer John Adams occupies a unique position in the world of American music. His works stand out among contemporary classical compositions for their depth of expression, brilliance of sound, and the profoundly humanist nature of their themes. Adams describes My Father Knew Charles Ives as “an homage and encomium to a composer whose influence on me has been huge.” Harmonielehre was a deliberate move by Adams to expand his musical language beyond Minimalism, keeping its energetic pulse but embracing the rich tonal resources of the past to create a work that has accrued an aura of timelessness.