John Adams: Must the Devil Have All the Good Tunes? (Live)

John Adams wrote his third piano concerto for Yuja Wang, who gave its premiere in Los Angeles—recorded here—in March 2019. It takes its name from a phrase in a New Yorker article that piqued Adams’ curiosity: “The phrase suggested a ‘Totentanz’,” he wrote in the programme notes, “only not of the Lisztian manner, but more of funk-invested American-style.” And that’s precisely what he responded to: a rhythmically driven, harmonically complex three-section piece that plays to Wang’s astounding technique and personality, and the LA Phil’s corporate virtuosity. It’s destined to become a modern classic. The solo “China Gates” is a perfect little encore