Title: This Is America: An Anthology 2020-2021
Artist: Gandelsman, Johnny
Label: In a Circle Records
Product Type: COMPACT DISCS
UPC: 760137104308
Genre: Classical Artists

To say that 2020 was a difficult year for the United States would be an understatement. Covid 19 took the lives of 385,000 people. Racism and police brutality took the lives of Ahmaud Arbery, George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, igniting nationwide and eventually worldwide protests. In California, the 4.2 million acres burned in 2020 were the most in a single year since records were kept, and more than the previous three years combined. Vicious election cycle rhetoric was boiling over, and conversations dominating cable news focused on what this country was, is, or should be. Unemployment skyrocketed. People were isolated, sick, scared and exhausted. In thinking about ways one person could make a small difference, it occurred to me that in many ways amplifying voices of others, whether it's those of centuries past, or ones of today, is an essential part of being a Classical musician. I decided to commission new works for violin from American and US-based composers, asking each one to reflect in some way on the time we were all living through. Some, like Kinan Azmeh, Christina Courtin and Kojiro Umezaki have been dear friends for decades; others like Maya Miro Johnson, Ebun Oguntola and Anjna Swaminathan were new connections; all were musicians whose artistry I respect and admire. I feel incredibly lucky to have had the composers gently guide me into their process, easing my initial worries with encouragement and allowing me to find my own way to bring their works to life. I'm definitely not a singer, nor can I play the guitar, but I'm glad I had the chance to try. Over the course of the last 18 months I've come to think of this project as an anthology, a snapshot in time, documenting a tiny slice of the creative thought and output in this country today. I invite you to stop listening to pundits, extend your ears, open up your imagination, and trust the music to guide you into a challenging, complicated and thrilling sound world - This Is America.

Tracks:
1.1 "O" for Violin ; Voices
1.2 "Sahra Be Wyckoff" for Violin
1.3 "Sinekeman" for Violin
1.4 "Stroon" for Violin
1.5 "Steeped" for Violin: I. Impromptu
1.6 "Steeped" for Violin: II. Moto Perpetuo
1.7 "Steeped" for Violin: III. Cadenza
1.8 "Tardigrades" for Violin
1.9 "Dew, Time, Linger" for Violin
1.10 "A City Upon a Hill?" for Violin ; Electronics
1.11 "New to the Session" for Violin
2.1 "With Love from J" for Vocals ; Tenor Guitar
2.2 "Dance Suite" for Violin: I. Negating Gravity on a Molecular Level (Meditation)
2.3 "Dance Suite" for Violin: II. the Virtue of Lightness
2.4 "Dance Suite" for Violin: III. Surrender to Your Tiredness (Tragedy)
2.5 "Dance Suite" for Violin: IV. Getting Rid of Our Skin
2.6 "Dance Suite" for Violin: V. the Sense of Plenty of Time (Generosity)
2.7 "Dolii" for Voice ; Electric Tenor Guitar
2.8 "A Current Took Her Away" for Violin
2.9 "A Través Del Manto Luminoso" for Violin ; Electronics
2.10 "Reflections" for Violin
2.11 "Rhapsody" for Violin
2.12 "Barbary Coast 1955" for 5-String Violin
3.1 "Stitched" for Violin
3.2 "Withdraw" for Violin
3.3 "For Courtney Bryan" for Violin
3.4 "Surrender to the Adventure" for Musician ; Tape: I. Blossom / American Dream
3.5 "Surrender to the Adventure" for Musician ; Tape: II. Fenestration / All Men Are Created Equal
3.6 "Surrender to the Adventure" for Musician ; Tape: III. Inflorescence / the Pursuit of Happiness
3.7 "Surrender to the Adventure" for Musician ; Tape: IV. Propagation / a More Perfect Union
3.8 "Stones" for Violin
3.9 "Pallavi - a Meditation on Care" for Violin
3.10 "Breathe" for Violin ; Electronics