John Luther Adams & Tognetti & Australian Chamber John Luther Adams: Horizon

Horizon" is John Luther Adams’s is sublimely beautiful, evocative piece in two movements—”True Horizon” and “Visible Horizon”—written for and recorded by the celebrated Australian Chamber Orchestra.
Adams writes about the music:
“The horizon—the line at which earth and sky appear to meet—defines the circle that encompasses all of us and everything around us, no matter where we may be.
“In theory there is only one horizon. Yet in our experience of the world there are two horizons: the visible horizon and the true horizon.
“The visible horizon is what we see from where we look. Most often, our visible horizon is circumscribed—by our own human structures, by trees, by mountains or other topological features.
“The true horizon is the full extent of all that we might possibly see, an unobstructed view of the enveloping circle where the sky meets the earth or the sea. On land—far out on the tundra or the plains, or in the middle of a great desert—we sometimes catch a glimpse of the true horizon. At sea our visible horizon is almost always the true horizon.
“As we scan the horizon, we measure not only space but also time. How long might it take us to traverse that distance, from where we are to as far as we can see? And what lies beyond that edge of the known?
“Surrounded by ocean and with sprawling open spaces at its heart, Australia is a continent where the visible horizon is often the true horizon. I began composing “True Horizon” in the middle of the Pacific, en route to Australia. I worked on “Visible Horizon” in the tropical savanna of northern Australia and in the great red desert of central Australia. I continued my work scanning the horizon from the shore of the Tasman Sea. And I completed the full score in the forested hills and grasslands of the southern mainland.”

John Luther Adams is a Pulitzer- and Grammy-winning composer who lived for many years in Alaska, where his music derived much of its unique character from the stillness, landscape, and weather of the Great North. Some years ago, he left Alaska, living in Mexico’s Sonoran Desert, Chile’s Atacama Desert, and New Mexico’s Chihuahuan Desert—places that also found expression in his music. He currently resides in Australia’s Red Centre. His music is performed by major orchestras and chamber ensembles throughout the world. Adams’s music has appeared on ten previous Cold Blue albums, including “Waves and Particles,” the Grammy-nominated "Darkness and Scattered Light," "Houses of the Wind," "Arctic Dreams," "Everything That Rises," and the Grammy-nominated "Lines Made by Walking."
“John Luther Adams . . . one of the most original musical thinkers of the new century.” (Alex Ross, The New Yorker) “His music becomes more than a metaphor for natural forces: it is an elemental experience in its own right.” (Tom Service, The Guardian) “His music perfectly echoes the landscape he loves: impersonal, relentless, larger than human scale, yet gorgeous, a quiet chaos of colors, suffused with light.” (Kyle Gann, Chamber Music magazine) “Adams’ manner is that of Thoreau—to be in a place, incorporate it into his memory and values, and recreate that through music. It misses the point to say he is inspired by nature—Adams is changed by nature and his music is a catalogue of the places that changed him. . . . Adams [is] an important and necessary musician for our time.” (New York Classical Review)
The Australian Chamber Orchestra (ACO) is a unique, highly lauded string orchestra led by Richard Tognetti. It tours the world, performing works from all periods of Western classical music, and has recordings on ABC Classics, BIS, Hyperion, Chandos, Sony, and other labels..
“Australian Chamber Orchestra … invigorating and highly cultivated—a breath of fresh cultural air” (Gramophone) “This terrific string ensemble ... seems to shine at anything it undertakes." (San Francisco Chronicle) “Australian Chamber Orchestra ... the finest chamber orchestra on Earth (The Telegraph, UK) “An orchestra that, by any standards, is one of the wonders of the musical world today.” (The Guardian) “The ACO are uniformly high-octane, arresting, never ordinary.” (The Australian) “The ACO is always at the forefront of experimental music.” (Sydney Morning Herald) “The Australian Chamber Orchestra is the sort of orchestra to do exactly what’s not expected.” (Time Out)