Improvement

by Robert Ashley

Improvement cover art
  • Type: Album
  • Released: 1992
  • Label: Elektra Nonesuch
  • Country: United States
  • Length: 1:28:05
  • Community rating: 3.73/5 from 3 ratings

Album Notes & Community Reviews

Conceived as the first part of his ambitious 'Now Eleanor's Idea' tetralogy, the American avant-garde composer delivers another mesmerizing, text-heavy television opera. 'Improvement' features intricate, rhythmic spoken-word narratives layered over minimalist electroacoustic backing tracks. The libretto philosophically explores themes of consciousness and American identity, showcasing Ashley's unique mastery of contemporary storytelling.

Genres

Descriptors: avant-garde, history, minimalistic, operatic, spoken-word, minimal, conceptual, narrative

Tracklist

  1. The Argument (Prelude) (1:30)
  2. Sunset at the Turnoff (Sc. 1) (1:07)
  3. The Airline Ticket Counter (Sc. 2) (1:39)
  4. The Correspondences Text (Sc. 3) (2:42)
  5. The Ride to Town (Sc. 4) (6:37)
  6. The Airline Ticket Counter (Sc. 5) (1:45)
  7. The Indifference Text (Sc. 6) (4:35)
  8. Back Home... (Sc. 7) (2:01)
  9. Mr. George Payne (Sc. 8) (2:08)
  10. The Contents of Her Purse (Sc. 9) (10:14)
  11. Supper with Mr. Payne's Mother (Sc. 10) (3:39)
  12. Golf Left-Handed (Sc. 11) (4:27)
  13. A Moment (Very Late)... (Sc. 12) (1:31)
  14. The Big City (Sc. 13) (0:52)
  15. Tarzan (3:03)
  16. The Big City (Continued) (0:39)
  17. The Doctor (Sc. 14) (3:52)
  18. The Offering of Images (4:19)
  19. The Good Life (Sc. 15) (5:09)
  20. Trouble (Sc. 16) (0:26)
  21. The Good Life - Continued; 1 (0:13)
  22. Trouble (Continued) (2:39)
  23. The Good Life - Continued; 2 (0:39)
  24. A Place in the Country (Sc. 17) (2:46)
  25. Happiness, Prosperity and Forgetfulness (Sc. 18) (9:05)
  26. The Bridge Game (Sc. 19) (5:02)
  27. North (Berlin / A Tango) (Sc. 20) (2:03)
  28. East (River Rouge) (Sc. 21) (0:30)
  29. South (Campo Dei Fiori, Rome) (Sc. 22) (1:19)
  30. West (Atlantis) (Sc. 23) (1:17)

Credits

  • Mimi Johnson - libretto by [libretto edited by]
  • Wayne Massarelli - make-up [makeup]
  • Thomas Buckner - voice [don, mr. payne, linda's companion]
  • Jacqueline Humbert - voice [linda]
  • Amy X Neuburg - voice [mr. payne's mother]
  • Joan La Barbara - voice [now eleanor]
  • Adam Klein - voice [the doctor]

More from Robert Ashley: full discography