James Zehm wrote:

>Please could you gentlemen describe those Alices a bit so I would know
>what they are like?

I'm sorry to say that I'm not familiar with all of Del Tredici's Alice
stuff, but "Final Alice" (1976) is probably the most often performed, a
beautiful orchestral work in a very romantic vein.  There are also such
pieces as "Adventures Underground," "Vintage Alice," "Child Alice," and
"Haddocks' Eyes," all very different from each other.

"An Alice Symphony" (1969, revised 1976) (on CRI CD 688, performed by
Phyllis Bryn-Julson, soprano, with the Tanglewood Music Center Orchestra
conducted by Oliver Knussen) has 4 movements:

   1.  Speak Roughly/Speak Gently
   2.  The Lobster Quadrille
   3.  'Tis the Voice of the Sluggard
   4.  Who Stole the Tarts?; Dream - Conclusion

The whole work begins and ends with the orchestra tuning to A (included
in the score), to provide a kind of frame which (I think) is supposed to
correspond to Carroll's frame of Alice falling asleep and waking up.  The
soprano recites Carroll's text to introduce each episode and then acts out
the various characters, screaming as the Duchess adv ocates child abuse,
and also singing quite sweetly as she switches to "speak gently to your
little boy," and so on.  Del Tredici includes many clever touches in the
orchestral accompaniment, appropriate to each text.  All in all, a very
intriguing work, I think, and very well performed by Ms. Bryn-Julson.

Jon Johanning // [log in to unmask]