Short Ride in a Fast Machine
Short Ride in a Fast Machine is a 1986 orchestral work by John Adams. Adams applies the description "fanfare for orchestra" to this work and to the earlier Tromba Lontana (1986). The former is also known as Fanfare for Great Woods because it was commissioned for the Great Woods Festival of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. As a commentary on the title, Adams inquires, "You know how it is when someone asks you to ride in a terrific sports car, and then you wish you hadn't?" The work is an example of Adams's postminimal style, which is utilized in other works like Phrygian Gates, Shaker Loops, and Nixon in China. This style derives from minimalism as defined by the works of Steve Reich, Terry Riley, and Philip Glass, although it proceeds to "make use of minimalist techniques in more dramatic settings." A typical performance of Short Ride lasts about four and a half minutes. Popularity, performance and cancellations The Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra premiered Short Ride in a Fast Machine in 1986. The fanfare was the 10th most-performed orchestral work composed in the last twenty-five years, in 2008. The work was performed at the BBC Proms in 2004, 2014 and 2019. Scheduled