DON DAVIS (b.1957): Río de Sangre.

Description: Davis is mainly known as composer of scores for various high profile films, most notably the Matrix trilogy. Unlike, say, John Williams or Ennio Morricone, whose concert music is notably in a more 'difficult' idiom than their film work, Davis appears to prefer to keep his music thoroughly accessible in any medium. This thoroughly convincing, traditional opera could be by any significant tonality-based composer of the 20th century - there is little that suggests modernistic trends on the one hand or Hollywood on the other (a tendency for swelling crescendi anticipating emotional climaxes does hint at the latter). The most persistent comparison - by no means constantly present - is probably John Adams. The composer's idiomatic versatility is illustrated by some very authentic Salsa band music in a cantina scene. The vocal lines - memorably melodic and soaringly lyrical - are especially gratifying. The plot of the opera examines the personalities and politics of power; the motivations of the idealistic, the power-hungry, the naïve victims of the machinations of others. For convenience in telescoping events into a convenient timespan, the action is set in an unspecified Latin-American country of the type whose history is 'measured in revolutions per minute', but the themes are instantly recognizable as universal and contemporary. The piece moves along with engaging momentum, providing musical gratification and thought-provoking subject matter along the way. 2 CDs. Libretto included. The Florentine Opera Company and Opera Chorus, Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra; Joseph Rescigno.