Different Trains (1988)
for string quartet and electronic tape
mvts 1 & 2
mvt 1 America -- Before the War
-- "from Chicago to New York" (Virginia Mitchell)
-- "one of the fastest trains"
-- "the crack train from New York" (Lawrence Davis) ["crack" means "best"]
-- "from New York to Los Angeles"
-- "different trains every time" (Virginia Mitchell)
-- "from Chicago to New York"
-- "in 1939"
-- "1939" (Lawrence Davis)
-- "1940"
-- "1941"
-- "1941 I guess it must've been" (Virginia Mitchell)
[runs on to mvt 2 with no break]
mvt 2 Europe --
During the War
-- "1940" (Rachella)
-- "on my birthday"
-- "The Germans walked in"
-- "walked into Holland"
-- "Germans invaded Hungary" (Paul)
-- "I was in second grade"
-- "I had a teacher"
-- "a very tall man, his hair was completely plastered smooth"
-- "He said: 'Black Crows invaded our country many years ago'" [i.e. Jews]
-- "and he pointed right at me"
-- "No more school" (Rachel)
-- "You must go away"
-- "and she said 'Quick, go!'" (Rachella)
-- "and he said: 'Don't breathe!'"
-- "into those cattle wagons" (Rachella)
-- "for four days and four nights"
-- "and then we went through these strange-sounding names"
-- "Polish names"
-- "Lots of cattle wagons there"
-- "They were loaded with people"
-- "They shaved us"
-- "They tattooed a number on our arm"
-- "Flames going up to the sky -- it was smoking"
mvt 3 -- After the War
-- "and the war was over" (Paul)
--"Are you sure?" (Rachella)
--"The war is over"
--"going to America"
--"to Los Angeles
--"to New York"
--"from New York to Los Angeles" (Mr. Davis)
--"one of the fastest trains" (Virginia)
--"but today , they're all gone" (Mr. Davis)
--"There was one girl, who had a beautiful voice" (Rachella)
--"and they loved to listen to the singing, the Germans"
--"and when she stopped singing they said, 'More, more' and they applauded"
--"Crack" in the older sense of "best"
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acis@columbia.edu - 02 March 1999 - 212 854.1919