also available for wind ensemble
Commissioned by the Brooklyn Philharmonic, Robert Spano, Music Director.
Premiered February 21 & 22, 2003.
Additional performances by the Dallas Symphony with Andrew Litton in June 2004 (Dallas, Texas) and July 2004 (Vail, Colorado); The Minnesota Orchestra, conducted by Andrew Litton, in July 2005; The Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music, conducted by Marin Alsop, in August 2005; and the Bergen Philharmonic of Norway, conducted by Andrew Litton, in October 2006.
"Redline Tango" takes its title from two sources. The first is the common term of "redlining an engine," or, pushing it to the limit. In the case of this score, "redline" also refers to the "red line," or the IRT subway line (2 & 3 trains) of the New York subway system, which is the train that goes between my apartment on the Upper West Side of Manhattan and BAM, where this work was premiered.
The work is in three sections. The first section is the initial virtuosic "redlining" section, with constantly-driving 16th-notes and a gradual increase in intensity. After the peak comes the second section, the "tango," which is rather light but demented, and even a bit sleazy. The material for the tango is derived directly from the first section of the work. A transition leads us back to an even "redder" version of the first section, with one final pop at the end.
Redline Tango (original orchestra version) |
Streaming MP3, high-quality (192 kbps), 9:32, entire work, 13.1 MB |
View a PDF of the entire score (1.1 MB) |
Performances of Redline Tango:
| The Brooklyn Philharmonic conducted by Kristjan Jarvi |
February 21 & 22, 2003 Brooklyn Academy of Music Opera House |
| The Dallas Symphony conducted by Andrew Litton |
June 26, 2004 Meyerson Symphony Center, Dallas, TX |
| The Dallas Symphony conducted by Andrew Litton |
July 9, 2004 Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater, Vail, CO |
| The Minnesota Orchestra conducted by Andrew Litton |
July 30, 2005 Orchestra Hall, Minneapolis, MN |
| Cabrillo Festival Orchestra conducted by Marin Alsop |
August 13, 2005 Santa Cruz, CA |
| Bergen Philharmonic conducted by Andrew Litton |
October 5 & 6, 2006 Bergen, NORWAY |
| Eastern Music Festival Orchestra conducted by Christian Knapp |
July 13, 2007 |
The San Francisco Chronicle : review of Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music, conducted by Marin Alsop
John Mackey's zippy, amusing "Redline Tango" made a nice curtain-raiser for Saturday's program, with edgy, caffeinated rhythmic sections framing a deliciously languorous central tango.
San Francisco Classical Voice : review of Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music, conducted by Marin Alsop
Mackey’s Redline Tango is a true dazzler, eliciting a powerful audience response. “Redline” refers to a limit marked on gauges by engineers. In Mackey’s case, the engine is the orchestra, and it gets pushed into the danger zone right away by frantic pacing, with only hints of a tango to come. The hell-bent engine segues into a flamboyant tango of great inventiveness and humor. Although Mackey introduced himself to the audience as the “least ethnically interesting person in America,” his tango abounds with Latin and klezmer references. The swooping melody is carried on a virtuoso violin part. The theme gets ever more sleazy as it progresses before the piece ends with a reprise of the infectious chase music. John Mackey is a composer whose next visit to California is eagerly awaited.
Dallas Morning News : review of Dallas Symphony, conducted by Andrew Litton
The concert got off to a rousing start with Redline Tango, by American composer John Mackey. Appearing onstage, the boyish composer explained that the title refers to "redlining" an engine, pushing it to the limit.
Sure enough, the outer sections of the eight-minute piece cut loose with violin chatterings and jagged punctuations from brasses and percussion. The tango surfaces in the middle, a sultry, surrealist sendup that doesn't hesitate to get down and dirty. The orchestra gave a virtuoso performance.
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