Following a diagnosis of terminal cancer, in 1991 Zappa agreed to appear as a featured composer at the Frankfurt Festival the next year. What started as a cautious collaboration turned into an inspired one when Zappa started working with the German contemporary music orchestra, Ensemble Modern. The concerts that followed have gone down in history, thanks in part to The Yellow Shark. The album contains live recordings from the festival in which Zappa鈥檚 tongue-in cheek command to his audience to 鈥榞et serious鈥� rubs shoulders with now-classic Zappa scores including the unmistakable melody of G-Spot Tornado.
This performance focuses on works that rhapsodize on Zappa鈥檚 intense, disciplined interest in classical counterpoint. Music by the composer鈥檚 beloved Edgard Var猫se, Igor Stravinsky and Anton Webern provide essential context.
