Nico Muhly Tweets Through Einstein on the Beach

Philip Glass and Robert Wilson’s four-hour opera Einstein on the Beach premiered in 1976. A revival toured the world between 2012 and 2015. The January 7, 2014 performance at Paris’s Théâtre du Châtelet was live-streamed, and Nico Muhly was watching. I remember this with delight every time I listen.

the great three notes that begin Einstein are starting! culturebox.francetvinfo.fr/einstein-on-th… STREAM IT Y'ALL

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 12:23 PM · Jan 7, 2014

you can literally hear France people having seating disputes the audio is such good quality up in here

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 12:26 PM · Jan 7, 2014

avec helga davis

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 12:27 PM · Jan 7, 2014

Oskar is doing his bob Wilson moves vine.co/v/hYl5xtOgnLP

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 12:31 PM · Jan 7, 2014

everybody needs to SHUT IT how beautiful this tableau is #einstein2014

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 12:33 PM · Jan 7, 2014

I woke up like this #Einstein2014

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 12:34 PM · Jan 7, 2014

France people checking their programmes talmbout "zont dit quoi!?"

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 12:41 PM · Jan 7, 2014

Helga just came real close to giving Paris the shocker

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 12:41 PM · Jan 7, 2014

michael riesman hair is LAYED

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 12:46 PM · Jan 7, 2014

the fuck is all that fuzz on the microphones

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 12:46 PM · Jan 7, 2014

actually fuck it, Hai-Ting Chinn's hair is REALLY layed. <3 Hai-Ting.

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 12:46 PM · Jan 7, 2014

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 12:47 PM · Jan 7, 2014

I remember when I conducted parts of this with a french choir we spent ½ the time learning how to pronounce "three" and "seven"

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 12:48 PM · Jan 7, 2014

it was all "zree!" and "zevohn" which was sultry but imprecise

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 12:48 PM · Jan 7, 2014

sing along with grandma
LAAAAAAA SOLLLLLLLL DOOOOOOOOOO

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 12:49 PM · Jan 7, 2014

1 2 3 4 vine.co/v/hYlX7Li0QuX

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 12:51 PM · Jan 7, 2014

weirdly not feeling all the close ups? Otherwise how can you tell how far things have moved!? LA SI DO SI LA SI DO SI LA SI DO MI MI!

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 12:53 PM · Jan 7, 2014

vine.co/v/hYlwTMAapYK

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 12:58 PM · Jan 7, 2014

the beam of light is descending y'all

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 1:05 PM · Jan 7, 2014

STAGE SANS BEAM

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 1:05 PM · Jan 7, 2014

STAGE AVEC BEAM #adore

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 1:05 PM · Jan 7, 2014

The lighting is so gorgeous also just FYI also #haiting

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 1:14 PM · Jan 7, 2014

Court is in session

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 1:30 PM · Jan 7, 2014

Court in session 2

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 1:31 PM · Jan 7, 2014

NB that the judge IS WEARING THE BEAM as a tie

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 1:32 PM · Jan 7, 2014

TOUCH THE ROCK MEANINGFULLIE

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 1:34 PM · Jan 7, 2014

I always 4get that there's one chorus lady dressed up as Bob Wilson Does Charo

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 1:35 PM · Jan 7, 2014

Although in this lighting it's more like Bob Wilson does Zelda Rubenstein in Poltergeists #carolanne

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 1:36 PM · Jan 7, 2014

briefcase dancer could git it

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 1:38 PM · Jan 7, 2014

@touchvinyl queen, I am live STREAMING it and the guy behind me is my dog, who is farting.

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 1:45 PM · Jan 7, 2014

OH YES I DID #einstein2014

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 1:45 PM · Jan 7, 2014

@rskaudio are you doing RF right now?

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 1:51 PM · Jan 7, 2014

hmm something weird going on with flute 1 - is that a shakuhachi effect up in there….

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 1:54 PM · Jan 7, 2014

france people are losing their minds about how we drink coffee in New York right now #paperbag4lyfe

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 1:55 PM · Jan 7, 2014

@rskaudio why u make that flute so flat

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 1:55 PM · Jan 7, 2014

they want to kiss you and kiss you and kiss you again / my sisters

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 2:00 PM · Jan 7, 2014

I hope the FedEx man who just came likes how LOUD I was playing #einstein2014

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 2:07 PM · Jan 7, 2014

RE MI RE MI RE MI RE MI RE MI RE MI

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 2:09 PM · Jan 7, 2014

okay now everybody SHUT IT and watch this unbelievable thing

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 2:09 PM · Jan 7, 2014

RE MI FA MI

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 2:15 PM · Jan 7, 2014

@melliemelnyc HA
shhhhh
it's the field dance shhh it's so good

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 2:16 PM · Jan 7, 2014

I can't get óskar to do this move you guys I'm sorry

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 2:17 PM · Jan 7, 2014

I love lisa bielawa b/c you can tell just by eyebrows if she's saying re (down) or mi (up) #bassooneyes

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 2:19 PM · Jan 7, 2014

THERE GO THE SPACESHIP

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 2:20 PM · Jan 7, 2014

Like 4 minutes later it's only halfway across the stage it's like my #amtrak the other day

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 2:22 PM · Jan 7, 2014

Bob Wilson timing is very similar to this train I was on from Cambridge to London a few weeks ago

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 2:23 PM · Jan 7, 2014

Gawd I love a chassé fouetté #einstein2014

— Liam Byrne (@LiamByrneVdG) 2:24 PM · Jan 7, 2014

BYE BYE! Also she was saying "mi"

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 2:25 PM · Jan 7, 2014

the beginning of the night train is a great time to go P if you're starting to feel it b/c you don't want to miss anything for a while

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 2:26 PM · Jan 7, 2014

I went to P at BAM and ran into Marina Abramović at the bar who looked like she was about to HOUSE a campari

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 2:27 PM · Jan 7, 2014

So now i always have a @campari at this time b/c I am scared of marina abramović #lafalasidosi

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 2:30 PM · Jan 7, 2014

I love when they play with the KNEX light up wall

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 2:52 PM · Jan 7, 2014

THIS was the jam — the fast 1 2 3 that wasn't happening with the french choir! hard enough for native english speakers

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 2:54 PM · Jan 7, 2014

UGH and when the choir gets to do the pointillistic hand gestures my whole body shivereth

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 2:55 PM · Jan 7, 2014

EVEN HAI-TING gets to do it

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 2:56 PM · Jan 7, 2014

I was in this prematurely air-conditioned supermarket and there were all these aisles.

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 3:04 PM · Jan 7, 2014

And there were these bathing caps that you could buy that had these kind of Fourth-of-July plumes on them that were red and yellow & blue.

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 3:05 PM · Jan 7, 2014

And I wasn't tempted to buy one, but I was reminded of the fact that I had been avoiding the beach.

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 3:05 PM · Jan 7, 2014

I will own this necklace.

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 3:18 PM · Jan 7, 2014

You guys, first the earth has to move, then it's about to be the second fii-=i-i-i-i-i-i-i-ed dance

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 3:21 PM · Jan 7, 2014

@ca_london @wyskida please. The shoes on my feet
I've bought it
The clothes I'm wearing
I've bought it
The rock I'm rockin'
etc

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 3:30 PM · Jan 7, 2014

Look! It got bigger…. OR CLOSER (dun dun dun)

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 3:39 PM · Jan 7, 2014

it's ALL OVER THE PLACE

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 3:44 PM · Jan 7, 2014

Do ré mi fa sol

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 3:46 PM · Jan 7, 2014

Okay so this is great but now I usually peace out for a longer section in EOB; the sax makes me anxious

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 3:54 PM · Jan 7, 2014

just checked back in, still saxophone bleep boop

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:03 PM · Jan 7, 2014

delicious chords tho I wish PG still did "cloud music" like this and the 4th section of Music in 12 Parts

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:04 PM · Jan 7, 2014

4th section of Music in 12 parts when it "gives way" into part 5 gives grandma Full Taint Shiver

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:04 PM · Jan 7, 2014

y'all see that swagger

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:05 PM · Jan 7, 2014

here come the organ cadenza. KEEP UR EYE ON THE BEAM OF LIGHT

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:05 PM · Jan 7, 2014

THERE IT GO

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:08 PM · Jan 7, 2014

this gesture both visually and musically is one of the most beautiful things u will ever see

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:08 PM · Jan 7, 2014

@geoffsnack not written as albums — there's a large body of work from that period...

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:09 PM · Jan 7, 2014

UGH so good *shakes rump with delight*

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:10 PM · Jan 7, 2014

GIVE IT 2 MAMA

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:15 PM · Jan 7, 2014

Now everybody hush up while Hai-Ting Chinn serves this aria. LOVE HER

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:16 PM · Jan 7, 2014

Hai Ting en Plein Écran, y'all @Einstein2014

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:24 PM · Jan 7, 2014

@liambyrnevdg 👏👏👏👏 4 hai ting

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:25 PM · Jan 7, 2014

YOU GUYS HERE IT COME

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:25 PM · Jan 7, 2014

okay shhh I am turning off the phones and the lights

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:26 PM · Jan 7, 2014

that little boy stay talking about Kevin

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:28 PM · Jan 7, 2014

remind me what those plexi bewbs are? Something v sleeper about them

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:30 PM · Jan 7, 2014

I want a Bob Wilson rang cycle. all u need is some lite-brite and eric owens in a plexi cube.

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:31 PM · Jan 7, 2014

omg Hai Ting can be Erda

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:32 PM · Jan 7, 2014

this is how it sounds/looks inside my head most times

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:33 PM · Jan 7, 2014

(PS I know there is a RW Rang all up at the Châtelet even but I want it like, in my apartment)

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:34 PM · Jan 7, 2014

follow-spot operator ftw

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:35 PM · Jan 7, 2014

fleshlight dancer should be a thing

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:36 PM · Jan 7, 2014

hear that bari sax? That is a good use of sax.

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:36 PM · Jan 7, 2014

@longpauses @astrostic not shit guilty about it. It's the high water mark of western civilization basically

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:37 PM · Jan 7, 2014

when helga emerge from that boob

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:37 PM · Jan 7, 2014

….and then that dude straight up FLIES across the stage. Come on.

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:39 PM · Jan 7, 2014

now let's get our czerny on

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:40 PM · Jan 7, 2014

omg it's almost over bring us hööööme

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:40 PM · Jan 7, 2014

PS this joint was about Dr Atomic avant la lettre a tiny bit shh

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:40 PM · Jan 7, 2014

See that's the thing it's ecstatic and apocalyptic and gorgeous and bright and blue and dark and precise and abstract

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:41 PM · Jan 7, 2014

Did anybody see how the stagehand moved? That's like the Bob Wilson School of Top Down Artistic Violence™ I love him

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:42 PM · Jan 7, 2014

also play Knee 5 for people who r like "minimalism is sterile"

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:46 PM · Jan 7, 2014

@millsbaker IT WILL BE A FAMILIAR STORY

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:46 PM · Jan 7, 2014

…a story that is so very very old….

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:46 PM · Jan 7, 2014

If my connection gets weird during knee 5 I am going to fuck up culturebox in person next month

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:47 PM · Jan 7, 2014

this will be me and them: youtube.com/watch?v=Uw7D6U…

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:47 PM · Jan 7, 2014

Count the stars in the sky

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:48 PM · Jan 7, 2014

and also the solfege — it's about education, the simplest 1+1 kind of story: do, ré, mi.

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:48 PM · Jan 7, 2014

#ferventosculation

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:49 PM · Jan 7, 2014

@bitswizzler @laopera @einsteinbeach because it's all up in PURRIS

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:50 PM · Jan 7, 2014

FLESHLIGHT SOLO BOW

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:50 PM · Jan 7, 2014

see how he makes them walk & move for curtain call! I love everything about this. HELGA! woooo

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:52 PM · Jan 7, 2014

k8 moran!

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:52 PM · Jan 7, 2014

awkward euro unison clap

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:52 PM · Jan 7, 2014

is somebody gonna go get Peej?

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:53 PM · Jan 7, 2014

yaaaaaaas now watch how bob wilson does a curtain call

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:53 PM · Jan 7, 2014

miss jason (stage manager) looking trim 'n' ready to go!

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:53 PM · Jan 7, 2014

uh oh they didn't rehearse this bit

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:53 PM · Jan 7, 2014

lucinda is going to fuck somebody up after this

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:53 PM · Jan 7, 2014

get bob 'n' peej out for one more whoom there it is

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:55 PM · Jan 7, 2014

goddamn lucinda, it's going to be fine

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:57 PM · Jan 7, 2014

homeslice is giving me Willem Dafoe angry face! We love u!!!!!!!

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:57 PM · Jan 7, 2014

ok now I'm sad

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:58 PM · Jan 7, 2014

lol I lost like 400 followers over that shit today BUT I DON'T CARE thank u all 4 sharing @EinsteinBeach with me

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 5:00 PM · Jan 7, 2014

It does not. “@OlafurArnalds: @nicomuhly does this mean i have more followers than you now?”

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 5:12 PM · Jan 7, 2014

@christianryan_ I mean I think it was more people being like WHAT is he talking about

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 5:13 PM · Jan 7, 2014

@jezdolan I'm live-streaming it from New York, darling, FAIN THAT I WERE in purris tho

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 5:58 PM · Jan 7, 2014

@itsmarkmills he, too, could get it. GOOD JOB EVERYBODY <3 <3 <3

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 6:39 PM · Jan 7, 2014

óskar is really sad there isn't an #Einstein2014 @EinsteinBeach broadcast today

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 3:41 PM · Jan 8, 2014

@einsteinbeach he can tell when it's not live

— Nico Muhly (@nicomuhly) 4:53 PM · Jan 8, 2014