Thomas Adès comes to Los Angeles to get work done.
So you might be surprised to learn what the British composer — who's on deadline to finish his third opera, "The Exterminating Angel," in time for next year's Salzburg Festival — does with his spare time while here in L.A.
To relax after composing, Adès has been rehearsing a handful — actually two handfuls — of difficult modern piano pieces to play for a Tuesday recital in Zipper Hall at the Colburn School.
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This paradox is not lost on Adès or his collaborator in the recital, pianist Gloria Cheng, who both sat down for tea on a recent afternoon.