He understands why Gustav Mahler, who made his living conducting in musical capitals, retreated to a tiny cottage in the Austrian mountains when he wanted to compose. Adams has a little studio - about 15-by-20 feet - a quarter-mile from the main house on property he owns in Northern California. But Adams doesn't overplay the similarity with Mahler.
"The difference," Adams says, "is that he didn't have marijuana growers for neighbors."