Stephen Dubner

At the end of March, the composer David Lang debuted a modern piece of music set to a 250-year-old book, Adam Smith's The Wealth of Nations.

It had four sold-out performances by the New York Philharmonic, conducted by Gustavo Dudamel.

Last week on the show, we heard from Lang about the origins of the piece, and we sat in on a few rehearsals.

We also attended one of the performances.

Afterward, we spoke with some audience members in the lobby.

The published reviews were also positive.

Stacey Vanek-Smith, writing for Bloomberg, said that David Lang had shown that economics, often reduced to stock tickers and earnings reports, can in fact be profoundly human.

And what about Lange himself?

How did he feel about the first performances of his new composition?

Well, he was pleased and proud, at least for a little while.

Last week, I was a superstar.

This week, I'm nothing.

Today on Freakonomics Radio, the global economy has changed a great deal since Adam Smith, but the underlying lessons may be more pertinent than ever.

The math and aftermath of Wealth of Nations, starting now.

This is Freakonomics Radio, the podcast that explores the hidden side of everything, with your host, Stephen Dubner.

I caught up with David Lang about a week after the last of the four performances of The Wealth of Nations.

And I asked what it felt like to work on a big new piece like this for years and then hear it come to life and then go away.

But I mean, you have to feel it was a great success, no?

Lang is talking about the mezzo-soprano Fleur Baron.

She was one of the two vocal soloists in Wealth of Nations, along with the bass baritone Devon Tynes.