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John Adams (1947-    )

John Adams composerJohn Adams is one of America’s most admired and respected composers. A musician of enormous range and technical command, he has produced works, both operatic and symphonic, that stand out among all contemporary classical music for the depth of their expression, the brilliance of their sound and the profoundly humanist nature of their themes. His music has played a decisive role in turning the tide of musical aesthetics away from the theoretical principles of European modernism toward a more expansive and expressive language, so characteristic of his New World surroundings.        -  Pittsburgh Symphony

Adams emerged in the last decades of the twentieth century as one of the most influential and widely performed American composers since Copland. In his early works, such as Phrygian Gates and Common Tones in Simple Time, Adams' musical language is most heavily influenced by the stripped-down harmonic palette and motoric pulse of minimalism. Nevertheless, even in these works, Adams' trademark rhythmic vigor and sense of large-scale architecture are already in evidence. In the 1980s,  the composers' affinity with the orchestra came into full effect with works that fuse motoric repetitions, harmonic conciseness, and lush, textured emotionalism. It is Adams' stage works, however, that have emerged as his most important contributions to musical literature.
-  AMG, All Music Guide

COMPOSITIONS                                                            Adams  Links     ~ ~ ~     Works by Genre    ~ ~ ~    Adams on Adams
Piano Quintet (1970)                                                                                                                  
Heavy Metal, tape/electronics (1971)                                                                                            
Ktaadn, chorus (1973)
American Standard, toilet ensemble (1973)
Christian Zeal and Activity, ensemble (1973)
Grounding, ensemble (1975)
Studebaker Love Music, tape/electronics (1976)
Onyx, tape/electronics (1976)
Chinas Gates, piano (1977)
Phrygian Gates, piano (1977)
Shaker Loops, 7 strings (1978); arr. string orchestra (1982) [ballet also]
Common Tones in Simple Time, orchestra (1979/86)
Harmonium, chorus and orchestra (1980-81)
Grand Pianola Music, 3 female voices, 2 pianos, wind, brass, percussion (1982) [ballet also]
Matter of Heart, film score (1982)
Light Over Water, 2 channel tape (1983)
Harmonielehre, orchestra (1984-85)
The Chairman Dances, foxtrot, orchestra (1985) [ballet also]
Tromba lontana, fanfare, orchestra (1985)
Short Ride in a Fast Machine, fanfare, orchestra (1986)
Nixon in China, opera (1985-87)
Fearful Symmetries, orchestra (1988)
The Wounded Dresser, baritone and orchestra (1988)
Eros, piano and orchestra (1989)
El Dorado, orchestra (1990)
The Black Gondola, orchestra (1990) [orchestration of Liszt’s La Lugubre Gondola]
The Death of Klinghoffer, opera (1989-91)
Berceuse Élégiaque (1991) [orchestration of Busoni work]
Chamber Symphony, 15 instruments (1992)
Six Songs by Charles Ives (1989-93) [arr. of songs by Ives]
Hoodoo Zephyr, tape (1992-93)
Violin Concerto (1993)
Le Livre de Baudelaire (1993) [orch. of four from Debussy’s Cinz poemes de Charles Baudelaire]
John’s Book of Alleged Dances, strings quartet and sampler (1994)
Road Movies, violin and piano (1995)
Lollapalooza, orchestra (1995)
I Was Looking at the Ceiling and Then I Saw the Sky, songplay (1995)
La Mufa (1995) [orchestration of a tango by Piazzolla]
Gnarly Buttons, clarinet and ensemble (1996)
Century Rolls, piano and orchestra (1996) [finalist for Pulitzer Prize]
Hallelujah Junction, 2 pianos (1996)
Scratchband, amplified ensemble (1996)
Slonimsky’s Earbox, orchestra (1996)
Tode Buenos Aires (1996) [orchestration of a tango by Piazzolla]
Naïve and Sentimental Music, orchestra (1997-98)
The Nixon Tapes, solo voices, chorus and orchestra (1998)
Guide to Strange Places, orchestra (1998)
[The 20th Century:] An American Tapestry, film score (1999)
El Nino, opera (2000)
Nancy’s Fancy, ensemble (2001)
On the Transmigration of Souls, chorus, children’s chorus, tape and orchestra (2001) [winner of the Pulitzer Prize]
American Berserk, piano (2001)
My Father Knew Charles Ives, orchestra (2003)
The Dharma at Big Sur, electric violin and orchestra (2003)
Doctor Atomic, opera (2005)
The Flowering Tree, opera (2006)
Doctor Atomic Symphony, orchestra (2007)
Son of Chamber Symphony (2007)
Fellow Traveler, opera (2007)

WORKS BY GENRE                                                            Adams  Links     ~ ~ ~    Adams on Adams      ~ top of page ~
Dramatic/Theater
Nixon in China, opera (1985-87)
I Was Looking at the Ceiling and Then I Saw the Sky, songplay (1995)
The Death of Klinghoffer, opera (1989-91)
El Nino, opera/oratorio (2000)
Doctor Atomic, opera (2005)
The Flowering Tree, opera (2006)
Fellow Traveler, opera (2007)

Orchestra
Shaker Loops, 7 strings (1978; arr. string orchestra, 1982] [ballet also]
Common Tones in Simple Time, orchestra (1979/86)
Harmonielehre, orchestra (1984-85)
The Chairman Dances, foxtrot, orchestra (1985) [ballet also]
Tromba lontana, fanfare, orchestra (1985)
Short Ride in a Fast Machine, fanfare, orchestra (1986)
Fearful Symmetries, orchestra (1988)
El Dorado, orchestra (1990)
The Black Gondola, orchestra (1990) [orchestration of Liszt’s La Lugubre Gondola]
Berceuse Élégiaque (1991) [orchestration of Busoni work]
Chamber Symphony, 15 instruments (1992)
Lollapalooza, orchestra (1995)
La Mufa (1995) [orchestration of a tango by Piazzolla]
Slonimsky’s Earbox, orchestra (1996)
Tode Buenos Aires (1996) [orchestration of a tango by Piazzolla]
Naïve and Sentimental Music, orchestra (1997-98)
Guide to Strange Places, orchestra (1998)
My Father Knew Charles Ives, orchestra (2003)
Doctor Atomic Symphony, orchestra (2007)
Son of Chamber Symphony, 16 Instruments (2007)

Soloist(s) w/Orchestra or Ensemble
Eros, piano and orchestra (1989)
Violin Concerto (1993)
Gnarly Buttons, clarinet and ensemble (1996)
Century Rolls, piano and orchestra (1996) [finalist for Pulitzer Prize]
The Dharma at Big Sur, electric violin and orchestra (2003)

Chorus w/Orchestra
Harmonium, chorus and orchestra (1980-81)
The Nixon Tapes, solo voices, chorus and orchestra (1998)
El Nino, opera/oratorio (2000)
On the Transmigration of Souls, chorus, children’s chorus, tape and orchestra (2001) [winner of the Pulitzer Prize]

Choral
Ktaadn, chorus (1973)

Chamber
Piano Quintet (1970)
American Standard, toilet ensemble (1973)
Christian Zeal and Activity, ensemble (1973)
Grounding, ensemble (1975)
Shaker Loops, 7 strings (1978)
Chamber Symphony, 15 instruments (1992)
John’s Book of Alleged Dances, strings quartet and sampler (1994)
Gnarly Buttons, clarinet and ensemble (1996)
Scratchband, amplified ensemble (1996)
Nancy’s Fancy, ensemble (2001)
Son of Chamber Symphony, 16 Instruments (2007)

Solo Instrument
Road Movies, violin and piano (1995)

Piano
Chinas Gates, piano (1977)
Phrygian Gates, piano (1977)
Hallelujah Junction, 2 pianos (1996)
American Berserk, piano (2001)

Vocal
Grand Pianola Music, 3 female voices, 2 pianos, wind, brass, percussion (1982) [ballet also]
The Wounded Dresser, baritone and orchestra (1988)
Six Songs by Charles Ives (1989-93) [arr. of songs by Ives]
Le Livre de Baudelaire (1993) [orch. of four from Debussy’s Cinz poemes de Charles Baudelaire]
I Was Looking at the Ceiling and Then I Saw the Sky, songplay (1995)

Incidental/Film
Matter of Heart, film score (1982)
[The 20th Century:] An American Tapestry, film score (1999)

Electronic
Heavy Metal, tape/electronics (1971)
Studebaker Love Music, tape/electronics (1976)
Onyx, tape/electronics (1976)
Light Over Water, 2 channel tape (1983)
Hoodoo Zephyr, tape (1992-93)


ADAMS LINKS                                                            Works by Genre     ~ ~ ~    Adams on Adams     ~ top of page ~
Accidental Opera Composer Speaks (Ken Gewertz, Harvard News)
American composer John Adams discusses his music and ideas (Andrew Ford, The Music Show)
Alex Ross on John Adams (felixsalmon.com)
Berkeley composer honored for work memorializing Sept. 11 victims (Joshua Kosman, SF Chronicle)
Butler School of Music: For this John Adams, a King (Robert Faires, The Austin Chronicle)
Composer John Adams, Reaching Critical Mass (Anne Midgette, Washington Post)
Composer John Adams Wins Pulitzer (Oakland Tribune)
Composer John Adams Wins Top Award (tourdates.co.uk)
Composers in Conversation: John Adams (Alan Olshan, Meet the Composer)
Current Events Guide John Adams Along His Musical Journey (Andrew Druckenbrod, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)
David Robertson discusses the importance of John Adams' orchestral work Harmonielehre (Andrew Ford, The Music Show)
El Nino Storms Davies (Allan Ulrich, SF Chronicle)
Hail Bop! A Portrait of John Adams (a film by Tony Palmer)
The Harmonist: John Adams (Alex Ross, The New Yorker/The Rest is Noise)
I'm Blacklisted, says Opera Maestro (Vanessa Thorpe, The Observer)
John Adams composer weekend, Barbican, London (The Independent)
John Adams: a composer as clever as he's courageous (Ivan Hewett, telegraph.co.uk)
John Adams - A Conversation with James Mustich (Barnes & Noble Review)
John Adams - Crossing Borders (Paul Tingen, Sound on Sound)
John Adams: A Flowering Tree (Jayson Greene, pitchforkmedia.com)
John Adams: A Flowering Tree (Michael Kaulkin, About the Composer)
John Adams: A Flowering Tree (James L. Zychowicz, MusicWeb International)
John Adams, an American Composer and His Time (VOA News)
John Adams & Peter Sellars Join for Nativity Oratorio: El Niño, A Heavenly Force (David Stevens, Intl' Herald Tribune)
John Adams: El Niño & Harmonium - Concert Study Guides (Choral Arts Society)
John Adams Finds Fame Without Fanfare (Jon Matsumoto, BMI.com)
John Adams: Harmonielehre (Dayton Philharmonic)
John Adams: In The Center Of American Music (Frank Oteri, NewMusicBox.org)
John Adams, Personal History, "Sonic Youth" (The New Yorker)
John Adams Premiere Highlights Stanford Lively Arts (Scott MacClelland, metroactive.com)
John Adams' Rules of Engagement (Elena Park, American Composers Orchestra)
John Adams Sounds the Alarm (Brett Campbell, San Fransisco Classical Voice)
John Adams Wins Pulitzer Prize in Music (BMI.com)
A Life in the Day: John Adams (SundayTimesOnline)
Modern Maestro (Elizabeth Farnsworth, Online NewsHour)
Nixon in China (Oak Park Journal)
A Progressive Reflection on the Earlier Work of John Adams (Mark S. Tucker, Perfect Sound Forever)
The Sept. 11 Symphony - Why New York asked composer John Adams to commemorate 9/11 (Adam Baer, Slate)
Son of Chamber Music (New Music at Carnegie Hall)
A Vast Synthesising Approach - An Interview with composer John Adams (Robert Davidson, topologymusic.com)
Voice of America - Composer John Adams speaks for the nation (Joshua Kosman, SF Chronicle)
We are all living in fear - How do you compose for a post-9/11 age? (Guy Dammann, The Guardian)

On Doctor Atomic
Doctor Atomic: About the Opera (The Metropolitan Opera)
Doctor Atomic: The Met's Manhattan Project (David Patrick Stearns, Philadlphia Inquirer)
Doctor Atomic: The Production (San Fransisco Opera)
Doctor Atomic at Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music
Doctor Atomic, John Adams’s Opera Premieres In Met Opera (Huliq News)
Dr. Atomic Star Eric Owens on the Joys of Working With Non-Dead Composers (New York Magazine)
The Epic, Tragic, Operatic Inside Story of Doctor Atomic (Jonathon Keats, wired.com)
False Dawn - The Met’s Take on John Adams’s Doctor Atomic (Alex Ross, The New Yorker)
How We All Learned to Make The Bomb (Peter Brown, Scientific American)
John Adams' Doctor Atomic in Chicago (Opera Today)
Just What Doc Ordered (Clive Barnes, New York Post)
The Manhattan Project - Counting Down to the Met’s Premiere of Doctor Atomic (Justin Davidson, New York Magazine)
New Hands Detonate Doctor Atomic (Matthew Gurewitsch, The New York Times)
One Very Explosive Opera (Vibhuti Patel, Newsweek)
Playing With Fire: John Adams on Composing Doctor Atomic (Georgia Rowe, Andante.com)

Hallelujah Junction: Composing an American Life (a memoir) - Reviews
Hallelujah Junction (Charles McGrath and Dinitia Smith, Intl' Herald Tribune)
Hallelujah Junction: Composing an American Life by John Adams (Mark Swed, Los Angeles Times)
John Adams Composes An American Life (Jeff Lunden, NPR, All Things Considered)
John Adams explains how he found his voice in his memoir Hallelujah Junction (Scott Timberg, Los Angeles Times)
A Life Story, Note for Note (Wynne Delacoma, suntimes.com)
Learning by Ear - The Many Moods of John Adams (Nathan Heller, Slate)
Musical Odyssey: Circus Marches as a Boy, Grand, Topical Operas as a Man (By Charles McGrath, The New York Times)


Composer's website   . . .   contact John Adams:  here

Adams @ Wikipedia
Adams @ About the Composer (Michael Kaulkin blog)
Adams @ Answers.com
Adams @ Art of the States
Adams @ ArtsAlive.ca
Adams @ BBC Symphony Orchestra
Adams @ Boosey & Hawkes
Adams @ Centipedia.com
Adams @ Classical Net
Adams @ composition:today
Adams @ DSO Kids (Dallas Symphony Orchestra)
Adams @ Ensemble Sospeso
Adams @ epitonic.com
Adams @ freebase.com
Adams @ Grawemeyer Awards
Adams @ IMDb (Internet Movie Database)
Adams @ infoplease.com
Adams @ LA Philharmonic
Adams @ Magazzini-Sonori.it
Adams @ MSN Encarta
Adams @ Music Academy Online
Adams @ musicianguide.com
Adams @ MySpace
Adams @ NationMaster.com
Adams @ New Albion Records
Adams @ New York Philharmonic - search "John Adams"
Adams @ Nonesuch Records
Adams @ The New York Times
Adams @ Pittsburgh Symphony/ 2008-2009 Composer of the Year
Adams @ San Fransisco Classical Voice
Adams @ G. Schirmer
Adams @ The Timid Soul's Guide to Classical Music - American of Our Time
Adams @ TripAtlas

Streaming Audio
Adams @ Art of the States
Adams @ last.fm
Adams @ NPR
Adams @ PRX
Adams @ Rhapsody
John Adams and Dr. Atomic (Robert Siegel, NPR)
Johns Adams Interview (Connecticut Public Radio)
John Adams on KPFA's Ode To Gravity Series from 1973 (radiOM.org/Internet Archive)
John Adams Writes an Opera for the Atomic Age (Fred Child, NPR)
An American Portrait: Composer John Adams (Richard Knisely, WGBH Boston Forum Network);  also HERE
Composer John Adams (Here and Now)
Doctor Atomic Opera Brings Science To The Stage (NPR)
Getting in Tune: John Adams (The New Yorker Online)
Son of Chamber Music (New Music at Carnegie Hall)

Recordings
Adams @ Composer's website
Adams @ Amazon.com
Adams @ ArkivMusic
Adams @ CD Universe
Adams @ ClassicsOnline
Adams @ Discogs
Adams @ itunes
X @ Naxos

Video
Adams @ YouTube
Adams @ Google Video
Adams @ Vimeo (via Google Advanced Search)
Adams @ 92Y Video: Doctor Atomic, Composer John Adams
                                                                                                                              ~ top of page ~
Adams on Adams: Interview/London Sinfonietta (VIDEO)







Adams on Adams: On Composing (streaming audio)
John Adams, composerComposers Speak on the Web at Pytheas
                            ~ click on composer picture to listen ~







. . . and check out more    Composers Speak on the Web    at Pytheas

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