Composing Features Of Adams' Big Orchestral Works

The study field of this dissertation is composition and technical theory of composition.The study subject is John Adams who is one of the most representative and influential modern composer in the field of contemporary music in US.The scope of this study is three big orchestral works:El Dorado—for orchestra(1991),Naive and Sentimental Music—for orchestra(1998)and On the Transmigration of Souls—for orchestra,chorus,children's chorus and pre-recorded sounds(2002).The nature of this study is the technical analysis and theoretical summary of Adams' rep-resentative works.The perspective of this study is Adams' composing characteristics and charac-teristic variating shown in the three works,as well as their artistic achievement.This study proved that the basic characteristics of the composing way by Adams are being based on minimal music,taking the emphasis on initiative and emotional expression as the starting point,making absorption of traditional and various modern technologies and forms as the breakthrough points,restoring traditional performance function of music and being close to the audience as in-tention.So,his music style is different from traditional music,typically minimal music,other con-temporary music,but keeps close association with them as well.The phenomenon of debating about "post-minimal music" intensely by musical critics testifies the effort made by Adams in inheritance and breakthrough,pluralism and eclecticism,personality and universality.The dissertation has made materialistic expansion on the scientific research theme of Adams' big orchestral works theoretically.It also provides experiences for contemporary musical composition of China practically,especially for big orchestral works.