Analysis Of Gao Ping’s String Quartet Bright Light And Cloud Shadows

This dissertation focuses on the string quartet Bright Light and Cloud Shadows by the composer and pianist Gao Ping. The composing of this piece was commissioned by New Zealand String Quartet. It debuted during the New Zealand Adams International Indoor Music Festival and was published to CD. The composer drew inspiration from the poem inscribed on the painting of the same name Bright Light and Cloud Shadows by Zhu Ta (Ba Da Shan Ren). It was the first piece of painting among the ten pieces by Zhu Ta, inscribed that It doesn’t matter how far the mountain is, the trees in the distance still make up a forest scenery in spring. In the sky where the clouds float, you’II never see the distress of human life.’. Gao Ping, the composer, said it was his most Chinese-style work, mainly reflected by its Chinese aesthetic charm and spirits.This dissertation analyzes the work in three Chapters:1) Structure,2) Texture and3) Sound effect. Based on the study of the work combined with the musical incipit, the author of this dissertation found that it is an extremely Chinese-style string quartet, which was mainly reflected by its Chinese aesthetic charm and spirits. The composer, Gao Ping complies with the basic principles of string quartet composition, meanwhile also breaks through the conventional boundaries, transferring the spaciousness of Chinese painting and the lens feeling of video arts into music composition with unique ingenuity.Researches focusing on Gao Ping’s music works are relatively insufficient both at home and abroad. Hence, there’s still large room for improvement for the current study. But during the study process, the author had the honour to interview Mr. Gao Ping in person. This would be regarded as an advantage of the current study and will be beneficial to the completion of the research.