John Adams's Nixon in China: Musical Analysis, Historical and Political Perspectives

295 Pages·2011·3.51 MB·English

by  Timothy A. Johnson

John Adams’s Nixon in China
Musical Analysis, Historical and
Political Perspectives
Timothy A. Johnson
John AdAms’s NixoN iN ChiNa
To anne Marie
John Adams’s Nixon in China
musical Analysis, historical and Political Perspectives
TimoThy A. Johnson
ithaca College, New York, USa
© Timothy A. Johnson 2011
All rights reserved. no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval
system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying,
recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.
Timothy A. Johnson has asserted his right under the Copyright, designs and Patents Act,
1988, to be identified as the author of this work.
Published by
Ashgate Publishing Limited Ashgate Publishing Company
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Union Road 101 Cherry street
Farnham Burlington
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British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
Johnson, Timothy A., 1961-
John Adams’s nixon in China : musical analysis, historical
and political perspectives.
1. Adams, John, 1947- nixon in China.
i. Title
782.1-dc22
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Johnson, Timothy A., 1961-
John Adams’s nixon in China : musical analysis, historical and political perspectives /
Timothy A. Johnson.
p. cm.
includes bibliographical references and index.
isBn 978-1-4094-2682-0 (hardcover) -- isBn 978-1-4094-2683-7
(ebook) 1. Adams, John, 1947- nixon in China. i. Title.
mL410.A233J67 2011
782.1--dc22
2011014773
isBn 9781409426820 (hbk)
isBn 9781409426837 (ebk)
V
Printed and bound in Great Britain by the
mPG Books Group, UK.
Contents
List of Figures vii
List of Music Examples ix
Preface xi
Acknowledgements xiii
Introduction 1
Part I SettIng the SceneS
1 Portraits of the Chinese Landscape 17
2 State Ceremonial Functions 29
3 Chairman Mao’s Study 51
4 Grand Tour of China 63
Part II characterS and MuSIcal characterIzatIon
5 Richard Nixon 79
6 Pat Nixon 99
7 Henry Kissinger 113
8 Mao Tse-tung 123
9 Chiang Ch’ing 133
10 Chou En-lai 145
Part III natIonalISM and cultural dIStInctIon
11 American Idealism and Chinese Isolationism 163
12 Democracy and Dynasty 185
vi John Adams’s Nixon in China
13 Wall Street and the Great Wall 197
14 Human Rights 213
15 Détente 243
Bibliography 265
Index 275
List of Figures
I.1 The four hexatonic systems 12
5.1 Harmonic content, transformations, and hexatonic systems:
Nixon’s “News” aria, first section (I/i/374–520) 93
5.2 Harmonic content, transformations, and hexatonic systems:
Nixon’s “News” aria, reprise and final section (I/i/582–663) 96
6.1 Harmonic content and transformations:
Pat’s aria, “This is Prophetic!” (II/i/424–598) 106
9.1 Harmonic content and transformations: Chiang’s aria,
“I Am the Wife of Mao Tse-tung” (II/ii/785–960) 137
10.1 Harmonic content, transformations, and hexatonic systems:
Chou’s soliloquy, “I Am Old and Cannot Sleep,” first section
(III/846–90) 157
11.1 Harmonic content and transformations: Chou’s description
of the liberty tree (I/ii/288–317) 173
11.2 Harmonic content and transformations:
Mao’s description of the ancestors (I/ii/571–643) 175
11.3 Harmonic content and transformations: Mao’s declaration,
“We no Longer Need Confucius” (I/ii/644–704) 178
11.4 Harmonic content and transformations: Nixon’s aria,
“Fathers and Sons” (I/ii/851–86) 180
14.1 Harmonic content and transformations: opening chorus,
“Soldiers of Heaven” (I/i/78–158) 216
14.2 Harmonic content and transformations:
opening ensemble number in ballet (II/ii/30–117) 223
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List of Music Examples
I.1 The four primary neo-Riemannian transformations 10
1.1 The instrumental opening of the opera (I/i/1–22) 18
1.2 Interaction of pedal notes and staccato trombones;
large-scale motion to C# minor via PL (I/i/26–31) 21
1.3 L transformations, nonchord tone activity,
motion to F# minor (I/i/166–84) 23
2.1 G4/3 and D3 + 2 metrical dissonances (I/i/222–4) 31
2.2 Brasses syncopated against three–four meter of the orchestra
(I/i/247–61) 32
2.3 Nixon’s “smooth” flight (I/i/330–31) 37
2.4 Three settings of “listen” (I/iii/709–12) 46
2.5 Repeated hocket style (I/iii/773–6) 49
3.1 Chou’s interruption with orchestral displacement dissonances
(I/ii/78–9) 56
3.2 C major triad accompanies Mao’s remark about Nixon’s book
(I/ii/974–8) 61
4.1 Pat inquires about glass elephant over E minor (II/i/228–44) 66
5.1 Contextual inversion around C in melody creates
LP transformation (I/i/455–7) 84
5.2 Nixon’s detachment from reality in rhythm and meter (I/i/678–9) 92
6.1 Pat’s daydream phrase (II/i/63–6) 100
6.2 Pat’s Christmas phrase (II/i/77–9) 100
6.3 Pat’s fate phrase (II/i/73–6) 100
6.4 Pat’s family phrase (II/i/119–21) 101
6.5 Second development of fate phrase (II/i/86–7) 102
6.6 First development of Christmas phrase (II/i/89–91) 102
6.7 Smooth voice-leading motion between E@ minor and
B dominant seventh chords; arrows show half steps,
dotted lines show common tones 107
7.1 Kissinger wakes Nixon for meeting with Mao (I/i/720–24) 115