chapter 70
Which of the following are operas by Adams and which are not?
*The Death of Kinghoffer *Nixon in China
Who is the librettist for Doctor Atomic?
Peter Sellars
Listen to the Coda from "At the sight of this." Which does NOT occur?
lyrical baritone solo
Listen to the opening of "Batter my heart." Which musical element is NOT present?
lyrical melody
What is the meter of this aria?
shifting
The rhythm in "At the sight of this" from Doctor Atomic is
syncopatedq
John Adams won a Pulitzer Prize for On the Transmigration of Souls, a work that sets the names of the victims of 9/11.
t
John Adams's Doctor Atomic is the result of collaboration with a playwright/director.
t
This aria is sung by a baritone.0:01
t
Which of the following combine to create a post-minimalist stye?
*lush harmonies and orchestration of neo-Romanticism *high energy rhythms of minimalism *exotic scales of impressionism
Which served as the basis for the libretto of Doctor Atomic and which did not?
*poetry from John Donne *sacred Hindu scripture *Baudelaire *government documents *the memoirs of the scientists involved
Which of the following describes the form of "Batter my heart" from Doctor Atomic?0:01
A-A-B with ritornellos
Match each trait to the piece that it describes.
Adams: "At the sight of this," from Doctor Atomic---choppy phrases Tavener: A Hymn to the Mother of God---smooth phrases
This is the - section of the aria, and features a - melodic range and varied -
B, wide, accompaniment
______ aria structures influenced Adams for the aria "Batter my heart."
Baroque
Which describes the music in this excerpt? At the sight of this 0:00
It sounds like the A section.
Which describes the music in this excerpt from "At the sight of this," from Doctor Atomic? Doctor Atomic 0:17
It sounds like the B section.
Which describes the music in this excerpt from "At the sight of this," from Doctor Atomic? Doctor Atomic 0:01
It sounds like the Refrain.
Listen to the following music excerpts and drag them to the correct location on the music chart.
blue red yellow
Listen to both excerpts from "Batter my heart." Then select the statements that describe the excerpts.Excerpt 10:52Excerpt 20:28
both feature a wide melodic range, vocal line in excerpt 2 is freer than in excerpt 1, both excerpts are from the B section
"At the sight of this" Which describes this excerpt?
chorus
At the sight of this," from Doctor Atomic, is performed by - . The chorus sings short, - phrases. The rhythms are often - , and the harmonies are - . The - structure has sections of repeated music and text.
chorus & orchestra, choppy syncopated dissonant verse-refrain
Which describes the performing forces of "At the sight of this," a scene from Doctor Atomic? Adams, At the sight of this 4:18
chorus and orchestra
"At the sight of this" is sung by
chorus and orchestra.
Which of the following is NOT a prominent musical element heard in "At the sight of this"?
consonance
Which term describes the melody in this excerpt?
declaimed and repetitive
Which describe the movement of the chords in the B section and which do not? B section 0:01
descending connected
The high woodwinds play a - melody
disjunct
Which describes the harmony in this excerpt?
dissonant
The harmony in the Refrain is -
dissonant and harsh
The harmony in the elongated A section is -
dissonant and harsh
Which of the following correctly describe "At the sight of this," from Doctor Atomic? Adams, At the sight of this 4:18
dissonant harmonies short & choppy phrases offbeat accents in the rhythm
What do you hear at the conclusion of this scene, which begins about three minutes into the piece? Adams, At the sight of this 0:02
electronic sounds vocables
Composers of historical operas strive for documentary-style accuracy.
f
John Adams has not written any electronic music.
f
John Adams's Doctor Atomic is based on a comic book hero.
f
The Refrain of "At the sight of this," from Doctor Atomic, is the same as the A section.
f
This would be considered recitative.0:01
f
Which of the following statements apply to this excerpt from "Batter my heart" and which do not? Be sure to listen to the entire excerpt.0:50
final ritornello, there are repeated notes in the brass, features irregular percussion accents
Match the descriptive words or phrases with the different elements in this excerpt from "Batter my heart".1:20
form: A section textual source: Holy Sonnet XIV motives: sighing
What describes the texture heard in this excerpt from "Batter my heart" from Doctor Atomic?0:00
homophonic
Which of the following describes the texture of this excerpt?
homophony
In Doctor Atomic, the action takes place
in the Los Alamos Laboratory in New Mexico.
John Adams's music is infused with elements of all of following styles EXCEPT
jazz
John Adams's eclectic approach combines elements of the - style with traits of neo-Romanticism, forging a post-minimalist style in his - Doctor Atomic.
minimalist; opera
Which describes the rhythms in the elongated A section? A section, elongated 0:25
offbeat accents
Whose conscience serves as the focus of John Adams's Doctor Atomic?
physicist Robert Oppenheimer
John Adams's Doctor Atomic focuses on the conscience of:
physicist Robert Oppenheimer.
John Adams is associated with which style of music?
post-minimalism
Doctor Atomic is a
post-minimalist opera.
Match the descriptive words or phrases with the different elements of music as found in this excerpt from "Batter my heart."0:01
range: wide melodic ideas: short form: B section
Match the descriptive words or phrases with the different elements of "Batter my heart".Loading...0:00
ritornellos: jittery figures and repeated notes vocal line: sighing motives meter: shifting
In Doctor Atomic, the librettist drew on texts from the scientists involved, government documents, poetry from John Donne, Bauedelaire and
sacred Hindu scripture.
Which describes the melodic material of "At the sight of this"? 0:28
short & choppy phrases
Which word describes the rhythm in this excerpt?
strong offbeat accents
Which correctly describes the rhythm in the Refrain? Refrain 0:01
syncopated
Which describes the rhythm in the Act II, Scene 3, chorus "At the sight of this" from Doctor Atomic?
syncopated
Composer John Adams was influenced by rock albums such as Abbey Road and Dark Side of the Moon.
t
John Adams is considered a post-minimalist composer.
t
John Adams was influenced by rock albums such as Abbey Road and Dark Side of the Moon.
t
Some of the libretto for Doctor Atomic comes from declassified government documents.
t
Where does the action take place in Doctor Atomic?
the Los Alamos Laboratory in New Mexico
Doctor Atomic focuses on
the last days and hours before the first atomic test.
This is the ritornello, which is heard - times: at the opening of the aria, before the repeat of the - section, and after the - section.
three, A, B
Which describes the form of "At the sight of this," from Doctor Atomic?Adams, At the sight of this4:18
verse/refrain structure
Listen to the following excerpts and then click on the corresponding cards in the order in which they appear in the B section of "Batter my heart."
y x z
Listen to the following excerpts and then click on the corresponding cards in the order in which they appear in "Batter my heart." Be sure to listen to each excerpt completely.
y z x
Listen to the following excerpts and then click on the corresponding cards in the order in which they first appear in "Batter my heart."
z y x
Listen to both excerpts from "Batter my heart." Then select the statements that describe the excerpts.Excerpt 11:05Excerpt 20:29
Both are instances of the ritornello, Excerpt 1 builds toward a crescendo; excerpt 2 begins loudly, Both excerpts feature timpani.
Match the musical examples to their correct descriptions.
Doctor Atomic, "Batter my heart"----aria with vocal sections punctuated by animated ritornellos Doctor Atomic, "At the sight of this"----chorus in a verse/refrain structure features short, choppy phrases with declaimed text
The text of the poem is by John - and the phrase "three- - God" has significance to the story because Oppenheimer named the testing site for the bomb "- ."
Donne, person'd, "Trinity"
Doctor Atomic is sung in
English
Which is NOT true of John Adams's music studies?
He was self-taught.
What text is set in John Adams's "Batter my heart" from Doctor Atomic?
Holy Sonnet XIV by John Donne
John Adams's Harmonielehre pays homage to
Igor Stravinsky.
Which of the following correctly describe "At the sight of this" from Doctor Atomic? Adams, At the sight of this 4:18
It has dissonant harmonies. The accompaniment is syncopated, and the vocal melody has short and choppy phrases.
Which describes this excerpt from "At the sight of this," from Doctor Atomic? Doctor Atomic 0:16
It is neither of these.
Which of the following statements apply to this excerpt from "Batter my heart" and which do not?5:38-6:461:09
Its text is from the end of the B section, The first part of the excerpt features short-long rhythms in the vocal part, The melody is disjunct.
Which character sings the aria, "Batter my heart"?
J. Robert Oppenheimer
Who wrote the text heard here?0:03
John Donne
In "At the sight of this" from Doctor Atomic, the nuclear weapon is compared to
Krishna
To whom is the nuclear weapon compared to in the Act II, Scene 3 chorus "At the sight of this" from Doctor Atomic?
Krishna
For what piece did John Adams receive a Pulitzer Prize in 2003?
On the Transmigration of Souls
Match each trait to the piece that it describes.
Orff: O fortuna, from Carmina burana---sung in Latin Adams: "At the sight of this," from Doctor Atomic---sung in English
The text from "At the sight of this" comes from
The Bhagavad Gita.
Which of the following is an opera by John Adams?
The Death of Kinghoffer
Which of the following statements apply to this excerpt from "Batter my heart" and which do not?1:06-2:250:01
The text is by John Donne, This is the first statement of the A section, The opening vocal line features shifting meters.
Which of the following statements apply to this excerpt from "Batter my heart" and which do not?0:01
The vocal line is delivered quite freely, This is from the B section, There is gentle syncopation in the vocal line.
The "Batter my heart" text comes from
a John Donne sonnet.
The musical setting of "to break, blow, burn, and make me new" is best described as
a sighing motive.
What singing genre is John Adams's "Batter my heart" from Doctor Atomic?1:48
aria
This - borrows Baroque ideas and style elements such as - and a - motive throughout.
aria, ritornellos, sighing
What vocal range is heard in this excerpt?
baritone
John Adams's operas, Doctor Atomic, Nixon in China, and The Death of Klinghoffer, are all
based on historical events.
