Hallelujah Junction: Composing an American Life by John Adams
A book unlike anything ever written by a composer--part memoir, part description and explication of the creative process--Hallelujah Junction is an absorbing journey across the musical landscape of America and through the life and times of John Adams, one of today's most admired and performed composers. With his hallmark wit, insight, and intellect, Adams shares his life story, from childhood to his early studies in classical composition amid the musical and social ferment of the 1960s, from his landmark minimalist innovations to his controversial ?docu-operas.? Adams offers a no-holds-barred portrait of the rich musical scene of 1970s California, and of his contemporaries and colleagues, including John Cage, Steve Reich, and Philip Glass. He describes the process of writing, rehearsing, and performing his innovative works, as well as both the pleasures and the challenges of writing serious music in a country and a time largely preoccupied with pop culture.
Hallelujah Junction is a thoughtful and original memoir that will appeal to both longtime Adams fans and newcomers to contemporary music. Not since Leonard Bernstein?s Findings has an eminent composer so candidly and accessibly explored his life and work. This searching self-portrait offers not only a glimpse into the work and world of one of our leading artists, but also an intimate look at one of the most exciting chapters in contemporary culture.
Hallelujah Junction "stands with books by Hector Berlioz and Louis Armstrong among the most readably incisive autobiographies of major musical figures." -David Hajdu (N.Y. Times Book Review)
Hear John Adams' Pulitzer-Prize-winning musical memorial to 9-11:
On the Transmigration of Souls and read more about his music in our blog, HERE.
