20th Century Music I.

Music Developments - concerts were organized in urban areas - flourishing of the virtuosi - performance of standard Romantic literature - music for film - classical music in radio and in long playing records - opera continued to gain popularity - universities and colleges became ground for music experimentation - festival, master classes, clinics about modern music - music became an important tool in public education II. General Characteristics of 20th Century Music 1. greater freedom of melodic line 2. emancipation of dissonance 3. evolution of new sounds 4. complicated rhythms 5. diversity of styles III. Elements of 20th Century Music A. Melody - wide intervals - extreme registers - phrases were no longer balance - short motives Melodic Materials of the 20th Century 1. Whole tone scale 2. Pentatonic scale 3. Modes 4. Twelve Tone scale developed by Schoenberg 5. Microtones tones which are smaller than a semitone 6. Sprechstimme Speech music B. Rhythm - composers tried to capture the hectic rhythms of life - passion for the unpredictable - always associated with physical activity - rejection of standard pattern - imitated free verse Rhythmic Materials of the 20th Century 1. syncopation 2. mixed meter meters changes 3. asymmetrical meter 5/4, 7/4, 9/4 5. polyrhythm use of different rhythms simultaneously 6. free rhythm C. Harmony - dissonant - more freedom, unresolved and unprepared chords - increased chromaticism

Harmonic Materials of the 20th Century 1. Added tones (superimposed triads) 9th, 11th, 13th 2. polychord two or more chords simultaneously 3. quartal and quintal harmony harmony based in 4ths and 5ths respectively 4. tone cluster 5. dissonant and chromatic chords 6. tonality is unclear and avoided (as in atonal music) D. Texture - revival of contrapuntal texture - interest in linear than vertical aspect - return to classical ideals of balance and form (as in neo-classical music) - dissonant counterpoint E. Dynamics and Expression - dynamics ranges from ppp to ffff - exaggerated - very specific - written in different languages F. Tone Color - use of smaller orchestra - ensembles of unusual combination - composers favor the less expressive winds - folk instruments used - percussions received greater attention - piano was included in the modern symphony - instrumental effects: muted brasses, flutter-tongueing, col legno, etc - the prepared piano - screams, shouts, claps indicated in the score - electronic sound G. Form - continuation of previous forms but predominance of baroque and classical forms such as the suite, divertimento, etc. - music with free forms (as in aleatoric music) - music theater flourished form opera IV. Distinctive Styles of 20th Century Composition A. Impressionism B. Neo-Nationalism C. Primitivism D. Expressionism E. Neo-Classicism F. Musique Concrete G. Aleatoric Music H. Neo-Romanticism A. IMPRESSIONISM - Influenced by French impressionist painters and poets - Paris was the center of this new style that revolted against German Romanticism - the Impressionists sought to achieve the denial of realism and expressing only a suggestion or impression of an object, person or idea. For them art was sensuous than intellectual. Impressionist Painters

Claude Monet, Edgar Degas, Edouard Manet, Augus Renoir Impressionist Poets Paul Verlaine, Edgar Allan Poe, Stephane Mallarme Impressionist Composers Claude Debussy, Maurice Ravel Characteristics of Impressionist music 1. addiction to beautiful sound 2. fondness for program concepts 3. terms borrowing from paintins such as estampes, images, sketches, etc 4. imaginative tone painting 5. shorter forms 6. use of motives instead of long melodies Impressionist Methods of Composition 1. use of modes, pentatonic scale, whole tone scale 2. use of super imposed triads such as 9ths, 11ths, 13ths 3. use of poly chords 4. avoidance of clear cadences and tonality 5. chords in parallel motion 6. non resolution of dissonance 7. colorful orchestration: muted brasses and strings, woodwinds in dark registers, percussion 8. avoidance of long melodies and preference to short motives that are developed B. NEO-NATIONALISM The use of folk material in serious art music. Composers: Bela Bartok Zoltan Kodaly Aaron Copland Ralph Vaughan Williams Gustav Holst C. PRIMITIVISM It is a reaction to the over refinements of French Impressionism. It is inspired by the music and culture of primitive life Characteristics: 1. simple melodies 2. narrow ranged melodies 3. massive harmonies 4. parallel motion 5. percussive effects 6. strong impulse to a tonal center 7. ostinato rhythms 8. rugged orchestration 9. clashing dissonances Composers: Igor Stravinsky and Bela Bartok

D. EXPRESSIONISM The German answer to French Impressionism. While the French dlighted in luminous impression from the oputer world, the Germans dug down to the hidden regions of the mind. Artists explored the shdowy terrain of the unconscious through symbolisms. It aspired to release the primordial impulse that civilized man suppressed. Visual arts consists of distorted images issued from the realm of the unconscious, hallucinations that defied the traditional notion of beauty. The expressionist rejected the traditionally accepted beautiful. However it retained some aspects of Romanticism such as: love for overwhelming effects, high emotion, the macabre, the grotesque. Musical characteristics: 1. wide melodic leaps 2. extreme registers 3. distortion of normal accents of words 4. maximum intensity at all times 5. rejected consonance, highly dissonant * Atonality is the language of German Expressionism Twelve tone Technique / Serialism / Dodecaphonic music - developed by Arnold Schoenberg - based on a tone row (series) from the 12 chromatic tones of the scale which is dissonantly arranged and repeated throughout the work and subjected to various treatment such as inversion, retrograde, augmentation, diminution, etc. Composers: Arnold Schoenberg Alban Berg Anton von Webern They are also known as the Second Viennese School

E. NEO-CLASSICISM Aims: 1. to re-establish the status of music as an autonomous art removed from life experiences 2. to draw the listeners attention away from his emotions to concentrate on the tones alone Characteristics: 1. rejection of symbolism, meanings and emotions 2. revival of absolute forms 3. wider intervals 4. less chromaticism 5. diatonic 6. sharp orchestration 7. athletic musical style Composers: Bela Bartok Igor Stravinsky Sergei Prokofiev Roger Sessons Aaron Copland Paul Hindemith F. ALEATORIC MUSIC (Chance or Indeterminate) - Flourished during the 1950s, ispired by Alexander Calders mobile - from the word alea (dice) - characterized by freedom, unconventional notations, use of graphs and symbols to represent sound events, use of dice or stop watch, prepared instruments (piano). John Cage principal composer

G. ELECTRONIC MUSIC - the use of magnetic tape in manipulating recorded sounds Musique Concrete actual sounds from nature are recorded and then processed in the studio. The recorded sounds are looped, slowed down or played fast. Cutting and splicing parts of the sound clips are also done. The finished composition will be re-recorded in one final cut. - the use of sound generators or synthesizers Flourished in the 1960s, synthesizers produced complex sounds never before heard. - computer music Electronic music can be produced by computers using music sequencers and softwares Composers: Edgard Varese, Luciano Berio, Gyorgy Ligeti, George Crumb H. MINIMALISM A reaction to the complexities of electronic music. - uses simple melodies, harmonies, and motive repeated many, many times - characterized by ostinato, hypnotic repetitions, static harmonies, diatonic motives