I-Lin Tsai

Dr. Stephenson

Music 587

02 May 2019

Final Exam Questions and Answers

Question 1a:

Claude Debussy

1. Pour le piano (1894-1901)

I. Prélude

II. Sarabande

III. Toccata

2. Suite bergamasque, second revised version (1905)

I. Prélude

II. Menuet

III. Clair de lune

IV. Passepied

3. Estampes (1903)

I. Pagodes

II. La Soirée dans Grenade

III. Jardins sous la pluie

4. Six Épigraphes antiques (1915)

I. Pour invoquer Pan, dieu du vent d'été

II. Pour un tombeau sans nom

III. Pour que la nuit soit propice

IV. Pour la danseuse aux crotales

V. Pour l'Égyptienne

VI. Pour remercier la pluie au matin

5. Douze Études (1915)

I. Pour les "cinq doigts", d'après monsieur Czerny 

II. Pour les tierces 

III. Pour les quartes 

IV. Pour les sixtes 

V. Pour les octaves 

VI. Pour les huit doigts 

VII. Pour les degrés chromatiques 

VIII. Pour les agréments 

IX. Pour les notes répétées 

X. Pour les sonorités opposées 

XI. Pour les arpèges composés 

XII. Pour les accords 

Question 1b:

Maurice Ravel

1. Sonatine (1903-1905)

I. Modéré

II. Mouvement de menuet

III. Animé

2. Miroirs (1904-1905)

I. Noctuelles

II. Oiseaux tristes

III. Une Barque sur l'océan

IV. Alborada del gracioso

V. La Vallée des cloches

3. Gaspard de la nuit (1908)

I. Ondine

II. Le Gibet

III. Scarbo

4. Danse gracieuse de Daphnis (1913)

I. Nocturne

II. Interlude et Danse guerrière

III. Scène de Daphnis et Chloé

5. Le tombeau de Couperin (1914-1917)

I. Prélude

II. Fugue

III. Forlane

IV. Rigaudon

V. Menuet

VI. Toccata

Question 2:

1. Francis Poulenc (1899-1963)

Sextuor, FP 100 (1931-1932)

I. Allegro vivace

II. Divertissement: Andantino

III. Finale: Prestissimo

2. Igor Stravinsky (1882-1971)

Suite Italienne for Cello and Piano (1932)

I. Introduzione

II. Serenata

III. Aria

IV. Tarantella

V. Minuetto e Finale
3. Dmitri Shostakovich (1906-1975)

Sonata for Cello and Piano in D Minor, Op. 40 (1934)

I. Allegro non troppo

II. Allegro

III. Largo

IV. Allegro

4. Béla Bartók (1881-1945)

Sonata for Two Pianos and Percussion, Sz. 110, BB 115 (1937)

V. Assai lento–Allegro troppo

I. Lento, ma non troppo

II. Allegro non troppo

5. Nikolai Medtner (1880-1951)

Piano Quintet in C Major, Op. Posth. (1903-1949, first sketches date back to 1903 and completed in

1949)

I. I.Molto placido

II. II.Andantino con moto

III. III.Finale. Allegro vivace

6. Dmitri Shostakovich (1906-1975)

Piano Quintet in G Minor, Op. 57 (1940)

I. Orelude: Lento

II. Fugue: Adagio

III. Scherzo: Allegretto

IV. Intermezzo: Lento

V. Finale: Allegretto

7. Olivier Messiaen (1908-1992)

Quatour pour la fin du Temps (1940-1941)

Eight movements.

8. Igor Stravinsky (1882-1971)

Septet for Clarinet, Bassoon, Horn, Piano, Violin, and Viola (1952-1953)

Three movements.

9. Pierre Boulez (1925-2016)

Sur Incises (1996-1998)

Two movements.

10. Tristan Murail (b. 1947)

Stalag VIIIA, for Violin, Clarinet, Cello, and Piano (2018)

Question 3:

1. Atonality--The absence of functional harmony as a primary structural element in music. The

music is lack of a actual key or a tonal center. The music example can be Arnold Schoenberg’s

Klavierstück, Op. 11.

2. 12-tone and serialism--12-tone is a compositional technique. In a one-octave chromatic scale,

every note is assigned its own pitch class, twelve in total. 12-tone music is based on series/row

that contains twelve pitch classes in a particular order. Row or series of 12 tones of the octave

arranged in any order the composer decides. The pitch classes are played in order, also, once a

pitch class has been played, it is not repeated until the next row. Tones may be used either
 successively or simultaneously in any register and with any desired rhythm. May also be used in

inverted, retrograde, or retrograde inverted form, and in transpositions of any of the four forms.

Serialism has two types. First type is twelve-tone serialism, which means the structural principle

according to which a recurring series of ordered elements are used in order or manipulated in

particular ways to give a piece unity. Second type is a broad designator referring to

the ordering of things, whether they are pitches, durations, dynamics, and so on. The remarkable

composers who were using this technique are Arnold Schoenberg and his famous students, Alban

Berg and Anton Webern. They were the principal members of the Second Viennese School. The

music example can be Webern’s Variations, Op. 27.

3. Primitivism--Also called “Barbarism.” In music, primitivism indicates an elevation of rhythm to

a place of prominence. It was an early 20th century artistic term that championed the values of

primitive cultures as superior to those of the modern world. One of the music examples can be

Igor Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring.

4. Expressionism--As a response to impressionism, sought to represent inner experience, using

whatever means seemed best suited to the purpose. Differs from Romanticism in the kind of inner

experience it aims to portray, and in the means chosen to portray it. Man as he exists in the

modern world and is portrayed through 20th century psychology: isolated, prey to inner conflict,

tension, anxiety, and so on. The characteristics of Expressionism music are a high level of

dissonance, extreme contrasts of dynamics, constantly changing textures, “distorted” melodies

and harmonies, angular melodies with wide leaps, extremes of pitch, and no cadences. A music

music example suggests Arnold Schoenberg’s Pierrot Lunaire.

5. Neoclassicism--Elements from Baroque and/or Classical period music are central to the

composition, while incorporating one or more “new” ideas from the 20th century. One of the

music examples can be Igor Stravinsky’s Suite Italienne for Cello and Piano.
6. Neo-romanticism--Elements from Romantic period music are central to the composition, while

incorporating one or more new ideas from the 20th century. A music example can be Adagio for

Strings by Samuel Barber.

7. Impressionism--Seeks to represent objects of the external world as perceived at a given moment.

Composers were labeled impressionists by analogy to the impressionist painters who use starkly

contrasting colors, effect of light on an object, blurry foreground and background, flattening

perspective, etc. The most prominent feature in musical impressionism is the use of "color", or in

musical terms, timbre, which can be achieved through orchestration, harmonic usage, texture, and

so on. A music example can be Debussy’s La Mer.

8. Minimalism--Generally, minimalist compositions tend to emphasize simplicity in melodic line

and harmonic progression, to stress repetition and rhythmic patterns, and to reduce historical or

expressive reference. The use of electronic instruments is common in minimalist music, as are

influences from Asia and Africa. Among minimalist composers are the more prominent

Philip Glass, Steve Reich, Terry Riley, La Monte Young, and John Adams. A music example

suggests Phrygian Gates by John Adams.

Question 4:

1. Aleatoric procedures--Gradus II by Samuel Adler.

2. Parallelism--“Serenade” from Namouna by Edouard Lalo.

3. Pointillism--Structures, book 1 by Pierre Boulez.

4. Music exploring color and sonority at the instrument rather than using traditional harmony--

Catalogue d’oiseaux by Olivier Messiaen.

5. Music inspired by a specific philosophy or religion--“Vingt Regards sur l'Enfant-Jésus” by

Olivier Messiaen, inspired by Christian religion.

6. Music written based on rhythmic procedures or techniques--Piano Sonata (1924) by Igor

Stravinsky.
7. Music influenced by jazz, blues, or ragtime--The Serpent’s Kiss by William Bolcom.

8. Music incorporating American folk or hymn tunes--Impromptu in Two Keys by George

Gershwin.

9. Music incorporating non-Western influences--“Dança do índio branco” from Ciclo Brasileiro by

Heitor Villa-Lobos.

10. Music with frequently changing meters--Twelve Variations on a Theme for Piano by

Benjamin Britten.

11. Music without a meter--Les Travaux et les Jours by Tristan Murail.

12. Electronic music--Klavierstücke by Karlheinz Stockhausen.

13. Experimental and extended techniques/use of the instrument--Sonatas and Interludes by

John Cage.

14. Irrational rhythms--Piano Sonata by George Benjamin.

15. Juxtaposition of various eclectic elements within a work--Makrokosmos by George Crumb.

Question 5:

1. Anqi was discussing Benjamin Britten’s Holiday Diary (1934). Britten (1913-1976) was a British

composer; he wrote the work that was influenced by neoclassicism and impressionism. The

characters of neoclassicism in this composition are presenting on the forms. For example, it is

prelude in the “Early Morning Bathe,” Andante in the “Sailing,” Rondo-Scherzo in the “Fun-

fair,” and Epilogue in the “Night.” In addition, some of the movements are borrowing the musical

elements from other previous pieces. For instance, in the “Early Morning Bathe,” the birdsong

figures make performers and audience think of Olivier Messiaen. Plus, in the “Sailing,” at the

beginning of top voice borrows the melody motif of Satie’s Gymnopédie No. 1 (1888), both

pieces are in the same key as well. The characters of impressionism in the piece can be showed in

many movements; the core is that the music is descriptive. For example, in the “Fun-fair,” the
 fast notes with unexpected accents and syncopation rhythms to suggest the joyfulness. In the

“Night,” the lengthy pedals and soft dynamics are creating the quietness of the atmosphere.

2. Jihui was talking about the composition of Robert Nathaniel Dett (1882-1943), and how he

embedded Black folksong and his faith of religion into his music. In his biography, he was so

talented to be the first Black student studied double major--composition and piano in Oberlin

Conservatory of Music (where I studied for my undergraduate life as well). The work In the

Bottoms (1913) is a suite for piano. The neo-romanticism and nationalism are displayed in this

composition. It contains five movements; each movement is describing a picture. For example, in

the “Prelude,” it is presenting one of Black people’s scenes of their life, they are washing clothes

near the riverside. The composition Eight Bible Vignettes (1941-1943) shows his believe of

Christian. This work is the culmination of Dett’s style, outlook, philosophy, and life. In the “I

Am The True Vine,” it is a three-voice fugue, which represents the triune in the Bible--Father,

Son, and the Holy Spirit.

Bonus:

We can see in Tristan Murail’s Les Travaux et les Jours; the rhythmic change is notated on beams.

Visually it looks like a crescendo and diminuendo, but it means getting faster and slower. Also, the

pedal markings are different from previous centuries. It has waves or stair-like steps to tell

performers the specific treatments for the use of the pedal.