Main Stylistic and

Characteristicfeatures
20th Century music evolved both stylistically and
characteristically, some of the overarching changes
were outlined in the first blog post this post aims to
explore some of the style specific features such as
the characteristics of impressionism, expressionism,
and neoclassicism.
Firstly going into some more detail on the major
changes in 20th century music compared to that of
the 19th century
Rhythm became much more developed in the 20th
century as it was often complex and irregular
Melody became of secondary importance, they were
often unpredictable with wide leaps, irregular
 In the words of Schoenberg, harmony was freed from
the tyranny of tonality. Keys and tonal centres
became of less importance as atonality gained
popularity.
Timbre was explored in further depth. New playing
techniques were developed on traditional instruments
which expanded their tonal range. New electronic
instruments were created that were unique to ethnic
music.
The capabilities and availability of recording technology
greatly increased in the 20th century, changing the
way that musicians created music and made a living.
 impressionism
Impressionism refers to music whose intention is to
evoke a mood, place, and natural phenomena (in other
words, to leave an impression of something).
The pioneers of Impressionism were Claude Debussy,
and Maurice Ravel.
Impressionist music often contained non-functional
harmonies
Rich textures
Ambiguity of form
Unresolved dissonances
Whole-tone scales, use of 9th chords, frequent use of
modality, and exotic scales
 Expressionism
Expressionism music, is music that was written to
strongly express intense feelings and emotions. It
is separated from other genres by its frequent
atonality and fragmented style.
The pioneers of Expressionism were (and are)
Arnold Schoenberg, and Milton Babbitt.
Expressionist music contained dissolution of
tonality
Extreme contrasts of dynamics
Constantly changing textures
Distorted melodies and harmonies
 Neoclassicism
Neoclassical music refers to music that sought to return the
aesthetic precepts associated with the broadly defined concept
of classicism, namely order, balance, clarity, economy, and
emotional restraint.
The main pioneers of neoclassicism were Igor Stravinsky and
Dmitri Shostakovich
Neoclassical music often contained complex/quirky rhythms
Large amounts of chromaticism
Dissonances
Tonal centers
Clarity of form
Melodic shape