20TH CENTURY MUSICAL STYLES

• The early half of the 20th century also

gave rise to new musical styles, which
were not quite as extreme as the
electronic, chance, and minimalist styles
that arose later.
• These new styles were impressionism,
expressionism, neo-classicism, avant
garde music, and modern nationalism.
Claude
Monet
Clifftop walk at Pourville
Irises
Water lilies
 IMPRESSIONISM
 Impressionism is a movement
developed in the 2nd half of the
19thcentury, mainly in France.
 The word “Impressionism” comes
from “impression”,
the name of Monet’s
painting, Impression,
Sunrise.
 IMPRESSIONISM in MUSIC
• Impressionism made use of
the whole-tone scale.
• It created a mood rather
than a definite picture.
• It had a translucent and
hazy texture; lacking a
dominant-tonic relationship.
CLAUDE DEBUSSY (1862–1918)
• He was the primary
exponent of the
impressionist
movement and the
focal point for other
impressionist
composer
CLAUDE DEBUSSY (1862–1918)
• He gained a reputation as an erratic
pianist and a rebel in theory and
harmony.
• He changed the course of musical
development by dissolving
traditional rules and conventions
into a new language of possibilities
in harmony, rhythm, form, texture,
and color.
CLAIRE DE LUNE
• Example of
Impressionism
• Composed by
Claude Debussy
 MAURICE RAVEL (1875–1937)
• The compositional style of
Ravel is mainly characterized
by its uniquely innovative but
not atonal style of harmonic
treatment
• Many of his works deal with
water in its flowing or stormy
moods as well as with human
characterizations.
Ravel was a perfectionist and every
bit a musical craftsman
BOLERO
• Example of
Impressionism
• Composed by
Maurice Ravel
 EXPRESSIONISM
• a style of painting, music or
drama in which the artist or
writer seeks to express
emotional experience
rather than impressions of
the external world
Vincent Van Gogh
The Starry Night,
by Vincent Van Gogh
The Scream, Edward Munch
EXPRESSIONISM in MUSIC
• It used atonality and the
twelve-tone scale, lacking
stable and conventional
harmonies.
• It served as a medium for
expressing strong emotions,
such as anxiety, rage, and
alienation.
 The Twelve-Tone
System
• The twelve-tone technique or
dodecaphony is a method of musical
composition that was invented by
Austrian composer Arnold
Schoenberg (1874-1951).

• In a twelve-tone system, all 12 notes

is of equal importance
ARNOLD SCHOENBERG (1874–1951)

• was the primary

exponent of
expressionism,
with the use of
the twelve-tone
scale and
atonality.
 PIERROT LUNAIRE PART 1
• Example of
Expressionism
• Composed by
Arnold
Schoenberg
IGOR STRAVINSKY (1882–1971)

• stands alongside fellow-

composer Schoenberg as
one of the great trendsetters
of the 20th century
• The Firebird Suite (1910),
composed for Diaghilev’s
Russian Ballet, added a new
ingredient to his nationalistic
musical style.
 The Rite of Spring(1913)
• The Rite of
Spring(1913) was
another
outstanding work.
• A new level of
dissonance was
reached and the
sense of tonality
was practically
abandoned.
Neo-Classicism
• Neo-classicism was a partial
return to a classical form of
writing music with carefully
modulated dissonances. It
made use of a freer seven-
note diatonic scale.
BELA BARTOK (1881–1945)
• As a neo-classicist,
primitivist, and nationalist
composer,
• Bartok used Hungarian folk
themes and rhythms.
Mikrokosmos VI No. 140
• Composed by Bela Bartok

• Maksim plays original

Flight of the Bumblebee
SERGEI PROKOFIEFF (1891–1953)
• regarded today as a
combination of neo-
classicist, nationalist,
and avant garde
composer.
Peter and the Wolf
• Composed by Sergie
Prokofieff
• orchestral work intended for
children
Modern Nationalism
• Modern nationalism is a looser
form of 20th century music
development focused on
nationalist composers and musical
innovators who sought to combine
modern techniques with folk
materials.
ASSIGNMENT
• DEFINE THE FF:
1. Electronic Music
2. Music Concrete
3. Chance Music
• Who is the ff. composer?
1. Edgar Varese
2. Karlheinz Stockhausen
3. John Cage