Reaction against Romanticism Simplicity, abstraction World of dreams and the inner soul

1. The Early 20th Century“The entire history of modern music may be said to be a history of the gradual pull-away from the German musical tradition of the past century.”Aaron Copland Reaction against Romanticism Simplicity, abstraction World of dreams and the inner soul (Surrealism, Expressionism)

2. Expressionism – German response to Impressionism

3. Neoclassical movement (Ravel) Maintain balance and objectivity by returning to formal structures of the past – old forms with new sounds! Rejected the nineteenth century by returning to the eighteenth century

4. Dadaists – reacted to the horrors of War. Nonsense was their subject; anti-art New Trends

5. Futurism Futurism was an international art movement founded in Italy in 1909. It was (and is) a refreshing contrast to the weepy sentimentalism of Romanticism. The Futurists loved speed, noise, machines, pollution, and cities; they embraced the exciting new world that was then upon them rather than hypocritically enjoying the modern world’s comforts while loudly denouncing the forces that made them possible. Fearing and attacking technology has become almost second nature to many people today; the Futurist manifestos show us an alternative philosophy.

6. Surrealism --Merged into from the Dada group --Salvador Dali (exploited the world of dream)

8. Different musical elements • RHYTHM became very complex • Polyrhythm • Polymeter • Changing meters • Irregular meters • MELODY no longer the focus (colors of the instruments)

9. More elements . . . • HARMONY • Polychords • Polytonality • Atonality

10. Twelve-Tone (Serialism) • Devised by ARNOLD SCHOENBERG • Extreme dissonance became the norm • Orchestra SMALLER • Composers absorbed other influences from popular styles, including: • Jazz • Ragtime

11. Igor Stravinsky (1882-1971)

12. Stravinsky • Russian; son of a musician • Studied with Rimsky-Korsakov • Associated with Diaghilev, impresario of the Russian Ballet

13. Compositions • Orchestral music • Operas • Ballets – Firebird, Petrushka, The Rite of Spring • Choral music – The Symphony of Psalms, composed “to the glory of God” • Chamber music

14. His music • “. . . rhythm of unparalleled dynamic power, furious yet controlled.” • “. . . reaction against the restless chromaticism of the Romantic period . . . retained a sense of key”

15. The Rite of Spring (Scenes of Pagan Russia) • pp. 508-512 • Part I • Adoration of the Earth • The Dance of the Youths and Maidens • Dance of the Earth • Part II • The Sacrifice • Glorification of the Chosen One • Evocation of the Ancestors • Ritual Action of the Ancestors

16. Arnold Schoenberg • Member of the Second Viennese School along with his pupils, Alban Berg and AntonWebern • Highly influenced by Expressionism • His early music created a scene, “and ever since that day, the scandal has not ceased.”

17. Inventor of • Serialism (twelve-tone row)

18. The tone row (12-tone or serialism) • The row • Original • Retrograde • Inversion • Retrograde Inversion

19. Pierrot lunaire • Uses Sprechstimme (spoken rather than sung on an exact pitch and in rhythm) • Klangfarbenmelodie (each note of a melody is played by a different instrument) • Text (21 poems from Albert Giraud’s Pierrot lunaire, all in rondo form) • Arranged in 3 groups of 7 • Set for a female reciter and a chamber music ensemble of 5 players using eight instruments • Conceived in a “light, ironical, satirical tone.” • P. 519 – On listening list: “The Moonfleck”