Test 3 Flashcards
Urbanism
Music became a symbol of power and energy - dehumanization of art
Ballet became prominent
Machine music
Urbanism
Machine music
Urbanism
Sports became subject of pieces, Honneggers Skating Rink and Rugby
Urbanism Pieces
Honegger’s Pacific 231 Carpenter’s skyscrapers, Antheil’s Ballet Mechanique, Mossolov’s Iron Foundry
Primitivism
Reaction to over-refinement of impressionists and Romanticists
Intended to recapture spontaneity and freedom of primitive life
Primitivism
African art and music became popular, sculpture and carving
Hallmarks included more emphasis on rhythm, ostinato, use of percussion, polytonality, dissonant block chords and melodies of narrow range
Expressionism
German answer to French Impressionism. Impressionism focused on outer world, nature, light, color. Expressionism focused on the inner self and subconscious (Freud)
Expressionism
Began as an art movement, Kandinsky works of hallucinations and visions. Psychoanalysis
Expressionism
Music was atonal containing wide leaps and using instruments in extreme registers and with special effects (flutter tongue, harmonics, etc)
Expression
Pierrot Lunaire by Arnold Schoenberg is the best example. Written for violin, vlc, flute, clarinet, piano and female voice
What instruments did Pierrot Lunaire call for? Schoenberg. Expressionism
Vln, Vlc, Fl, Cl, Pno, female voice
Pierrot Lunaire, Schoenberg. Expressionism
Extreme ranges and a wide palette of timbre and dynamics. Sprecgstimme (half sung, half spoken) used in voice.
Neo-Classicism
Music was simplified, orderly and with clarity. Not happy nor sad, abstract. Revival of old forms
Neo-classicism
Moved away from chromaticism toward pandiatonicism
Composer as craftsman, not artist
Neo-classicism
Stravinsky, “the more art is controlled and limited, the freer it is”
No more symbolism, just music as art. Pre-romantic forms - fugue, chaccone, toccatas
Neo-classicism
Music with order, discipline, proportion.
Orchestration = way simpler. Away from lushness, more contrapuntal
Igor Stravinsky
Dominant composer of 20th century
Russian, studied composition with Rimsky
1939 moved to America
Igor Stravinsky
More diatonic, key-oriented. Lived in Paris.
Diaghilev commissioned Firebird from him (28 years old) followed by Petroushka and Rite of Spring
Gained international fame
What was Stravinsky’s breakthrough composition? (And his first?)
Firebird
Igor Stravinsky
Russian Revolution of 1917 vaused him to leave and settle in France. (Paris)
Based his music off of Russian Lore
Igor Stravinsky
Did not want to repeat himself. Strong rhythm. Liked working in a key, but has some polytonality.
Igor Stravinsky
Fine orchestrator, used unconventional registers
Thin textures
Melody = IMPORTANT
Igor Stravinsky
Leader of neoclassicists. Turned to serialism in later years. Caused an uproar
Bela Bartok
Besties with Kodaly, teaching young people
Born in Hungary
Bulgarian music.
Did not care for Shostakovich
Bela Bartok
Studied at Royal Academy of Budapest and became an excellent pianist
Became interested in Folk Music of Hungary. He and Kodaly set out to annotate and record peasant folk music. Was a leading ethnomusicologist who annotated many folk songs from around the world
Bela Bartok
In the 1930’s, he was distraught with political scene and Hungary’s alliance with Germany. He left in 1940, giving up economic security and fame. He was unknown, unhappy, and broke in the United States.
Bela Bartok
Received an appointment at Columbia U to do folklore research. Also toured with wife as a piano duo.
Contracted Leukemia, thought his career was over
Bela Bartok
Friends arranged for some commissions, first of which came from Koussevitzy and Boston Sym. for Concerto for Orchestra
Died in poverty and obscurity, famous world-wide after.