MUSIC NOTES
Tonal Music – principle of organizing musical
compositions around a central note, the tonic.
Atonal Music – condition of music in which the
constructs of the music do not “live” within the confines
of a particular key signature, scale, or mode.
20th Century Musical Styles
Impressionism – It is a French movement in the late 19th
and early 20th century. The sentimental melodies and
dramatic emotionalism of the preceding Romantic
Period (their themes and melody are easy to recognize
and enjoy) were being replaced in favour of moods and
impressions. There is an extensive use of colours and
effects, vague melodies, and innovative chords and
progressions leading to mild dissonances.
Expressionism is a 20th century musical style where the
music piece revealed the composer’s mind, instead of
presenting an impression of the environment.
In impressionism, the sounds of different chords
overlapped lightly with each other to produce new subtle
musical colors. Chords did not have a definite order and
a sense of clear resolution. Most of the impressionist
works centered on nature and its beauty, lightness, and
brilliance. A number of outstanding impressionists
created works on this subject. Some of the composers
that uses this style are Claude Debussy, Maurice Ravel,
Arnold Schoenberg, and Igor Stravinsky.
Expressionism - revealed the composer’s mind, instead
of presenting an impression of the environment. 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.
Neo- classicism - was a moderating factor between the
emotional excesses of the Romantic period and the
violent impulses of the soul in expressionism. It was, in
essence, a partial return to an earlier style of writing,
particularly the tightly knit form of the Classical period,
while combining tonal harmonies with slight
dissonances. The neo-classicist style was also used by
composers such as Francis Poulenc, Bela Bartok, Igor
Stravinsky, Paul Hindemith, and Sergei Prokofieff.
Avant Garde Music- closely associated with electronic
music, the avant garde movement dealt with the
parameters or the dimensions of sound in space. The
avant garde style exhibited a new attitude toward
musical mobility, whereby the order of note groups
could be varied so that musical continuity could be
altered. Improvisation was a necessity in this style, for
the musical scores were not necessarily followed as
written. Some of the Avant Garde composers are George
Gershwin, Leonard Bernstein, Philip Glass, and John
Cage.
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.
1. In this musical style, the sounds of different chords
overlapped lightly with each other to produce new subtle
musical colors. IMPRESSIONISM
2. A style that exhibited a new attitude toward musical
mobility, whereby the order of note groups could be
varied so that musical continuity could be altered.
AVANTE GARDE MUSIC
3. It was a moderating factor between the emotional
excesses of the Romantic period and the violent impulses
of the soul in expressionism. NEOCLASSICISM
4. Is a looser form of 20th century music development
focused on nationalist composers and musical
innovators. MODERN NATIONALISM
5. Is a condition of music in which the constructs of the
music do not “live” within the confines of a particular key
signature, scale, or mode. ATONAL MUSIC
Performance Practice
-is a term used to define musical techniques that are
implied in a performance of a specific musical genre
during a musical era. But these techniques are not
written or notated.
- is the unique way of how composers make their own
performance different from the others.
20TH CENTURY COMPOSERS
IMPRESSIONISM
• CLAUDE DEBUSSY (1862–1918)
He was the primary exponent of the
impressionist movement and the focal point for other
impressionist composers. 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.
The creative style of Debussy was characterized
by his unique approach to the various musical elements.
Debussy’s compositions deviated from the Romantic
Period and is clearly seen by the way he avoided metric
pulses and preferred free form and developed his
themes.
Pelleas ET Melisande (1895)—his famous operatic work
that drew mixed extreme reactions for its innovative
harmonies and textural treatments.
La Mer (1905)—a highly imaginative and atmospheric
symphonic work for orchestra about the sea Images,
Suite Bergamasque, and Estampes—his most popular
piano compositions; a set of lightly textured pieces
containing his signature work Claire de Lune (Moonlight)
• MAURICE RAVEL (1875–1937)
The compositional style of Ravel is mainly
characterized by its uniquely innovative but not atonal
style of harmonic treatment. It is defined with intricate
and sometimes modal melodies and extended chordal
components. It demands considerable technical
virtuosity from the performer which is the character,
ability, or skill of a virtuoso—a person who excels in
musical technique or execution.
The harmonic progressions and modulations are
not only musically satisfying but also pleasantly
dissonant and elegantly sophisticated. His refined
delicacy and color, contrasts and effects add to the
difficulty in the proper execution of the musical
passages. These are extensively used in his works of a
programmatic nature; wherein visual imagery is either
suggested or portrayed. Many of his works deal with
water in its flowing or stormy moods as well as with
human characterizations.
• ARNOLD SCHOENBERG (1874–1951)
Schoenberg’s style was constantly undergoing
development. From the early influences of Wagner, his
tonal preference gradually turned to the dissonant and
atonal, as he explored the use of chromatic harmonies.
• IGOR STRAVINSKY (1882–1971)
Stravinsky adapted the forms of the 18th
centurywith his contemporary style of writing. Despite
its “shocking” modernity, his music is also very
structured, precise, controlled, full of artifice, and
theatricality. Other outstanding works include the ballet
Petrouchka (1911), featuring shifting rhythms and
polytonality, a signature device of the composer. The
Rake’s Progress (1951), a full-length opera, alludes
heavily to the Baroque and Classical styles of Bach and
Mozart through the use of the harpsichord, small
orchestra, solo and ensemble numbers with recitatives
stringing together the different songs.
PRIMITIVISM
• BELA BARTOK (1881–1945)
As a neo-classicist, primitivist, and nationalist
composer, Bartok used Hungarian folk themes and
rhythms. He also utilized changing meters and strong
syncopations. His compositions were successful because
of their rich melodiesandlivelyrhythms.He admired the
musicalstyles of Liszt, Strauss, Debussy, and Stravinsky.
NEO-CLASSICISM
• SERGEI PROKOFIEFF (1891–1953)
His style is uniquely recognizable for its
progressive technique, pulsating rhythms, melodic
directness, and a resolving dissonance.
• FRANCIS POULENC (1899–1963)
He was a member of the group of young French
composers known as “Les Six.” He rejected the heavy
romanticism of Wagner and the so-called imprecision of
Debussy an dRavel. His compositions had a coolly elegant
modernity, tempered by a classical sense of proportion.
Poulenc was also fond of the witty approach of Satie, as
well as the early neoclassical works of Stravinsky.
Poulenc’s choral works tended to be more
somber and solemn, as portrayed by Litanies a la vierge
noire (Litanies of the Black Madonna, 1936), with its
monophony, simple harmony, and startling dissonance;
and Stabat Mater (1950), which carried a Baroque
solemnity with a prevailing style of unison singing and
repetition.
AVANT GARDE
• GEORGE GERSHWIN (1898–1937)
Gershwin’s melodic gift wasc onsidered
phenomenal, as evidenced by his numerous songs of
wide appeal. He is a true“crossover artist,” in the sense
that his serious compositions remain highly popular in
the classical repertoire, as his stage and film songs
continue to be jazz and vocal standards. Considered the
“Father ofAmerican Jazz,” his “mixture of the primitive
and the sophisticated” gave his musican appeal that has
lasted long after his death.
• LEONARD BERNSTEIN (1918–1990)
Bernstein’s philosophy was that the universal
language of music is basically rooted in tonality. This
came under firefrom the radical young musicians who
espoused the serialist principles of that time. Although
he never relinquished his musical values as a composer,
he later turned to conducting and lecturing in order to
safeguard his principles as to what he believed was best
in music. He achieved pre-eminence in two fields:
conducting and composing for Broadway musicals, dance
shows, and concert music.
• PHILIP GLASS (1937)
He explored the territories of ballet, opera,
theater, film, and even television jingles. His distinctive
style involves cell-like phrases emanating from bright
electronic sounds from the keyboard that progressed
very slowly from one pattern to the next in a very
repetitious fashion. Aided by soothing vocal effects
andhorn sounds, his music is often criticized as
uneventful and shallow, yet startlingly effective for its
hypnotic charm.
ELECTRONIC MUSIC –
Music that uses the tape recorder is called
musique concrete, or concrete music. The composer
records different sounds that are heard in the
environment such as the bustle of traffic, the sound of
the wind, the barking of dogs, the strumming of a guitar,
or the cry of an infant.
• EDGARD VARESE (1883–1965)
The musical compositions of Varese are
characterized by an emphasis on timbre and rhythm. He
invented the term “organized sound,” which means that
certain timbres and rhythms can be grouped together in
order to capture a whole new definition of sound.
Although his complete surviving works are scarce, he has
been recognized to have influenced several major
composers of the late 20th century.
• KARLHEINZ STOCKHAUSEN (1928)
He is a central figure in the realm of electronic
music. Stockhausen’s music was initially met with
resistance due to its heavily atonal content with
practically no clear melodic or rhythmic sense. Still, he
continued to experiment with musique concrete. Some
of his works include Gruppen (1957), a piece for three
orchestras that moved music through time and space;
Kontakte (1960), a work that pushed the tape machine
to its limits; and the epic Hymnen (1965), an ambitious
two-hour work of 40 juxtaposed songs and anthems from
around the world.
CHANCE MUSIC –
refers to a style wherein the piece always sounds
different at every performance because of the random
techniques of production, including the use of ring
modulators or natural elements that become a part of
the music. Most of the sounds emanate from the
surroundings, both natural and man-made, such as
honking cars, rustling leaves, blowing wind, dripping
water, or a ringing phone.
• JOHN CAGE (1912–1992)
He was known as one of the 20th century
composers with the widest array of sounds in his works.
He challenged the very idea of music by manipulating
musical instruments in order to achieve new sounds. He
experimented with what came to be known as “chance
music.”
1. He is considered as the father of American Jazz.
GEORGE GERSHWIN
2. He is the main proponent of Chance Music. JOHN
CAGE
3. His style is uniquely recognizable for its progressive
technique, pulsating rhythms, melodic directness, and a
resolving dissonance. SERGEI PROKOFIEFF
4. He is the Primary proponent of impressionism 2. He is regarded today as a combination of neo-
movement. CLAUDE DEBUSSY classicist, nationalist, and avantgarde composer.
SERGEI PROKOFIEFF
5. He is the central figure in the realm of electronic music.
3. A French Composer that mainly characterized by its
His music was initially met with resistance due to its
uniquely innovative but not atonal style of harmonic
heavily atonal content with practically no clear melodic
treatment. MAURICE RAVEL
or rhythmic sense. KARLHEINZ STOCKHAUSEN
4. An avant-Garde Composer that was the primary
SOME OF THE 20TH CENTURY COMPOSERS WITH proponent of Chance Music. He is the composer with
SOME OF THEIR SALIENT WORKS the widest array of sounds in his works. JOHN CAGE
5. He is a true “crossover artist,” in the sense that his
Debussy – Claire de Lune, La Mer, Children’s Corner Suite serious compositions remain highly popular in the
Ravel – Miroirs, Sonatine, Daphnis et Chloe, Jeuxd’Eau, classical repertoire, as his stage and film songs
Bolero continue to be jazz and vocal standards. He is also
considered as the “Father of American Jazz”.
Schoenberg – VerklarteNacht, Violin Concerto, Piano GEORGE GERSHWIN
Concerto, Gurrelieder

Bartok – String Quartet no. 4, Allegro, Mikrokosmos,

Barbaro, Music for Strings

Stravinsky – The Rite of Spring, Petrouchka, The Firebird

Suite

Prokofieff – Romeo and Juliet (ballet), Piano Sonatas

Gershwin – An American in Paris, Porgy and Bess,

Rhapsody in Blue, Someone to Watch Over Me

Bernstein – Tonight from West Side Story, Clarinet

Sonata

Glass – Einstein on the Beach, Satyagraha, Akhnaten

Poulenc – Concerto for Two Pianos, Dialogues des
Carmelites

Cage – 4’33"; Metamorphosis, for piano; Five Songs, for

contralto soloist and piano; Music for Wind Instruments,
for wind quintet

Stockhausen – Etude, Electronic STUDIES I and II, Gesang

der Junglinge, Kontakte, Momente, Hymnen

Varese – Hyperprism for wind and percussion, Octandre

for seven wind instruments and double bass, Intégrales
for wind and percussion, Ionisation for 13 percussion
players.

1. He is considered as the most important and

influential of the 20th century composers. 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. CLAUDE DESBUSSY