Impressionism

Made use of the whole-tone scale. It also

applied suggested, rather than depicted,
reality. It created a mood rather than a definite
picture. It had a translucent and hazy texture,
lacking a dominant-tonic relationship. It made
use if overlapping chords, with 4 , 5 , th th

octaves, and 9th intervals, resulting in a non-

traditional harmonic order and resolution.
Expressionism
Revealed the computer’s mind, instead
of presenting an impression of the
environment. It used atonality and the 12-
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 partial return to a classical form of
writing music with carefully modulated
dissonances. It made use of freer seven-
note diatonic scale.
 Avant-garde
Was associated with electronic music and
dealt with the parameters or dimensions of
sound in space. It made use of variations of
self-contained note groups to change
musical continuity and improvisation, with
an absence of traditional rules on harmony,
melody, and rhythym.
Modern Nationalism
Was a looser form of 20 century music
th

development that focused on nationalist

composers and musical innovators who
sought to combine modern techniques
with folk materials.
CLAUDE DEBUSSY
He was the primary exponent of the
impressionist movement. He change the
course of musical development by
evolving traditional ruiles and conventions
into a new language of possibilities in
harmony, rhythm, form, texture, and color.
•Ariettes Oubliees
•Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun
•String Quartet
•Pelleas et Mesilande
•La Mer
•Images, Suite Bergamasque, and
Estampes
 Maurice Ravel
He composed a number of masterpieces
during his stint with the school he stayed until
his early 20’s. His compositional style is mainly
characterized by its uniquely innovative but not
atonal style of harmonic treatment. It demands
considerable technical virtuosity from the
performer—with a virtuoso being a person who
exhibits exceptional musical technique or
execution.
 The harmonic progressions and
modulations in Ravel’s works 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.
 Many of his works deal with water in its
flowing or stormy moods, as well as with
human characteristics. Ravel was a
perfectionist and every bit a musical
craftsman. He strongly adhered to the
classical form, specifically its ternary
structure.
• Pavane for a Dead • Valses Nobles et
Princess-1899 Sentimentales-1911
• Jeux d’Eau / Water • Le Tombeau de
Fountains-1901 Courperin-1917
• String Quartet-1903 • Rhapsodie Espanogle-
• Sonatine for Piano-1904 1907-1908
• Miroirs / Mirrors-1905 • Bolero-1875-1937
• Gaspard de la Nuit-1908
 ARNOLD
German
SCHOENBERG
composer Richard Wagner
influenced Schoenberg’s work. This was
evidenced by his symphonic poem or tone
poem Pelleas und Melisande, Op5.
Schoenberg style was constantly undergoing
development. From the early influences of
Wagner, his music gradually turned to the
dissonant and atonal, as he explored the use of
chromatic harmonies.
 He is credited with the development if
the 12-tone system. Although full of
melodic and lyrical interest, his music is
also extremely complex, creating heavy
demands on the listener. Thus his works
were met with extreme reactions—either
strong hostility from the general public or
enthusiastic acclaim from his supporters.
•Verklarte Nacht, Three Pieces for Piano,
op.11
•Pierrot Lunaire
•Gurreleider
•Verklarte Nacht(Transfigured Night, 1899)
 IGOR STRAVINSKY
• He adapted the forms of the 18th century
with his contemporary style of writing.
Despite its “shocking” modernity, his
music is also very structured, precise,
controlled, full of artifice, and theatricality.
 When Stravinsky left Russia for the United
States in 1939, he slowly turned his back on
Russian nationalism and cultivated his neo-
classical style.
Stravinsky’s musical output approximates
127 works, including concerti, orchestral
music, operas, ballets, solo vocal, and choral
music.
• The Firebird Suite
• Petrouchka
• The Right of Spring
• The Rake’s Progress
20th Century Musical Styles:
Electronic and Chance Music
 The new musical styles created by 20 century
th

classical composers were truly unique and

innovative. They experimented with the elements
of rhythm melody, harmony, tempo, and timbre in
daring ways never attempted before. Some even
made use of electronic devices such as
synthesizers, tape recorders, amplifiers, and the
like to introduce and enhance sounds beyond
those available with traditional instruments.
 Among the resulting new styles were
electronic music and chance music. These
expanded the concept of music far beyond the
conventions of earlier periods, and challenged
both the new composers and the listening public.
Edgard Varese
From France, Varese’s use of new
instruments and electronic resources led
to his being known as the “Father of
Electronic Music” and a description of him
as “The Stratospheric Colossus of Sound”.
Karlheinz Stockhausen
From Germany, he further experimented
with electronic music and musique
concrete. His electronic sounds revealed
the rich musical potential of modern
technology.
John Cage
From the United States, there was John
Cage with his truly unconventional
composition techniques. His works feature
the widest array of sounds from the most
inventive resources
John Cage
From the United States, there was John
Cage with his truly unconventional
composition techniques. His works feature
the widest array of sounds from the most
inventive resources
NEO-CLASSICISM
 Sergei Prokofieff
His style is uniquely recognizable for its
progressive technique, pulsating rhythms,
melodic directness, and a resolving
dissonance. He was highly successful in his
piano music, as evidenced by the wide
acceptance of his piano concerti and sonata,
featuring toccata-like rhythms and biting
harmonic dissonance within a classical form
 Prokofieff’s musical compositions include
concerti, chamber music, film scores, operas,
ballets, and official pieces for state occasions.
• Concerto in C Major, OP, 26, No. 3
• Romeo and Juliet
• War and peace
• Peter and the wolf
• Symphony no.1
 Francis Poulenc
He was a member of the young French
composers known as “Les Six.” His compositions
had a coolly elegant modernity,, tempered by a
classical sense of proportion. He was a
successful composer for piano, voice and choral
music. Poulenc’s musical compositions total
around 185 which include solo piano works, as
well as vocal solos(melodies) which highlight his
temperament in his avant-garde style.
• Concert Champetre
• Concerto for Two Pianos
• Concerto for Solo Piano
• Les Mamelles de Tiresias
• La Voix Humane
• Litanies a la vierge noire
• Stabat Mater
• Perpetual Motion, No.1
Avant-Garde Music
 George Gershwin
His melodic gift was considered 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. His total
compositions total around 369 which include
orchestral music,, chamber music, musical theater,
film musicals, operas, and songs.
 He was also considered as the “Father of
American Jazz”
• La La Lucille
• Rhapsody in Blue
• An American in Paris
• Porgy and Bess
• Summertime
 Leonard Bernstein
He endeared himself to his many followers as a
charismatic conductor, pianist, composer, and
lecturer. His big break came when he was asked
to substitute for the ailing Walter in conducting
New York Philharmonic Orchestra in a concert. His
universal language of music is basically rooted in
tonality. He achieved pre-eminence in two fields:
conducting and composing for Broadway musicals
dance shows, and concert music.
• West Side Story, Tonight
• Adaptation of Romeo and Juliet
• Broadway hit Candide
• Mass
 Philip Glass
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 vocal effects and horn sounds, his music is
often criticized as uneventful and shallow, yet
startlingly effective for its hypnotic charm. He
• Music in Fifths
• Satyagraha
• Akhnaten
• Einstein on the Beach
Modern Nationalism
 Russian Five
Infused chromatic harmony and incorporated
Russian folk music and liturgical chants in their
thematic materials.
• Modest Mussorgsky
• Mili Balakirev
• Alexander Borodin
• Cesar Cui
• Nikolai Rimsky Korsakov
“Les Six”
1. Francis Paulenc
was one of the relatively few composers born into
wealth and privileged social position. He was a
member of the group of young French composers
known as “Les Six”. His compositions had coolly
elegant modernity, tempered by a classical sense of
proportion.
2. Georges Auric – wrote music for the movies
and rhythmic music with lots of energy
3. Louis Durey- used traditional ways of
composing and wrote in his own, personal way, not
wanting to follow form.
4. Arthur Honegger- liked chamber music and
the symphony. His popular piece Pacific 231,
describes a train journey on Canadian Pacific
Railway.
5. Darius Milhaud- was a very talented
composer who wrote in several different styles.
Some of his music uses bitonality and
polytonality.
6. Germaine Tailleferre- was the only female in
the group. She liked to use dance rhythms.
She loved children and animals and wrote
many works about them. She also wrote
operas concerti, and many works for the piano.