“In Both Art and Music”
Impressionism
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Originated in Paris, France during the late
19th century-early 20th century.
Impressionism was a rejection of the
Romantic style in which composers wrote
music that portrayed emotions.
The goal of Impressionism was to create a
mood.
Impressionism in Art
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Impressionism was first used in art.
Artists used dots, dabs, and swirls as they
applied their brushstrokes.
Paintings were blurry and looked unfinished.
They created an impression of an object, rather
than something that was clearly defined. It hints
rather than states.
At first, Impressionist artists’ paintings were NOT
accepted by art critics, nor were they allowed to
be displayed in the art galleries.
Impressionism in Art
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The most common natural element found in
Impressionist paintings is water.
Impressionist artists would rather paint outside
than in a studio.
Two important elements of Impressionist art are
light and color.
Two Impressionist painters are Monet and Renoir.
Impressionist artists painted for enjoyment, not to
make a living.
Impressionist Art
The following slides are examples of
Impressionist art. Notice who the
artist was in each. You will need to
know this later.
Monet
“Water Lilies”
Monet
“Sunrise”
Renoir
“Two Young Girls at the Piano”
Activity-Create an “Impressionist
Painting”
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Go to Start/Programs/Paint
Using the tools in this program, create a “painting”
the would be considered in the Impressionist
style.
Be sure to think about the following as you work:
What are the elements that are considered
impressionist?
Be able to explain why your work is an
impressionist masterpiece.
Directions to Save:
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When finished click the following:
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File, Save as
Open the G: drive
Courses
Pennbrook files
DiValentino
Name your file: Your name.painting
Save
Impressionism in Music
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The composer regarded as the leader of Impressionism was
Debussy.
Two Impressionist composers were Debussy and Ravel.
Sounds were “painted” in Impressionist music by using richly
colored harmonies. Two types of scales Debussy commonly
used to do this were whole-tone and pentatonic.
Impressionist music has a weakened sense of tonality.
Impressionist music does NOT have a clear rhythmic beat.
Impressionist music experiments with different types of
sound. This is called timbre or tone color.
Impressionism in Music
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Music in horror movies is an example of
Impressionist music because it creates a mood. It
adds to the tension and suspense of the movie. It
also adds an element of surprise. For example,
think of a loud cymbal crash at an unexpected
time in the movie.
Some examples of Debussy’s Impressionist music
are Jeax d’Eau (Water fountain) and Clair de
Lune (Moonlight).
Activity-Tone Color
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Turn on the keyboard and set it to the MULTI
mode.
Using the list of GENERAL MIDI sounds, play,
listen to, and experiment with as many of the 108
as you can.
Pick five that you find interesting, unique, or
different.
What mood or impression would you associate
with each?
Activity-Scales
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To hear what a pentatonic scale sounds
like, turn on your keyboard and play the
black keys one at a time in a row.
To hear a whole-tone scale, play the
following: C, D, E, F#, G#, A#, C.
Activity-”You’re the composer.”
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CONGRATULATIONS! You have been
hired to compose the music for a new
movie. Using your keyboard and your
GMIDI sounds, set the mood for the
following scenes:
Scene One
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The opening scene of the next blockbuster
horror film.
Scene Two
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Entrance of Darth Vader in the next
installment of the Star Wars saga.
Scene Three
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The opening scene of a documentary about
a the beauty of our natural parks.
Scene Four
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The moment when aliens from outer space
land on earth.
Impressionism
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This style was called Impressionism
because artists and composers created an
impression of a subject.
Impressionism was a technique used to
capture a moment of life and nature.
Impressionism in music and art both create
a mood or impression. They hint rather
than state.