Music Periods, Styles, Composers
Historical Outline:
Antiquity (3000 B.C. - 400 A.D.)
General Characteristics
Egyptians were prominent in the development of music, especially for use in ceremonies.
The harp, lyre and lute families were the primary instruments. Greek influences included the
study of sound by Pythagoras, who established mathematical (acoustical) descriptions of pitch,
and Plato, who advocated the philosophy that music influenced personality and emotions. A
scale system was developed based on the use of tetrachords. It was during this period that tones
were given specific letter names.
The Romans were strongly influenced by Greek culture. Early Roman music served
mostly for ceremonial, military and social engagements, and the early brass instruments were
very important especially for these uses. The Roman music consisted of pure melodic lines
which were based on simple rhythms.
Middle Ages (400 A.D. - 1450)
General Characteristics
The Middle Ages saw the development of more structure to the independent melodic line
(monophony). Medieval music theory was still based on theory principles from the ancient times.
Only a few fragments of Greek or Roman music have been found from this entire period.
During the Middle Ages, the sacred music of the Catholic Church consisted primarily of
vocal chants which were sung in unison and without accompaniment. The secular music was
mostly Plainsong.
Counterpoint was developed which incorporated the use of several parts or melodies
sounding at the same time (polyphony). Polyphonic forms of music included organum and the
motet along with the use of counterpoint and canons. Secular music became more popular and
was performed by musicians known as troubadours and trouvères in France and Minnesingers
and Meistersingers in Germany.
Medieval instruments included the harp, vielle or fiedel, organistrum, psaltery, lute, flute,
recorder, shawms, natural trumpet and horn, bagpipes, drums and great organs in churches.
Renaissance period (1450 - 1600)
General Characteristics
During the Renaissance, there was a "reviving" of the human spirit and of the cultures of
ancient Greece and Rome. Individuality became increasingly respected and revered. This
movement, known as Humanism, reinfluenced the development of music.
The sound of the music of the Renaissance became more rich and full with clearer
voicing. Rhythms moved in a steady and flowing manner. The rhythmic flow included basic
meters with only agogic accents. Melodies were mostly modal with the harmony involving
chords, sometimes found in first inversions. Homophonic texture began which involved both
accompaniment to the melody with singers and/or instruments. Imitation was used often and
included three to six polyphonic voices. Some singers (Meistersingers) incorporated dynamic
contrasts using different numbers of voices. The architectural structure of vocal and instrumental
music became more developed with the use of many forms, such as the mass, motet, madrigal,
chanson, frottola, lauda, toccata, concerto, canzona, ricercar, fantasia, ground variations, masque
and others.
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The first attempts at music printing came shortly after the appearance of Gutenberg's
Bible (c. 1455). The first book of music ever printed is a Gradual; the date (probably c. 1473)
and the name of the printer are unknown. Petrucci adapted Gutenberg's process of printing, and
published music quickly became more available throughout Europe.
The primary focus during the Renaissance was music for the voice; however,
instrumental music became more popular. Most instruments were built in sets or families of
graduated sizes with soprano to bass voicing. The basic types of instrumental music included
those derived from vocal compositions, dance music, variations and freely composed and quasiimprovisatory works.
Instruments in use during the Renaissance included guitars, recorders, flutes, shawms,
cromornes, cornettos, natural trumpets, trombones, viols, organ, lutes and percussion instruments
(drums, bells, bell chimes, castanets, etc.). Many churches in Italy used one large organ and one
small organ. New instruments included those in the violin family, large copper timpani and the
harpsichord and clavichord.
REPRESENTATIVE COMPOSERS
Binchois, Gilles (1400 - 1460)
Byrd, William (1543 - 1623)
Cabezón, Antonio de (1510 - 1566)
Dunstable, John (1390 - 1453)
Du Fay, Guillaume (1400 - 1474)
Frescobaldi, Girolamo (1583 - 1643)
Gabrieli, Giovanni (1553 - 1612)
Hassler, Hans Leo (1562 - 1612)
Josquin des Prez (1440 - 1521)
Lassus, Orlande de (1532 - 1594)
Marenzio, Luca (1553 - 1599)
Monteverdi, Claudio (1567 - 1643)
Obrecht, Jacob (1450 - 1505)
Ockeghem, Johannes (1410 - 1497)
Palestrina, Giovanni Piegluigi da (1525 - 1594)
Tallis, Thomas (1505 - 1585)
Tavener, John (1490 - 1545)
Tye, Christopher (1505 - 1572)
Victoria, Thomás Luis de (1548 - 1611)
Willaert, Adrian (1490 - 1562)
Baroque Period (1600 - 1750)
General Characteristics
The Baroque Era was known as the continuo period by some music scholars. A continuo
bass line was often used and included a harmony instrument with two performers (keyboard with
cello or bassoon). Vocal music features the use of two practices: old style Renaissance
counterpoint in which the music dominated the text and modern style in which the text was of
prime importance. Church, chamber and theater performing styles were dominant, and
instrumental music became more important. New purely instrumental forms evolved as well.
Composers of vocal music attempted to musically portray the expressions or
interpretation on the texts. The new music exhibited a polarity of florid treble and firm bass.
Filler harmonies, not notated, were improvised as the accompanists realized the figured basso
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continuo line. Two types of rhythm prevailed: the regular metrical rhythm vital to dance music
and a flexible, unmetrical rhythm founded on speech. Music notational practices included the use
of figured bass, barlines, meter and key signatures. New printing methods were produced, and by
the end of the eighteenth century, rounded noteheads appeared.
The Baroque period was divided into three distinct developmental time frames: Early,
Middle and Late.
Early Baroque (1600 - 1650)
• In the early Baroque Period two attitudes toward music performance predominated:
Prima Prattica (the first practice) -- the church conservative Stile Antico, the sober
style which was a continuation of the Palestrinian style of overlaid voices; and the
Progressive -- chamber and or ornamented "Luxuriant Style."
Vocal music still dominated. The madrigal text carried over, influencing expression
of emotion within a single piece. The melody was harmonically supported and they
created all kinds of intervals such as an augmented fourth. Dissonance was permitted
when the harmony was stable. Motives would contrast with smooth, long lines and
quick moving, spastic melodic lines. "Parlando" was used to enunciate a text of
ornamentation of long notes.
•
The harmony was diatonic. Chromaticism was used for emotion and expressions of
the text. Harmonies were generated by the bass line (basso continuo or
thoroughbass). Chords above the root position bass were usually single chords.
Harmony was non-functional; that is, not tending toward tonic.
•
Text was declamatory and expressive with a strong, regular pulse. Rhythm was
dance inspired.
•
Texture of the music was two-part, a continuo bass and melodic line; trio texture was
two upper melodic parts with bass (the middle part filled in, imitating the higher part
through parallel thirds, sixths).
•
Chamber duets were found in instrumental music.
•
Chamber theater style was used.
•
Forms of music included multi-section (Ritornello) variations (ostinato, strophic),
and solo song (monody) with accompaniment.
•
Dynamics were essentially loud and soft. Very few markings were present.
•
Early keyboard styles were the canzona, ricercar and toccata.
Middle Baroque (1650 - 1700)
• Text-dominated vocal music began to die out.
•
Short, shifting sections began to expand into larger sections. "Parts" were all
supported by the harmony of the time, and now relationships resulted between the
chords.
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•
Definite styles and forms developed, which included aria types. Instrumental forms
were the sonata, suite and overture (which affected later instrumental form
development). There were two overture types: Italian (three distinct sections) and
French (two sections, each repeated).
•
Rhythm began to stabilize, and more stylized dance patterns resulted in sonatas,
suites and overtures.
Late Baroque (Early 1700 - 1750)
• Instrumental music began to overshadow vocal writing.
•
Trumpets and timpani were placed at the top of instrumental scores; strings and
continuo were added above the horn and flute.
•
A continuo orchestration was developed.
•
Range and technical abilities were expanded.
•
More structure and tone color developed.
•
Melodic lines began to expand in length; normal long, extended, continuous lines
resulted; themes were incomplete (fugue subject ending), and repetition and
sequence were common.
•
Harmony: root movements by fifths were planned; moving bass line; chords changed
quickly with IV, V or VI chords changing frequently per measure which resulted in
faster harmonic rhythm.
•
Two kinds of fast harmonic rhythms were used: free improvisatory (preludes, toccata
or introductory sections), and patterns, repetitions or recurring rhythmic patterns,
mechanical rhythm.
•
The texture was consistent throughout; "luxuriant" ornamented counterpoint.
•
Musical forms were controlled by continuous expansion and were non-sectional;
fugal-type development; binary form was the exception -- rounded binary form
prevailed (e.g., Bach Italian suites [partitas], and English and French suites); sonatas
dominated ensemble music.
Baroque Instrumental Music
• There were four principal instrumental types: dance music or stylized dance music
intended for listening; quasi-improvisatory pieces; variations; and contrapuntal works
(ricercar and ensemble canzona types).
•
Stylized instrumental dance music evolved into the suite; the basic format was
allemande, courante, sarabande, gigue (with additional movements optional
anywhere within the sequence).
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•
The fugue grew out of organ ricercar and the ensemble canzona eventually became
the sonata da chiesa.
•
Principal types of organ music were quasi-improvisatory pieces (usually named
toccatas), the fugue, and the chorale prelude which included the chorale fantasia,
chorale partita and chorale prelude.
•
Composers of organ works were Girolamo Frescobaldi and Bernardo Pasquini in
Italy and Dietrich Buxtehude in Germany.
•
There were three principal instrumental compositions for ensembles: the sonata da
chiesa and related forms, the suite (sonata da camera) and related forms and the
concerto.
•
Some sonatas were written for solo instrument with basso continuo, but most sonatas
written during the last third of the 17th century were primarily trio sonatas; a few
were written for unaccompanied solo violin.
•
Construction of instruments in the violin family flourished (Amatis, Stradivarius and
Guarneri).
•
Baroque instruments included the harpsichord, organ, pianoforte, violin, viola da
gamba, cello, timpani, natural horn and natural trumpet, recorder, oboe, bassoon,
transverse flute, trombone and percussion.
REPRESENTATIVE COMPOSERS
Bach, Johann Sebastian (1685 - 1750)
Corelli, Arcangelo (1653 - 1713)
Couperin, Francois (1688 - 1733)
Frescobaldi, Girolamo (1583 - 1643)
Froberger, Johann Jakob (1616 - 1667)
Gabrieli, Giovanni (1553 - 1612)
Handel, George Fredrick (1685 - 1759)
Lully, Jean-Baptiste (1632 - 1687)
Monteverdi, Claudio (1567 - 1643)
Pachelbel, Johann (1653 - 1706)
Purcell, Henry (1659 - 1695)
Rameau, Jean-Philippe (1683 - 1764)
Scarlatti, Domenico (1685 - 1757)
Schütz, Heinrich (1585 - 1672)
Telemann, Georg Philipp (1681 - 1767)
Vivaldi, Antonio (1678 - 1741)
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Classical Period (1750 - 1820) -- The Age of Enlightenment
General Characteristics
The Classical period, known as the Age of Enlightenment, brought about many changes
in the style of music performance and the form of music construction. Unlike those works
composed during the Baroque period, which frequently emphasized improvisational or
ornamental techniques (figured bass, ornamentation, trills, etc.), compositions of the Classical
period emphasized tuneful, simple, singable melodies, simple harmony, major and minor modes,
strict formal structure and contrasting dynamics. "Classical" music became more formal, light in
texture and considered by many to be more enjoyable. Instrumental music became more
important. The following characterizes this development and provides additional information
regarding the Classical period:
•
A large portion of the music in this period was instrumental.
•
The principle genres of instrumental music composed between c. 1770 through c.
1820 were the symphony, sonata, solo concerto, chamber music and opera.
•
The structural principal most often used for a movement was sonata form or variant
thereof (sonata-rondo, sonata form used in a concerto, abridged sonata).
•
The use of theme and variation form continued to develop in the Classical period.
•
The Viennese Classical idiom, an important part in the development of this period,
was a synthesis of galant, empfindsamer and learned styles. In the 1770s this
Viennese Classical style was firmly established, especially in the instrumental music
of Haydn.
•
The middle works of Haydn were characterized by clarity, balance and restraint. The
same traits were present in the late works of Mozart and the early works of
Beethoven and Schubert.
•
Haydn and Mozart developed the characteristic style of the string quartet, each
composing sets of quartets.
•
Mozart used a three-movement overall scheme for his piano concertos. The first
movement utilized sonata form; the second movement of the piano concerto was
usually an instrumental aria; the third movement a type of rondo.
•
Other instrumental forms included the symphonie concertante, divertimenti,
cassation, nocturno and serenade.
•
Although the exact number is not known, Mozart composed approximately 50
symphonies and 26 string quartets.
•
Etude books appeared in Paris after 1785. The earliest publications were for flute
and violin. Piano étude books were published in the early 19th century.
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•
Haydn considered himself to be primarily a composer of vocal music. He wrote
numerous operas, masses and other sacred and secular vocal works; he also
composed 104 symphonies.
•
Considered by many to be Haydn's most significant contribution were his two
oratorios, The Creation and The Seasons, his symphonies and his string quartets.
•
Gluck worked to reform opera in his Orpheus and Euridice.
•
Beethoven was an innovator with his development of the form of the symphony. His
innovations included commencing a symphony in a key other than its tonic and
modulations to a key a third removed.
•
Singing schools were started in America to improve the quality of singing in church.
•
The first native-born American to compose a secular song is considered to be Francis
Hopkinson.
•
Francis Hopkinson (1737 - 1791), James Lyon (1735 - 1794), William Billings (1746
- 1800) and John Antes (1740 - 1811) all flourished in the second half of the 18th
century as the first native-born North American composers.
BASIC CLASSICAL STYLE
According to Joseph La Buta in Teaching Musicianship in the High School Band
(1997),10 Classical melodies were basically diatonic with simple construction and were tuneful,
folk-song-like and very singable. The musical phrases were short, mostly symmetrical and
cadenced frequently. Harmony was mostly simple and included seventh chords, limited
chromatic alteration and modulations to closely related keys. Harmonic rhythm was slow and
evenly spaced. Simple meters were dominant with barline regularity, the emphasis being on the
measure rather than the beat as in the Baroque period. The texture was largely homophonic.
Dynamics allowed sudden changes in volume with crescendos and diminuendos suddenly moving
from pianissimo to fortissimo.
BASIC CLASSICAL PERFORMANCE PRACTICE
Music of the Classical period included light, thin, restrained, gay and delicate qualities.
The performance style required the use of light, precise, restrained articulation along with
staccatos performed lightened and separated. The brass were to generally underplay the volume
and use refined dynamics in comparison to the woodwinds and strings.
REPRESENTATIVE CLASSICAL COMPOSERS
Bach, Carl Philipp Emanuel (1714 - 1788)
Beethoven, Ludwig van (1770 - 1827)
Gluck, Christoph Willibald (1714 - 1787)
Haydn, Franz Joseph (1732 - 1809)
Mozart, Wolfgang Amadeus (1756 - 1791)
Salieri, Antonio (1750 - 1825)
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Classicism to Romanticism
General Characteristics
The latter years of the 18th century involved many changes in cultural and political
events. The French Revolution led the way to most of these changes. Many musical
compositions were composed with heroic attributes emphasized. Musical drama and dramatic
tension began to increase. Instrumental ensembles became important for massed ceremonial and
commemorative activities.
•
The Paris Conservatoire and the National Guard Band were established.
•
National archives began to include collections of valuable instruments.
•
Many works were written for commemorative purposes and for massed ensembles,
thus leading to the development of wind band instrumental music and ensembles.
•
At the time of the French Revolution there were several important European
composers. The London school of pianist-composers included J.B. Cramer, Muzio
Clementi, Jan L. Dussek, John Field and George Pinto.
•
Leading Bohemian composers active in Vienna were Václav Jan Tomásek, Jan
Václav Vorísek and Johann Nepomuk Hummel (Beethoven's chief rival in Vienna).
•
Hummel's style was Mozartean, a restrained Classicism, neat and delicate, with
emphasis on fluent technique and textural clarity.
•
Beethoven contributed many important developmental procedures, among them
thematic transformation, fugue and variation.
•
Beethoven's best-known symphony, Symphony No. 5, marks the first use of
trombones in a symphony.
•
Much of the 19th century Romantic music was rooted in Beethoven's music.
•
The doctrine of nationalism gained strength in the middle quarter of the 19th century.
Romantic Period (1820 - 1900)
General Characteristics
The Classical era evolved into a newer period in which many "classical" aspects were
altered, expanded and enhanced. This was a time when music and the other arts emphasized
expressive elements, many based on emotion and feeling, along with spiritual aspects. Thus,
variety in sound, instrumentation and expression prevailed. The following characterize the
development:
•
The Romantic period brought about musical characteristics that emphasized lyricism,
chromatic themes, long sequences, chromatic harmony, harmonic color and new
instrumental color.
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•
The major musical forms included: symphonic poem, music drama (e.g., opéra
comique, Leitmotif), symphonic variations, symphony development, art songs for
voice, character pieces for piano and the concerto.
•
Nationalism in music became important in the second half of the 19th century as
composers began to utilize native folk songs or emphasized some national or ethnic
element in their music.
•
Along with the freedom of form development and variety in sounds came the
extension and added length to many musical works.
•
The orchestra grew in size and instrumentation.
•
"Program music" incorporated ideas to express, refer or describe something, or to tell
a story (e.g., Beethoven's Pastoral Symphony, Berlioz' Symphonie Fantastique).
•
Many new instruments were invented and new ways of performing (fingerings, key
systems, valves, mouthpieces, reeds, etc.) were developed.
•
Instrumental innovations included the Albert system for the clarinet, the Heckel
system for the bassoon and the Boehm system for the flute and clarinet.
•
Machine-tuned timpani were developed.
•
Instrumental music compositions for winds and performances of instrumental
ensembles increased.
•
Chopin, Mendelssohn and Schumann were early Romantic period leaders in the
development of character pieces for piano.
•
Schumann's main musical contributions were Lieder and piano music.
•
Paganini advanced violin playing through his virtuosic performances and innovative
bowing and fingering techniques, thus improving orchestral string performances.
•
There were two primary types of music in America during the Romantic period:
native/popular and art music.
•
Lowell Mason pioneered music education and established music in the curriculum in
the Boston schools in 1837. He was also a prolific hymn writer who composed
and/or arranged more than 1,600 hymns.
•
Stephen Foster was America's principal son writer; he composed more than 150
songs of varying style.
•
The New York Philharmonic (Philharmonic Symphony Society of New York) was
the first permanent American symphony orchestra (1842).
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•
Singing schools in America continued with two main leaders: William B. Bradbury
(1816 - 1868) and Lowell Mason (1792 - 1872).
•
Wagner composed and produced many great works, particularly his music dramas.
He utilized large ensembles, and many of his works were of great length.
•
Verdi composed 28 operas and other instrumental and vocal compositions.
•
Liszt composed secular cantatas and oratorios and has been credited as the originator
of the symphonic poem.
•
Brahms is considered by many to have been the most inventive and accomplished
19th century composer.
•
Anton Bruckner composed 11 symphonies and other instrumental and vocal works.
He wrote fine sacred choral music. The Ninth Symphony has been considered his
best orchestral work.
•
Five major composers in Russia led the way for nationalism in music (frequently
referred to as the Russian Five): Mily Balakirev, César Cui, Modest Musorgsky,
Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov and Alexander Borodin.
•
The symphonic suite was first developed by Rimsky-Korsakov (e.g., Scheherazade).
BASIC ROMANTIC STYLE
Lyricism and the use of long sequences were emphasized. Musical lines were both
diatonic and chromatic and stated in either major or minor modes. Melodies were singable with
more expressive emotion than those of the Classical period. The instrumental and vocal colors
were expanded with the increase of instrumentation and/or voices and size. The harmonic
elements often emphasized seventh, ninth and eleventh chords along with the use of chromatic
progressions. Wide dynamic ranges were common. Scoring sometimes varied from monophony
to large masses of sound. Instruments included complete families, thus adding to the orchestral
color.
BASIC ROMANTIC PERFORMANCE PRACTICE
The Romantic period involved many changes in style. Variety included many contrasts:
loud/soft volume, heavy/light articulation, thick/thin texture, dark/light sonority, intense/relaxed
expression, complex/simple color and programmatic/absolute development.
REPRESENTATIVE ROMANTIC COMPOSERS
Balakirev, Mily (1837 - 1910)
Berlioz, Louis-Hector (1803 - 1869)
Bizet, Georges (1838 - 1875)
Borodin, Alexander (1833 - 1887)
Brahms, Johannes (1833 - 1897)
Bruckner, Anton (1824 - 1896)
Chopin, Frédéric (1810 - 1849)
Cui, César (1835 - 1918)
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Dvorák, Antonin (1841 - 1904)
Fauré, Gabriel (1845 - 1924)
Foster, Stephen Collins (1826 - 1864)
Franck, César (1822 - 1890)
Glinka, Mikhail (1804 - 1857)
Liszt, Franz (1811 - 1886)
Mahler, Gustav (1860 - 1911)
Mendelssohn (Bartholdy), Felix (1809 - 1847)
Mussorgsky, Modest (1839 - 1881)
Paganini, Niccolò (1782 - 1840)
Puccini, Giacomo (1858 - 1924)
Rimsky-Korsakov, Nikolai (1844 - 1908)
Rossini, Gioacchino (1792 - 1868)
Saint-Saëns, Camille (1835 - 1921)
Schubert, Franz Peter (1797 - 1828)
Schumann, Robert (1810 - 1856)
Scriabin, Alexander (1872 - 1915)
Sibelius, Jean (1865 - 1957)
Smetana, Bedrich (1824 - 1884)
Strauss, Richard (1864 - 1949)
Tchaikovsky, Peter (1840 - 1893)
Verdi, Giuseppe (1813 - 1901)
Wagner, Richard (1813 - 1883)
Weber, Carl Maria von (1786 - 1826)
Wolf, Hugo (1860 - 1903)
Contemporary Period (1900 - present)
General Characteristics
The development of music continued with a growing reaction to Romanticism. Many
varieties of change, alteration and experimentation resulted. Composers chose many styles of
writing which have included impressionism, nationalism, neoromanticism, neoclassism,
serialism, pointillism, minimalism, experimentalism (determinant and indeterminant forms),
electronic, jazz, popular (country, rock and roll, rap, alternative) and others. This period has been
known as "The Age of Diversity." The following characterize the development and musical
styles:
•
Impressionism: the Contemporary period started with this movement. The music
emphasized an atmosphere of vague sounds, lack of precise formal development and
varied musical color. Tonality was still prevalent with the use of irregular phrases,
nontraditional harmony, dissonances which were not resolved, parallel chords which
utilized altered tones and special selected instruments that portrayed special images.
Claude Debussy and Maurice Ravel were the leaders of French Impressionism.
Other composers of Impressionism were Florent Schmitt, Ottorino Respighi and
Frederick Delius.
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•
Nationalism: the movement began in the late 19th century and continued into the 20th
century. Composers utilized native folk songs or emphasized some national or ethnic
element in their music. Leaders were the Russian and Czechoslovakian composers,
and concepts of the nationalistic movement continue today. Composers
incorporating nationalism in some of their works included Mikhail Glinka, Bedrich
Smetana, Jean Sibelius, Edward Elgar, Ralph Vaughan Williams, Béla Bartók, Zoltán
Kodály, Heitor Villa-Lobos, Carlos Chávez and George Gershwin.
•
Neoromanticism: some contemporary composers chose to incorporate older musical
elements of the Romantic period into new music of the twentieth century. These
elements included more emphasis on melodic writing, tonal centers or tendencies
toward tonality and use of similar construction forms. Expressive performance
emphasis was again highlighted. The music of David Del Tredici incorporated many
of these elements.
•
Neoclassicism: similar in concept to neoromanticism, neoclassicism in 20th century
music incorporated 17th and 18th century musical elements into contemporary
composition. The concepts of contrapuntal writing, as used by J.S. Bach, were
particularly used along with a reuse of other particular construction styles and forms
(suite, toccata, madrigal, opera, etc.). Neoclassicism was incorporated by composers
such as Igor Stravinsky, Paul Hindemith, Sergei Prokofiev and a group of French
composers known as Les Six: Georges Auric, Louis Durey, Arthur Honegger, Darius
Milhaud, Francis Poulenc and Germaine Tailleferre.
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Serialism: Arnold Schoenberg and his students Alban Berg and Anton Webern are
credited with developing a new style of music construction. The new style, known as
12-tone music or dodecaphony, used all 12 chromatic pitches (pitch classes)
contained in an octave, with each tone equally emphasized. The sound was actually
"a tonic" or atonal, meaning without tonality. A special system to organize the order
and style of the use of these 12 tones was created. This system involved the use of a
"tone row" or "series of tones" within a basic pattern. From this established tone
row, the series could appear in different forms such as forward (prime), backward
(retrograde), inverted, inverted backward (retrograde inversion), and/or in different
transpositions. This construction system allowed for as many as 48 variations.
Multiple tones sounding together created new harmonic sounds. Many current
composers use serialistic elements combined with other contemporary writing
techniques.
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Pointillism: Anton Webern is credited with the adaptation of this painting concept to
music. Composing asthmatic music, isolated notes were constructed in a very
pointed or disjunct manner and blended to create certain tone colors and variations of
timbres; for example, a musical line would appear with wide leaps and extreme
intervals and could call for varying articulations, volumes, registers, mutes and other
special effects. Both Webern and Schoenberg used this construction technique.
Currently, many composers utilize pointillistic techniques.
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•
Minimalism: in the late 1960s a musical construction technique used "repetition," an
ostinato-type concept. This repetition was of short figures, based on a specific
rhythm or series of tones, or both elements were used together, which served as the
basis of the entire work. Many early minimalistic works were quite lengthy with
static harmonies. Today, many composers incorporate this construction technique
along with other contemporary techniques to reiterate musical ideas in their works.
Major composers utilizing minimalism as a dominant construction technique include
La Monte Young, Philip Corner, Terry Riley, Philip Glass and Steve Reich.
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Experimentalism (determinant and varying indeterminant forms): experimentalism
has often been referred to as "chance music" and "aleatoric music." John Cage led
the way with this form of compositional creativity. Music that was predetermined
and scored in such a manner as to allow performers to vary such elements as length,
volume, tone sequences, form, etc., was referred to as the "determinant" form of
chance music. When musicians were given the opportunity to decide independently
on the choices of sounds (not necessarily scored) such as the length, volume, tone
sequences, form, etc., this form of chance music was called "indeterminant."
Although these forms of chance music involved different sounding performances,
more variation was possible with the indeterminant forms.
•
Electronic music: since the invention of recording devices in the late 19th century,
sound technology has significantly improved and has allowed varying forms of stored
sounds, manipulated sounds and produced sounds, from the early use of magnetic
tape to those generated by computer and synthesizer, many new techniques have been
utilized by composers. Contemporary composers who have utilized this medium
include Philip Glass, Pierre Schaeffer, Karlheinz Stockhausen, John Cage, Pauline
Oliveros and Luicano Berio.
BASIC CONTEMPORARY STYLE
Contemporary -- also called "modern" or "20th century" -- style involves a variety of
musical characteristics. No particular set of restraints applies to the many types and styles as
addressed in the categories above. Some characteristics include the use of fragmented melodies,
dissonance, wide ranges of expression, extreme range demands, varied instrument choices,
special effect sounds and linear melodic lines. Other characteristics are polyrhythms, atonality,
polytonality, multiple meter changes, asymmetric rhythms and meters, densities of sound (i.e.,
layers of sonorities and intensities) and new sounds artificially generated.
BASIC CONTEMPORARY PERFORMANCE PRACTICE
To interpret contemporary performance practices properly, the music of this period
requires research into the composer's life and compositional style. Rhythms, meters and
segmentation of notes seem to have greater emphasis than in earlier periods of music. Performers
should follow written musical notation and interpretation marks precisely. Dissonances serve a
most important role and need proper balance. Performance accuracy is essential to make the
special effect sounds and sections convincing.
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REPRESENTATIVE CONTEMPORARY COMPOSERS
Auric, Georges (1899 - 1983)
Babbitt, Milton (b. 1916)
Bartók, Béla (1881 - 1945)
Berg, Alban (1885 - 1935)
Berio, Luciano (b. 1925)
Britten, Benjamin (1913 - 1976)
Brown, Earl (b. 1926)
Cage, John (1912 - 1992)
Chávez, Carlos (1899 - 1978)
Cowell, Henry (1897 - 1965)
Copland, Aaron (1900 - 1990)
Crumb, George (b. 1929)
Debussy, Achille-Claude (1862 - 1918)
Del Tredici, David (b. 1937)
Durey, Louis (1888 - 1979)
Elgar, Edward (1857 - 1934)
Gershwin, George (1898 - 1937)
Glass, Philip (b. 1937)
Hanson, Howard (1896 - 1981)
Hindemith, Paul (1895 - 1963)
Holst, Gustav (1874 - 1934)
Honegger, Arthur (1892 - 1955)
Ives, Charles (1874 - 1954)
Kodály, Zoltán (1881 - 1967)
Ligeti, György (b. 1929)
Messiaen, Olivier (1908 - 1992)
Milhaud, Darius (1892 - 1974)
Musgrave, Thea (b. 1928)
Nono, Luigi (1924 - 1996)
Oliveros, Pauline (b. 1932)
Orff, Carl (1895 - 1982)
Penderecki, Krzystof (b. 1933)
Piston, Walter (1894 - 1976)
Poulenc, Francis (1899 - 1963)
Prokofiev, Sergei (1891 - 1953)
Ravel, Maurice (1875 - 1937)
Reich, Steve (b. 1936)
Riley, Terry (b. 1935)
Schaeffer, Pierre (b. 1910)
Schoenberg, Arnold (1874 - 1951)
Shostakovich, Dmitry (1906 - 1975)
Still, William Grant (1895 - 1978)
Stockhausen, Karlheinz (b. 1928)
Stravinsky, Igor (1882 - 1971)
Tailleferre, Germaine (1892 - 1983)
Varèse, Edward (1883 - 1965)
Villa-Lobos, Heitor (1887 - 1959)
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Williams, Ralph Vaughan (1872 - 1958)
Webern, Anton (1883 - 1945)
Young, La Monte (b. 1935)
Comparative Historical Chronology:
The following serves as a resource to assist in making connections as outlined in the
National Standards for Arts Education -- What Every Young American Should Know and Be Able
to Do in the Arts.
8.
Content Standard: Understanding relationships between music, the other arts,
and disciplines outside the arts
9.
Content Standard: Understanding music in relation to history and culture11
The primary sources for the comparative historical chronology include the following: The
Timetables of History (1991), Cyclopedia (1995), A History of Western Music (1996), Exploring
Music (1989), The Development of Western Music (1990), The Enjoyment of Music (1963), and
Teaching Music through Performance in Band (1997). When these sources provided conflicting
information, every reasonable attempt was made to verify the dates listed as closely as possible.
Please note the following code for the comparison area:
H
A
DL
SI
Historical Event
Artistic Contribution
Daily Life
Scientific Contribution or Invention
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