Module 13-Eclecticism

Avant Garde

(from the French for "advance guard" or "vanguard") an artistic approach that endeavors to experiment, using techniques and processes that are not part of the established artistic tradition.

Experimentalism

(see also "avant garde") music or artistic expression that is characterized by the process of experimenting with non-traditional creative techniques. The goal of experimentalism is centered more on the new creative process than on the aesthetic outcome or final result of the creative act.

Expressionism

the artistic depiction of deep-seated emotions and internal psychological states usually accomplished through distorting materials and forms.

Primitivism

the expression of primitive artistic styles and cultural themes in contemporary art forms.

Post-Modernism

a late 20th-Century artistic movement that attempts to move beyond the now-antiquated aesthetic approach of the "modern" era of the earlier 20th Century. Post modernist art is often characterized by skeptical interpretations of earlier philosophical and cultural ideas. Deconstruction is often a part of the post-modernist view, looking for the ironies of existence, and reducing earlier ideas to their most basic and iconoclastic meanings.

Synthesizer

a musical device that creates tones of various colors, textures, and articulations. First developed in the 1950s, these electronic musical instruments have evolved to include not only sound synthesizers, but digital samplers, internal computer sequencers and recorders, and complete digital audio workstations.

Aleatoricism

a process of creating a new work of art that utilizes elements of probability or chance. Through aleatoricism, the creator of the art work relinquishes some control over the outcome of the final artistic expression. These aleatoric processes may be used during the creation of the work, or as part of the actual performance.

Tonality

a style of composition where one note in a scale is considered to be the "home" note, around which all other notes gravitate. Tonal composition was the predominant harmonic language from ca. 1600 to 1900. While it is still the predominant harmonic style in the 21st Century (especially in folk and popular music styles), it has sometimes been supplanted by atonal, modal, dodecaphonic, and other harmonic approaches.

Twelve-tone Composition/Dodecaphonsicism

a technique of composition, developed by Arnold Schoenberg and others in the early 20th Century, which intended to abandon the traditional system of major and minor keys, and to create a music in which every pitch is as significant as every other. In order to achieve this aim of atonality, the composer devises a series of notes, using all twelve pitches of the chromatic scale, in a predetermined order. This tone row becomes the basis for the composition. It may be used in its original form, expressed in any rhythmic values desired, contrapuntally juxtaposed over itself or creating harmonic structures, presented in retrograde, inverted, or retrograde-inverted forms, transposed to any new pitch level, or have notes of the row grouped in chordal clusters.

Prepared Piano

a traditional piano whose sound has been altered by placing objects between or on the strings of the instrument, including screws, bolts, and rubber stoppers.

Nationalism

an approach to artistic expression that evinces pride in the artistic creator's homeland and immediate culture. Nationalistic works are often based on the folk arts of the culture; folk tales, myths, and legends; or subjects that are part of the fabric of a culture or ethnic group.

Minimalism

an artistic approach that uses minimal means for its expression - a sort of "less is more" approach. In music, this style is characterized by a steady pulse, incessantly repetitive rhythms, a clear sense of tonality, and short repetitive melodic patterns. The music evolves through slight (or "minimal") changes in the repeating patterns as the music progresses.

Eclectic/Eclecticism

any artistic expression whose ideas and stylistic traits are drawn from a wide variety of sources.

Neoclassicism

is a style based on the ideals of emotional restraint, balance, and clarity of form. These are significant traits from earlier "classical" eras. The music may resemble music of the 18th Century, in its harmonic approach or it may use more current harmonic trends (like quartal harmony, modality, or even atonality), but the texture will typically be clear, open, and restrained.

Neoromanticism

music and art which are based on the romantic ideal of emotional expressiveness. Such works are usually tonal and tend to be more accessible to general audiences. They usually have a broader listener appeal than the intellectually esoteric, austere works created in most other 20th-century styles.

Microtonality

music that uses intervals smaller than the traditional half-steps found on the keyboard - quarter steps, and other small intervals. While European music evolved the system of half steps and whole steps that are commonly used in our most familiar scales, many other cultures around the world (Africa, Indonesia, etc.) have long used microtonal scale arrangements.

Atonality

term used to describe music that consciously avoids a major/minor tonal center.

Dadaism

the art of the absurd, intended as a rebellion against established concepts and practices.

Serialism

the process of creating a predetermined series of musical events that may be manipulated and combined to create a complete musical work. The serialist composer may organize predetermined sequences -- structured sets of pitches, rhythmic values, a pre-ordered sequence of dynamic markings, articulations, or even tone colors in the music. By manipulating the different predetermined sequences and juxtaposing them, the music is created.

propagandism/politicism

using the arts to espouse political dogma, attempting to sway public opinion.