Listening Responses
Piano Fantasy (1955)
Aaron Copland Copland's Piano Fantasy opens with four notes descending down the keyboard, hammered at full force. This is an appropriate beginning for a piece that challenges the listener throughout, surprising the ear with its rhythm and tonality at every turn. Copland is relentlessly modern in his unexpected sforzandos and strange tonal directions, and the Fantasy is an exhilarating experience for both performer and audience.
Piano Variations (1930)
Aaron Copland Similar to Schoenberg and Gershwin, Copland applies modern style to a classical form. Rather than jazzy or serialist, however, his style consists of strong, rhythmic, and complex sonorities that don't evoke a specific nationality, individual in their own right.
Appalachian Spring, scenes 7 and 8 (1942-1944)
Aaron Copland and Martha Graham This portion of Appalachian Spring, containing orchestral variations on a well-known Shaker hymn (Simple Gifts), evokes a beautiful simplicity afforded by the Shaker melody. Though the melody and accompanying harmony are rather standard in style, the variety of textures and timbre combinations that Copland applies offer a more modern feel to the work, despite its traditional inspiration and origins.
Wozzeck, Act III: Scenes 3-5 (1925)
Alban Berg The ending of Berg's Expressionist opera utilizes anguished harmonies and emotional vocal performances to elicit intense discomfort (and even terror) within the listener. Throughout, there exists a sense of impending catastrophe, and Berg's approach to tonality is extremely successful in conveying the horrors of the human psyche.
Prometheus, the Poem of Fire (1910)
Alexander Scriabin This orchestral work begins with a hauntingly dissonant chord on an organ, soon pierced by a single horn melody which swells to a sforzando between strings, brass, and winds. The sinister mood continues in various forms throughout, interspersing faster, irregular rhythms for piano and horn with slowly undulating string harmonies similar to Debussy's. In places, Scriabin even invokes terrifying and heroic themes, adding forceful brassy sounds and thundering percussion, eventually ending on a major chord that is more frightening than it is conclusive.
Three Browning Songs, No. 2: "Ah love, but a day!" (1900)
Amy Beach The first American composer in our list, Amy Beach's "Browning Songs" express her unique individuality. Written for piano and voice, the music is not modernist (in fact, it's remarkably tonal compared to much of our other material), but still forward-looking, with a dense, lush accompaniment and exhilarating leaps for the voice.
Symphony, Op. 21, Mvt. 1 (1928)
Anton Webern Webern's composition, despite being scored for full orchestra, is extremely sparse. Each instrument delivers small melodic and rhythmic gestures, independently of the others and never more than two or three at a time. The result is a work that never quite approaches thematic coherence, despite its designation as symphonic form.
Variations for Orchestra, Op. 31: Theme and Variation 6 (1926-28)
Arnold Schoenberg Schoenberg's take on the classical Theme and Variations form introduces his seemingly inscrutable serialist approach to composition within a commonly understood format. The theme, while quite short, is densely complex, with an atonal melody in strings and equally dissonant harmonies in the other instruments, qualities that carry over into the variations. What is remarkable about this work is that despite his eschewing of traditional harmonic practices, Schoenberg's ideas still feel and sound ordered, even in the absence of what is normally considered tonal order.
Pierrot lunaire, 8. Nacht & 13. Enthauptung (1912)
Arnold Schoenberg These two songs for piano, voice, wind, and strings defy any attempt to understand them using traditional tonality. Schoenberg's deconstructive approach to harmony results in a remarkably unsettling (yet eerily beautiful) work, where each instrument moves through different tones independently of the others. This is most evidently displayed in the female voice, which takes on a moaning lament in "Nacht" and whips itself into a nightmarish frenzy in "Enthauptung", all the while blurring the line between song and spoken word.
12-tone parody from the NY Times (2013)
Arnold Schoenberg Though far from being actually written by Schoenberg, this breakdown of 12-tone composition by Vi Hart emulates his style across a variety of common tunes, including Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, Mary Had a Little Lamb, etc. Certainly, the tone of this explanation parodies the work of the serialists, but it is also appropriately reverent to their contributions to 20th century music and carefully repackages their style for modern audiences.
Romanian Folk Dances, no. 1: Dance With Sticks (1915)
Bela Bartók In this short piano work, Bartók again introduces a folk-like theme, with a stilted short-short-long rhythm and a melody that rises in sequence before falling to a somewhat surprising major-chord resolution. The left-hand, with a few exceptions, primarily offers a broken-chord accompaniment, introducing a more elegant dance-like character than the ferocious and inevitable Allegro barbaro.
Allegro barbaro (1911)
Bela Bartók This short work for piano combines a modern understanding of tonality with an Eastern European folk-like energy. Rhythmically, the piece drives forward relentlessly, with a pulsating pattern of chords in the instrument's lower register that returns again and again, occasionally interrupted by lighter, daintier melodic figures in the right hand. Just as quickly as it begins, the piece ends, giving the impression of a force that is released abruptly and dissipates soon after its genesis.
Music for Strings, Percussion, & Celesta, Mvts 1 and 3 (1936)
Béla Bartók The first movement of this work (for Strings, Percussion, and Celesta, as you may guess from the title) is a fugue for strings unlike any other I've heard. The subject, which isn't very melodic to begin with, stays in the depths of each instrument's register, taking on a murkier and murkier quality as more voices are added to the mix. The third movement is similarly dark, with rumbling timpanis, a haunting percussive "cricket", and strings that increase steadily in intensity to a terrifying roar.
Concord Sonata, iii: the Alcotts (1916-19)
Charles Ives Another peaceful work, Ives' sonata for solo piano begins gently, with dense complex chord qualities between the left and right hands (perhaps reminiscent of Debussy's planing?) The peace is later broken up by a strange, fragmented (yet unmistakable) recollection of the theme of Beethoven's symphony no. 5, which seems to me a strange choice. Does the Viennese master have anything to do with Concord, or the Alcotts, or even Ives?
The Unanswered Question (1908)
Charles Ives Ives' short orchestral composition opens slowly, with serene, calming harmonies in the strings, offering a backdrop of tranquility throughout the work. However, this is interrupted by a dissonant trumpet, followed by other dissonant woodwinds, giving the music its "unanswered" nature. Ives creates a vibrant world with his tonal strings and atonal winds/brass, and the two sections exist (paradoxically) both together and in opposition to one another.
Serenity (1919)
Charles Ives This slow-moving work for piano and voice has a more sinister tone than Ives' other pieces. Despite a seemingly religious text (Jesus' name is evoked several times), the melody consists of repeated notes, step-wise motion, and small leaps within a very restricted range. Even more haunting is the sparse piano accompaniment, which slowly punctuates the voice with dissonant, singular harmonies.
Parker's Mood (1948)
Charlie Parker This jazzy bebop number incorporates piano, drum, bass, and a creamy saxophone solo. Typical of its genre, Parker's work plays fast and loose with the barline, allowing the saxophone to express itself freely above the other instruments. Parker's Mood is also tonally innovative, moving away from the repetitive harmonies of earlier jazz such as Old Man Blues.
Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun (1892-94)
Claude Debussy This impressionistic work for orchestra maintains a tranquil mood throughout, evoking images of the natural world. Debussy rarely utilizes obvious cadences or traditional chord progressions, opting instead for a lush harmonic backdrop that moves gently from key to key. Instrumentally, the work is similarly peaceful, allowing various winds to express repeated, winding melodies over a string accompaniment and employing percussion as atmosphere rather than timekeeper.
Old Man Blues (1930)
Duke Ellington Jazz legend Duke Ellington and his ensemble provide a snappy, up-tempo work with roots in the blues of the 20s but several updated tendencies: notably, the increase in size of the ensemble. Additional saxophones and trombones provide a thicker timbre in the trebles, and a walking bass provides the harmonic and rhythmic foundation for the song, making Old Man Blues a delightful listen.
Poème électronique (1957)
Edgard Varèse "Poème électronique" is problematic. From the outset, it is difficult for me to appreciate the work while sitting in the ZSR Library, rather than amongst the curved walls of the Philips Pavilion for which it was created. Music that is dependent upon a specific context for listening will always suffer in other spaces. Moreover, Varèse and I are separated by time, and thus, technology. Perhaps in the 50s, recorded and electronically modified noises could be considered groundbreaking, but in 2017, they amount to a hodgepodge of cheap cartoon sound effects.
Ionisation (1931)
Edgard Varèse This tribal, primitive-sounding work by the French-American modernist utilizes only percussion instruments, utilizing rhythm and the unique timbre of each drum to serve as form, rather than explicit melody or harmony. This is a fascinating deconstruction of traditional musical practices, and almost forces the ear to hear tone and melody where there normally is none.
Symphony No. 1, mvt. 1 (1983)
Ellen Taaffe Zwilich This dramatic orchestral work builds slowly, growing from sparse winds and strings into a shrieking, emotional double forte. The harmonies, while modern, are not unpleasant, and do not stray too far away from tonality. I found several melodic figures/harmonies to be reminiscent of Mahler and Stravinsky, evoking longing, horror, and heroism in turn. Just as it began, the movement ends by returning gently into silence, giving the work an elegant symmetry.
Heartbreak Hotel (1956)
Elvis Presley There are few voices in pop music more distinctive than that of Elvis Presley. Heartbreak Hotel is a prime example of The King's vocal style, a crooning Southern drawl that slides up to and away from each note. Is this approach technically sound? Perhaps not, but it is absolutely stuffed with character and individuality, crucial components in the burgeoning celebrity culture of the 50s.
Avant-dernières pensées (next-to-last thoughts), 1. Idylle (1916)
Erik Satie Similarly to Gymnopédie no. 1, this short piano work pairs an upper melody with an undulating, repetitive ostinato as accompaniment. However, these "next-to-last thoughts" come across more mischievous than melancholy, delivering melodic lines that create fleeting dissonances with the left hand and frequently feel harmonically unfinished as they sweep serenely up and down the keyboard. The end comes abruptly, with the cessation of the ostinato and a sharp "ping!" in unison between the two voices.
Gymnopédie no. 1 (1888)
Erik Satie Simple yet beautiful, this work for piano consists entirely of an upper-voiced melody over a repeated, rhythmically consistent broken chord accompaniment. Harmonically, the piece uses many complex, dissonant chords, presenting an ethereal and melancholy mood to the listener. This is complemented by Satie's use of dynamics, which sit between piano and mezzo piano, rarely rising above the steady melody and accompaniment and keeping one's emotions equally reserved.
Symphony No. 3 in c minor, Mvt. 1 (1940)
Florence Price To my ear, Price's work for orchestra doesn't seem as American as Still or Gershwin, opting for a more international style. Her treatment of strings, themes, and dynamics is dramatic (heroic even, a la Beethoven) and reminiscent of previous musical eras, rather than the forward-looking modernism of her contemporaries. However, the composition itself is still elegantly conceived and executed, far from a mere reenactment of Romanticism/Classicism.
Ancient Voices of Children, "The child is finding his voice" (1970)
George Crumb Crumb's work opens with an agitated, isolated soprano. Though the work sets a poem of Lorca, no words are spoken for the first few minutes, opting instead for otherworldly vocal trills, shrieks, and guttural percussive noise. With the addition of sparse mandolin and plucked piano, Crumb transports the audience to a primal landscape, featuring human expression unfiltered by traditional form a la Black Angels.
Black Angels, Thirteen Images from the Dark Land, "Devil music" and "Danse macabre" (1970)
George Crumb In this work for strings and percussion, Crumb evokes pure evil. "Devil music" scrapes violently across the strings, sounding like shrieks, creaking doors, and crashing machinery in turn. "Danse macabre" introduces plucked strings in a more coherent meter, adding a twist of playfulness to the devilish proceedings. His complete disregard for normal treatment of instruments allows for the work's unearthly tone, depicting horror with great effectiveness.
Rhapsody in Blue (1924)
George Gershwin An American classic, this well-known piano concerto begins with an iconic clarinet solo and continues into an energetic, jazzy theme. Gershwin's ability to intertwine uniquely American musical concepts with classical forms of "art" music is unparalleled, and the work's fame is clearly well-deserved. (Also, I'd never heard the version played by jazz band instead of orchestra that we talked about in class. The music takes on a very different, more personal quality in that recording, despite my already-existing familiarity with its themes.)
Porgy and Bess, Act 1/Scene 1, "Summertime" (1935)
George and Ira Gershwin Similarly to Rhapsody in Blue, Gershwin again mixes popular American tastes with more classical features: in this case, the harmonies and instrumentation of blues/jazz with operatic melodies and vocal style. To me, this is not as flawless of a combination as Rhapsody, as coloratura singing feels out of place within the context of American popular tastes of the time period, but the work is nevertheless innovative and fresh.
7 Studies on Themes of Paul Klee, "Little blue devil" and "Arab village" (1959)
Gunther Schuller Schuller utilizes a wide range of styles in his 7 Studies. "LBD" shrieks into life before settling into a relaxed, jazzy flavor, complete with drums, walking bass, and cornet: playful and nightmarish in turn. "Arab Village" takes an entirely different approach, beginning with a lonely, undulating Middle-Eastern theme for flute that is later accompanied by Stravinsky-esque orchestration. Schuller's ability to operate in genres as distinct as Arab folk music and American jazz (within the same work!) is distinctly modern, and an appropriate reaction to Klee's various paintings.
Lux aeterna (1966)
Gyorgy Ligeti Ligeti's Lux aeterna, famously featured in Kubrick's "2001: A Space Odyssey", thrives on dissonance, atmosphere, and eeriness. The work, an a cappella setting of the requiem mass, utilizes many sustained pitches at once, creating an atonal backdrop for individual groups of voices to diverge briefly from before returning to the swirl. In this context, the human voice sounds more extraterrestrial than it does human: certainly appropriate for a movie about the vast unknown cosmos.
The Banshée (1925)
Henry Cowell The Banshee, also played over the top of the piano, uses a different method than Aeolian Harp, sliding up and down the strings to create an eerie, shrieking effect (much like a banshee). This further expands the range of sounds that can be created by a piano, albeit in a much less pleasing way than Cowell's other work.
Aeolian Harp (1923)
Henry Cowell This modernist work (if my guess is correct) is played over the top of a piano, strumming/plucking the strings in different chordal patterns. The effect is a very unique timbre, each chord attacking harshly, then transforming into a pleasant sustained consonance. Like Varèse, Cowell's approach is both innovative and pleasing to the ear, expanding the boundaries of music.
In Memoriam Dylan Thomas (1954)
Igor Stravinsky Stravinsky's work for orchestra and baritone is a haunting setting of Thomas's poem "Do not go gently into that good night". Bookended by funeral dirges with heavy trombone emphasis, "In Memoriam" is a serial lament on death and dying. To me, this is a bit inconsistent with the message of the poetry: a weepy solo voice with string accompaniment doesn't exactly sound like "raging against the dying of the light".
The Rake's Progress, Act I, final scene (1951)
Igor Stravinsky The Rake's Progress is a breath of fresh air after Varèse. I'm fully aware of my bias toward classical and Romantic music, but never has this been clearer to me than hearing the opening of "I Go To Him" in contrast to the beeps and whines of "Poème électronique". This is music as I've always idealized it: technically excellent, emotionally evocative, and valuable for conveying narratives that inform us about the human condition and inspire us to achieve greater heights of empathy and understanding.
The Rite of Spring, Introduction and Dance of the Adolescents (1913)
Igor Stravinsky This orchestral work opens with a single English horn melody (a la Debussy's opening for flute in Afternoon of a Faun) before giving way to a number of other double-reed instruments undulating in and around one another, producing a frantic yet mysterious tonal color, building in fervor and tempo. After returning briefly to the English horn melody and concluding the Introduction, the Dance of the Adolescents bursts into life. This section opens with an alarming, driving rhythm in the strings, broken up by winds (this time, less billowing gently and more scrambling about) intermittently. Eventually the wind melodies escape the menacing strings, but develop into a new, equally terrifying pattern at the end of the dance.
L'histoire du soldat (1918)
Igor Stravinsky This work, for chamber orchestra and spoken word (and presumably dance), offers a narrative of a soldier coming home from war. Stravinsky's instrumentation frequently takes on a pictorial quality, with brass and winds recounting the protagonist's march and a consistent rhythmic quality for the dancers to follow. His characteristic mixing of timbres also makes an appearance, particularly evident in the sinister yet playful depictions of the soldier's encounters with the devil.
Symphony of Psalms (1930)
Igor Stravinsky Using a Latin setting of several Psalms as the basis for his musical composition, Stravinsky melds antiquity with modern stylistic sensibilities. The first movement alternates between an undulating melody in the winds, and a homophonic, minor-mode choral section. The second movement is a woodwind fugue with an asynchronous, leaping subject that marches steadily forward into the third movement, a somber alleluia. Stravinsky's overall creation is an entirely unique musical representation of Biblical text, maintaining the expected somberness and rhythmic qualities of religious settings while diverging in timbre and tonality.
Papa's Got a Brand New Bag (1965)
James Brown Brown takes a unique, soulful approach to the rock 'n' roll genre, with pulsing rhythm guitar and a piercing horn section. While Elvis's vocals are laid back and languid, Brown's leap around stage in a frenzy, brimming with energy and charisma.
Show Boat: "Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man" (1927)
Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein This musical theater work utilizes elements of jazz and blues, with a similar laid-back feeling to West End Blues (though slightly more up-tempo). Also of note is the use of African-American vernacular ("lovin' dat", for example), introducing racial context into the musical drama.
3 Songs for Soprano and Clarinet, No. 1: Total Eclipse (1934)
Johanna Beyer This short work for solo soprano and clarinet is sparse and isolating, consisting mainly of short melodic gestures between voice and woodwind. Beyer's treatment of the two instruments doesn't put them in consonance or dialogue, but sets them independently. The lack of clear tonality also gives the piece a wandering, uncertain impression.
4'33" (1952)
John Cage 4'33" exemplifies my biggest critique of modern deconstructionist art: it may be conceptually brilliant and well-thought out, but it frequently requires no skill to create. To record four minutes of silence is possible for just about anyone, regardless of musical training/background. However, the value of Cage's statement on sound is not lost on me: when listening to the work, I become more attentive to my surroundings and the strange beauty of ambient noise. I would just prefer to refer to the work as musical philosophy, rather than music itself.
Music of Changes, Book I (1951)
John Cage Cage's aleatoric work for piano is fast-paced and frenetic, running up and down the keyboard with very little coherence (at least in the traditional sense). It defies description more than any piano work I've heard thus far: clearly it isn't classical or romantic, and it's so disordered that serialism is out of the question. It's even stylistically distinct from Copland's Piano Fantasy, which I already found very modernist and experimental. "Music of Changes" is an extremely appropriate title, as it is markedly different from other piano music, contemporary or otherwise.
Klavierstück XI (1956)
Karlheinz Stockhausen Stockhausen takes an even more sparse approach to indeterminacy than Cage, with highly spaced-out gestures at odd intervals on the piano. I find this music very challenging to appreciate. Certainly, Stockhausen has crafted this work with great care, and I am by no means questioning his compositional authority. I simply find music that follows a set of mathematical rules (yes, even ones that amount to rolls of the dice) to lack the humanity I have come to expect from the medium.
West End Blues (1928)
King Oliver Opening with a virtuosic and unbelievably cheery trumpet solo, this blues song settles into a languid, laid-back tempo, as the trumpet, clarinet, and trombone gently trace a catchy melody. Also present is a scat solo, whose baritone timbre contributes to the pleasant lazy feeling of the work.
Threnody for the Victims of Hiroshima (1960)
Krzysztof Penderecki Initially, Threnody (for strings) just sounds like noise. However, once the ear has adjusted to the cacophony, new features begin to emerge: subtle shifts in pitch in different instruments, specific pitches within the sonic mass, and even differences in bowing technique and vibrato between players. The work is emotionally charged, and worthy of its title as a lament for a great catastrophe.
Home of the Brave, "Language is a virus" and "Sharkey's Night"
Laurie Anderson Anderson's performance piece is a fusion of narrative and 80s pop motifs: drum machine, sparse synths, and layered backing vocals. Frequently, Anderson's voice is also pitched down electronically, adding to the futuristic sound of the work. Both "Language" and "Sharkey's" involve clever wordplay and storytelling over a background of repetitive pop elements, allowing the listener to focus on Anderson's quick-witted messaging.
All Set (1957)
Milton Babbitt Babbitt's work is rife with unconstrained energy. Despite its clear serial composition, all the usual suspects of a jazz ensemble are present: saxophone, piano, trumpet, drums, and bass. This combination of mathematical, highly ordered compositional style and a genre known for improvisation and creativity is remarkably successful despite its disparate components, innovating within both spaces.
Einstein on the Beach, Knee 1 (1976)
Philip Glass The opening number of Glass's innovative opera, Knee 1 exhibits the sophisticated minimalism for which the composer is so well-known. A lonely organ plays a bass ostinato repeatedly for nearly 10 minutes: four beats on A, six beats on G, and eight beats on the tonic C, counted out by an ethereal choir. Throughout, a woman delivers a disjointed monologue, barely heard above her fellow performers. The effect emphasizes key words and phrases that randomly rise out of the harmonic scenery, allowing a listener to experience repetition while marveling at the subtle variety found within.
Knoxville, Summer of 1915 (1949)
Samuel Barber Here, Barber weaves an immersive narrative of a Southern city during a bygone decade. "Knoxville" is rife with text painting, depicting the idyllic, tranquil summer months in a dream-like state, narrated throughout by a warm soprano. His treatment of winds and timbre is also remarkably Stravinsky-esque, creating a murky atmosphere that gives an impression of peering backwards in time.
Maple Leaf Rag (1916)
Scott Joplin This work for piano is full to the brim with joy. Joplin uses broken chord accompaniment and syncopated melodic rhythms to create a uniquely American style, with elements that would not be out of place in the blues or jazz that follow Joplin historically. The piece almost begs to be played on a slightly out-of-tune piano in a well lit, early 20th century bar (or speakeasy, if we're in the midst of Prohibition!)
Classical Symphony, no. 1 in D (1918)
Sergei Prokofiev This work for orchestra lives up to its name, resembling the likes of Mozart and Beethoven more closely than Prokofiev's contemporaries, in length, form, and harmonic structure. The piece adheres to a standard sonata form for the first allegro movement, with a delightfully clear recapitulation and triumphant coda. However, Prokofiev's take on Classicism feels lively and new rather than derivative, indicating that there is still new ground to be tread within the confines of tried and true forms.
Violin Phase (1967)
Steve Reich Violin Phase likely has the shortest score on this list (except perhaps 4'33"), and yet sounds wonderfully complex and dynamic. A single violin pattern, repeated ad nauseam, is joined by several others, initially playing at the same tempo but slowly desyncing with one another. The result is an intricate minimalist work that constantly changes, examining every minute detail of the repeated phrases on display.
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, "A Day In The Life" (1967)
The Beatles Sgt. Pepper's is seen as one of the most influential pop albums of all time, and "A Day in the Life" makes a strong argument for McCartney and company's impact. With strange lyrics, several verses, a dream-like interlude, and a harrowing orchestral transition between sections, the song defies expectations of what rock 'n' roll should be. Of particular interest is the cacophonous orchestra, which blurs the line between popular and art music and would be a nearly impossible addition without the advent of modern recording technology.
Wildwood Flower (1928)
The Carter Family This folk tune, utilizing only strummed string instruments and voice, takes the listener far away from the dense cities where blues and jazz reside. Wildwood Flower is unmistakably from a more rural time and place, imparting to the listener a sense of peace, security, and home, despite the text's darker quality about a love lost.
St. Louis Blues (1914)
W. C. Handy This blues song emphasizes trumpet (or cornet?) and voice in a soulful, distinctly African American style. Even moreso than Joplin, Handy's work seems tailor-made for the American public rather than European musical elites, with a clear rhythm and storytelling lyrics in the vernacular.
Afro-American Symphony No. 1, Mvt. 1 (1931)
William Grant Still Similar to Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue, Still utilizes uniquely American motifs and idioms in a distinctive classical form. The opening theme, a swanky trumpet melody, evokes the image of an urban blues/jazz show, but is supported and augmented by full orchestra. As asynchronous as these two ideas may seem, Still weaves them together flawlessly.
This Land Is Your Land (1940)
Woody Guthrie Similar to Wildwood Flower, Guthrie's composition utilizes only voice and guitar, with a tuneful melody describing the natural beauty of the American continent. The commonplace, repetitive nature of both these tunes convey an accessible simplicity to listeners of the time, who must have been encouraged and comforted by music declaring their citizenship of a relatively young nation.
