MULT 396 Music History III

Emily Swartzwelder
Assignment 6

Spring 2015

1. Explain the Significance or Provide Brief Definitions for the following:

Horatio Parker Ives studied with him from 1894-1898 at Yale, leading
composer & teacher at the time, conventional ideas, taught Ives to think like
a symphonist (large forms and related themes)
Transcendentalism exalted the visionary, self-reliant individual; a
religious and philosophical movement developed during the late 1820s and
30s in the Eastern region of the U.S. as a protest against the general state of
spirituality and the state of intellectualism at Harvard
Nadia Boulanger Copland was her first American pupil, taught Copland a
solid technical foundation and a superb understanding of the orchestra,
helped form Coplands distinctive sound
League of Composers music concerts of Copland and Roger Sessions,
lectures & articles that made up series of books ; founded NYC 1923; mission
is "to produce the highest quality performances of new music, to champion
American composers in the United States and abroad, and to introduce
American audiences to the best new music from around the world; still
exists today
What to Listen for in Music (1939) lectures and articles from League of
Composers, first book
Americana (in music) - an amalgam of roots music formed by the
confluence of the shared and varied traditions that make up the American
musical ethos; specifically those sounds that are merged
from folk, country, blues, rhythm and blues, rock and roll and other external
influences.
Martha Graham American dancer and choreographer, Martha Graham
Ballet: story of young couple getting married and beginning their life
together, Copland wrote three versions (chamber ensemble, short suite for
full orchestra, complete ballet for full orchestra), most loved orchestral
work every written in America, choreographed Appalachian Spring and got
Copland to write it
Tin Pan Alley - collection of New York City music publishers and

songwriters who dominated the popular music of the United States in the
late 19th century and early 20th century.
Jazz heavily influenced Copland, Gershwins attempt at making a lady out
of Jazz was Rhapsody in Blue, Gershwin attempted the first jazz-oriented
folk opera (Porgy and Bess), its the sexy and erotic genre
Blue notes - a note thatfor expressive purposesis sung or played at a

slightly different pitchthan standard. Typically the alteration is a between

a quartertone and a semitone, but this varies among performers and
genres.

Dubose Heyward writer, wrote a story about poor blacks on Charlestons

Catfish Row, Porgy and Bess (Gershwin) based on that story
Musical Theater - a form of theatrical performance that combines songs,
spokendialogue, acting, and dance. The story and emotional content of a
musical humor, pathos, love, anger are communicated through the words,
music, movement and technical aspects of the entertainment as an
integrated whole
Jerome Robbins - an American theater producer, director, and dance
choreographer known primarily for Broadway Theater and Ballet/Dance, but
who also occasionally directed films and directed/produced for television; did
classical ballet and contemporary musical theater and more; choreographed
west side story
Minimalism (in music) - simple ideas strung repetitively along a steady
pulse, the material usually modal but clearly tonal, everything designed for
easy comprehensibility and mesmerizing absorption; roots in heavy beat of
rock n roll plus elements of non-western music & some sixties culture
Neo-romanticism (in music) - a return (at any of several points in the

nineteenth or twentieth centuries) to the emotional expression associated

with nineteenth-century Romanticism.
Pulitzer Prize in Music 1946 Ives won for Third Symphony (premiered 42
years after it was finished), 1983 Ellen Taaffee Zwilich for her Symphony no.
1

4. Answer the following questions in paragraph style

a. Describe traits that distinguish the songs on our list for this unit. How do
these songs of Charles Ives differ from the examples composed by Aaron
Copland?
a. On the surface, Ives music seems more playful and fun while
trying to communicate a deeper message. Copland, on the other
hand, seems to be more sophisticated in his styles and the obvious
sound and feeling of his works. Also, Copland seems to prefer
more intelligent-sounding musical works in comparison to Ives
(not at all trying to be offensive, just descriptive). Also, most of
Coplands works are larger orchestral works, and Ives are more
vocal solos which are light and playful more often than not.
b. In listening to Charles Ives' The Unanswered Question, how do you think
that the choices Ives made with instrumentation support (or not) his
expressive purpose in writing the music?
a. I believe they definitely support his purpose in writing this piece.
The three separate groups of instruments paint the picture of the
question/answer struggle in a very real and vulnerable way, and
when I read about this piece and listen to it, I think Ives
accomplishes his goal well. Listening to this piece, you can
literally feel the frustration in the woodwinds answers and the
[almost] cynical nature of the trumpet asking the question. It

makes me angsty because I feel like its a very real representation

of lots of unanswered questions in the universe (especially ones
pertaining to faith). Also, it reminds me of the movie Interstellar.
c. Do you hear Coplands music as sounding particularly American? Why, or
why not?
a. Yes, I do. The sounds I characterize with American music are all
included in Coplands music. He includes a lot of folk-like rhythms
and motifs, and also the fanfare sound is something I associate
with American music. I think I hear the fanfare type sounds most
in the brass and percussion, especially in the hoedown and the
fanfare of course.
d. When Gershwins opera, Porgy and Bess, was first produced in 1935 the
United States was still a segregated society. Even though Gershwin was
a vocal champion of civil rights several prominent musicians, including
African-Americans, criticized his use of traditional musical idioms from
the Negro south. Do you agree with those criticisms? And why, or why
not?
a. In retrospect, listening to this music now as opposed to then, I
think the idioms used are a very cool representation of the culture
at the time. I dont know if I could speak honestly to agreeing with
the criticisms or not because I am not living in the same time
period and dont understand completely and personally the way
the music was received. From my point of view, I wouldnt agree
with those criticisms, but my culture is very different from
Gershwins, even if we live[d] in the same country.
e. In West Side Story Leonard Bernstein sought to translate the classic
drama of Romeo and Juliet into the United States during the 2oth century
using music elements from jazz and Latin American music. Now that has
been more than 50 years since its premiere, how would you rewrite the
story in the 21st century. Where would you set the story? Who would
represent the two rival families? And, what musics would you use to
represent these two groups?
a. Im going to make this as culturally relevant to this day as
possible. I would set the story in Baltimore. And the Romeo and
Juliet would be an inner-city, African American boy thats
participating in the riots and a suburban white girl whose dad
watches CNN every night and hates whats happening in the city
and thinks that the reasons for the rioting are stupid. I would use
hip hop or R&B to represent the boy & his family. And I would use
Indie and singer/songwriter music to represent the girl and her
family.
(disclaimer: I understand that this is a very blunt and forward
answer to this question. I am not trying to be offensive in any way
whatsoever. I have learned a lot today about whats happening in
Baltimore and I am really worked up and angry about it, and Im
not sure how to process it, so I chose to answer this question in
this way.)