Lizzy Wagman and Inna Zheng

THE MUSIC TIMELINE

Antiquity: before 450
no standard system
usually attached to dance, movement, or story
no concerts or other showcases solely of music
evidence to support music among cavemen
Middle Ages/Medieval: 450-1450
development of standard system by Guido dArezzo
monophonic and sacred, e.g. Gregorian chant
preferences of fourths and fifths over thirds and sixths
thirds and sixths sound slightly off with Aristotles tuning based on math
later fixed with absolute tuning
Renaissance: 1450-1600: Josquin des Prez, Thomas Tallis, William Byrd
polyphonic extremes - age of polyphony
more secular and more instrumental
aristocratic access to music via court musicians
hard to access without lots of money or being in the church
no general concerts
Baroque: 1600-1750: Vivaldi, Bach, Purcell, Handel
ensembles and other types of music
ornate and ornamental music
expectation of intricacy
if given a simple melody on paper, the performer is expected to create
ornamentation with grace notes, trills, etc.
rejects polyphonic extremes
all periods are a reaction to what came before
Bachs four part fugues for organ
Classical: 1750-1820: Mozart, Beethoven, Haydn
reaction to over-ornamentation
balance, order, form
emphasis on tonality/tonal center
important for sonata allegro form, which is also emphasized
Romantic: 1820-1900: later Beethoven, Tchaikovsky, Chopin, Liszt, Berlioz, Brahms
Expansion
of technology - piano, mass production, metal from Industrial Revolution,
instruments invented e.g. sax
of access - public concerts with ticketed entrances, concert halls, emphasis
on acoustics, pianos in middle class living rooms
musicianship as a profession
Lizzy Wagman and Inna Zheng

bigger orchestras
Conservatories
emotions
both program and absolute music
Impressionism: 1880-1920: Ravel, Debussy, Satie
French movement
rejected overbearing and dramatic late Romanticism, for a simpler form
use new scale systems to give impressions, like in art
particularly experiment with timbre, i.e. what is causing the vibrations
depends on size and construction, can differ between different models of
the same instrument
Contemporary: after 1900: Cage, Glass, any pop artist
at the end of the Romantic period, moving away from formal tonality established
during the Classical Period
what else can we do? what is music?
change the sound source
abandon key and tonal center
question definitions of audience, form

SONATA-ALLEGRO FORM
exposition: the first section, establishes tonic
first theme in tonic
second theme in closely related key
closely related keys: tdominant, subdominant, parallel minor, relative
minor
subdominant and dominant are easy to modulate to/from because they are
only one accidental different
parallel and relative minor changes are really changes in mode
parallel minor shares root, relative minor shares key signature
modulation: a temporary move to another key area
REPEAT of everything
development: variations and development on both themes
modulation to more distantly related keys
they must be somewhat related key areas
recapitulation: aural return to the first theme
second theme played in tonic
coda: optional part at the end, literally tail
very successful in Classical Period and most of Romantic Period
Lizzy Wagman and Inna Zheng

in Romantic Period, the development moves away for a very long time before the
relief of the return, e.g. Wagner
this builds the relief of the recapitulation
tonality abandoned in Contemporary Period

LATE ROMANTICISM/GERMAN CHROMATICISM

chromaticism: free modulation that loses sense of tonic and has more tension than
resolution
2nd Viennese school: Schoenberg, Berg Webern
Wagner was both a composer and a musical/philosophical theorist, extremely
self-conscious in his music production
controversial background - anti-Semitic, but pre-Nazi, although he became
Hitlers favorite musician and he wrote treatises about his beliefs
Bernstein convinced Israeli Philharmonic to play his pieces
music drama: the complete work of art/ultimate art form (Gesamtkunstwerk)
theater, music, poetry, dance, art, etc.
said opera was corrupt, this would be different because he would have
complete control, as director/composer/artist/etc.
Italian opera seen as a way for divas to show off, not a use of music
leitmotiv: a guiding motive, to help listeners identify characters/ideas/concepts
Overture: in opera, opening
Influenced by Goethe and Schopenhauer
embraces tonality with overtone series
overtones have fundamentals (i.e. bases)
the higher you go, the closer they are together/the harder they are to hear
affect timbre, which is dependent on which overtones are highlighted
responsible for the development of the orchestra pit as an aesthetic and acoustic
solution to the placement of orchestras during operas
Composed Prelude to Tristan and Isolde (and liebestod) and Prelude to Das
Rheingold
Schoenberg led the 12 tone/atonal movement
at first, studied and wrestled with the Late Romantic, as many were still
composing in this way
felt Late Romanticism was a way of the past
Composed Verklarte Nacht (Transfigured Night)
Poem by Dehmel (1899)
Strauss:
Composed Death and Transfiguration
A tone poem, turned into writing by Ritter
Lizzy Wagman and Inna Zheng

IMPRESSIONISM (1880-1920)
originally a French movement, parallels Impressionism in visual arts with interest in
light/color/timbre
similarities between art and music
art: water, reflections, women, visible brushstrokes, pastels and bright
colors, light/airy, less attention to proportion, rejection of Realism, not
intended to be exact, atmospheric, conceptual
Monet, Renoir, Degas, etc
music: legato, light, airy, tonal, soft, non abrasive, consonance, dynamics,
atmospheric, conceptual, abstract
similar to the Symbolist poets (Mallarme, Baudelaire, Rimbaud, Verlaine)
English outpost (especially with use of folksy tunes) included Vaughan Williams,
Bax, Delius
timbre highlights e.g. beauty of a solo wind
shorter pieces, feel airy
rejected the heaviness of German chromaticism
a different manner of exploration
used new scale systems instead, and some old ones as well
whole tone scale: six notes, entirely whole steps, characteristic of a
cartoon dream sequence, eliminates pull to tonal center, less of a hierarchy
- only two options, though: the one with C and the one with C#
pentatonic scale: any scale with five notes (e.g. C# D# F# G# A#), popular
in Asian culture, feels as though floating, showed philosophy of just
enjoying music and relaxing
Modes: ionian, dorian, phrygian, lydian, mixolydian, aeolian, locrian
Paris World Exhibition of 1889, resulted in exoticism
pentatonic scales
influence of Javanese/gamelan music on Debussy
influences of jazz and blues
uniquely American, fascinating to French
tried to incorporate jazz harmonies, and extended harmonies beyond a
triad e.g. sevenths, ninths, elevenths, sharp elevenths, lessening purpose of
tonic
not concerned with the previous rules of tonal harmony
embraced parallel/gliding movement, especially octaves, fourths, fifths, said to be
too open after the Middle Ages
Debussy: composed Clair de Lune
Lizzy Wagman and Inna Zheng

Poem by Verlaine
Ravel: composed Bolro
Long crescendo throughout the entire piece
exoticism
Repeated themes offinato
Satie believed there should be more access to music via the pianos beginning to appear in
peoples homes due to mass production and secularization/accessibility of music
as such, music should be easily playable in the home, by the average pianist
some people say his music is too easy, not serious
composed Gymnopedie

ATONALITY
Charles Ives: Grandfather of American music
Polyrhythmic: 2 or more meters at the same time (shifting in accents)
Polytonality: 2 or more tonal centers
Large nationalistic influence (father was a bandleader in the Civil war)
Microtonality: made a piano that could play microtones; independent of
traditional music theories)
Used chord clusters: a group of closely related notes, doesnt sound good
Not concerned about public opinion
Wrote The Gong of the Hook and Ladder (firemans parade down main street)
Made popular by Bernstein in the 40s
Influenced by sounds of two parades; tone poem
The Unanswered Question (a contemplation of a serious matter):
Strings (offstage) = druids; trumpet (back of house) = perennial question;
woodwinds (onstage) = attempt to answer that question
Putnams Camp Redding from 3 Places in New England: from orchestral set
Penderecki:
Threnody for the Victims of Hiroshima:
Atonality
Unconventional notation: black triangle highest possible pitch
(aleatory), glissando scales (strings), microtonality

PRIMITIVISM
Polyrhythmic: two or more contrasting rhythms played at the same time
Polytonal: simultaneous use of two or more keys (tonal areas)
Notable Russian Musicians that rebelled against European reliance: the Mighty Handful
Rimsky Korsakov, Cesar Cui, Mily Balakirev, Alexander Borodin, Modest
Mussorgsky
Lizzy Wagman and Inna Zheng

MLADA Ronde Infernale by Rimsky Korsakov in 1892

Korsakov was Stravinskys teacher, some think that Stravinsky copies a
section of MLADA in Firebird (uses some of the same notes and
techniques)
MLADA: Pagan gods of ancient Russia
Igor Stravinsky
Russian Nationalist, melodic ideas from Russian folk music
Music often arrhythmic: without a set rhythm
Big orchestras-percussion instruments
Rite of Spring: 1913
Orchestral piece encompassing ballet
Original Choreographer: Vaslav Nijinsky
Set designer: Nicolas Roerich
Subtitle: Scenes of Pagan Russia in Two Parts
Part 1: Adoration of the Earth
Part 2: The Sacrifice (A group of old men sitting in a circle, in the middle
of the circle, there is a young virgin women dancing herself to death to be
given as sacrifice)
This ballet was controversial because of the costumes (which covered up the
dancers from head to toe instead of showing off the human body, the movements
werent as graceful (always down to the ground), they move in groups, some
audience members said that the dancers had a toothache because of the way they
were positioned to start. Overall, it didnt have the usual beauty and grace that
normal ballets have.)
Stravinsky takes the sounds produced by original Russian instruments and
recreates them using the modern orchestra by playing instruments in unusual
ranges that arent usually played.
Example: The opening starts with a bassoon in the highest note so it
doesn't sound like a normal basson
Other instruments that usually arent featured such as E flat clarinet
Uses for voices of the shaman, asparagus roots shooting out of the
ground (the earth rejuvenating itself)
Musical Instruments that were for the upper classes is brought down to an
earthy feeling
Riot: The musicians were instructed to continue no matter wat happens
The music was a sensory overload: burnout
Bass line: a continuous crescendo ostinato
Musical Exclamations used when the girl is chosen for sacrifice
Loud percussion to symbolize death
Lizzy Wagman and Inna Zheng

Firebird: 1910
Produced by Sergei Diaghilev: Ballet Russe
He was tired of old cliches constantly being reused in ballet.
Thought Paris would be a good place for the premiere because the French
like all things Russia
Story about Princes, Dark vs. Light etc.
Petrushka: 1911
Carl Orff: composer of Carmina Burana
Primitivist style
O Fortuna and In Taberna
Chorus, ostinato, heroic-sounding, subito dynamics, latin text
Story about rebel monks

AMERICAN JAZZ/ OTHER AMERICAN COMPOSERS

John Cage:
433: complete silence, interested in all sound
Imaginary Landscape no. 4 for 12 Radios: aleatory
Sonata for Prepared Piano: added items to strings of a piano to change timbre
Interest in eastern philosophy
Music was aleatory (element of chance)
Copland: nationalistic composer
Father of American music/style
Cowboys, adventure, country music, Western music, etc.
Fanfare for the Common Man and Hoe-Down from Rodeo (a ballet)
Jazz Composers:
Ellington (Satin Doll)
Strayhorn (Take the A Train)
Gershwin:
Rhapsody in Blue, Summertime from Porgy and Bess, I Got Rhythm
William Grant Still:
1st African American composer accepted into the Western Art Music
canon
Afro-American Symphony:
jazz/blues (blues scale, 12-bar i
blues)
Improvisatory
Interesting instrumentation
Corigliano:
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Circus Maximus: idea of surround sound, combination of everything weve

listened to, for concert band

MUSIQUE CONCRET/TECHNOLOGY
Deals with music in its concrete form (doesnt need to be performed)
Pierre Schaeffer
New technology: tape recorders
Apostrophe from Symphonie pour un homme seal
Synthesizers: electronic ways of making music
1920: invention of the theremin (Lev Termen) used in sci fi, Star Trek. Can play
microtones. Melody instrument
1928: invention of Ondes Martenot (Maurice Martenot) melody and harmony
instrument, key board attached. Many different timbres
1966: invention of the synthesizer (Robert Moog and Donald Buchle)
Oscillators: create a wave-like motion sound
Lots of resources to develop electronic music (ex: Columbia Uni)
Karlheinz Stockhausen:
Gesang der Junglinge Song of Youths
Used panning: moves between left and right speaker
Morton Subotnik:
Silver Apples of the Moon
1st electronic piece produced to be sold on records commercially
Edgard Varese:
Poeme Electronique
For the 1954 World's Fair in Brussels
About the future of music
Beatles: composed Revolution #9; lots of conspiracy theories associated with this piece

MINIMALISM/MODIFIED MINIMALISM
Tenets of minimalism:
Repetition with slow development
Layering
Phasing: taking two exact copies and moving one slightly off
A west coast phenomena: San Francisco
Steve Reich:
Used a lot of phasing in his pieces
Pure minimalist, traditional
Its Gonna Rain
Repetition and technology
Lizzy Wagman and Inna Zheng

Violin/Piano Phase
Repetition, layering, only two violins/pianos
Music for Large Ensemble
Used many non-traditional instruments/combinations to create new
timbres
La Monte Young: earliest minimalist
Interested in drones
The Second Dream of the High-Tension Line Stepdown Transformer and
Dream House 7818
Influenced Radioheads Everything in its Right Place
Terry Riley:
In C: layering, phasing, and chance (aleatory)
A Rainbow in Curved Air: minimalism and technology
Influenced The Whos Baba ORiley and Wont be Fooled Again
Philip Glass: traditional minimalist, composed Knee Play from Einstein on the Beach
Other modern musicians influenced by minimalism:
Donna Summer: I Feel Love: panning
Kraftwerk: We are the Robots: 100% electronic, semi-popular music
Blondie: Heart of Glass
Human League: Dont You Want Me Baby
Tribe Called Quest: Check the Rhime: samples from old jazz albums
Clean Bandit: Rather Be
Modified Minimalism:
John Adams
The Chairman Dances: from opera Nixon in China
Modified minimalism, polytonality/rhythm
Stravinsky and neo-romantic influenced
Volans: White Man Sleeps: south African composer/influence, similar to Reich

EXPRESSIONISM
Main tenets
Reflection of inner emotion; hyper-expressivity
Atonality
Free atonality
12-tone serialism
*no one note is more important than any other
Arnold Schoenberg:
Taught by Alexander von Zemlinsky; taught Berg and Webern
Used systemized atonality
Lizzy Wagman and Inna Zheng

Influenced by Freud
Pierrot Lunaire:
Der Mondfleck and O alter Duft ans Mrchenzeit
Atonal expressionism
Sprechstimme: spoken voice
Klangfarbenmelodie: melody of timbres
Also wrote Waltzer from Piano Works Opus 23
1st 12-tone atonality work
End of the world music
No nationalistic qualities
Alban Berg:
Wrote Wozzeck (an atonal opera)
Libretto by Georg Buchner
Uses sprechstimme and klangfarbenmelodie

THEORY
Triads:
major: major third, minor third
minor: minor third, major third
diminished: minor third, minor third (minor chord with a flatted fifth)
augmented: major third, major third (major chord with a sharpened fifth)
write all triads in four part harmony, but never double the leading tone
Inversions
root position: the root is in the bass
first inversion: the third is in the base
second inversion: the fifth is in the base
Scale Degrees

Textures
monophony: one musical line (unison, or in octaves; any instruments; not
including drones)
homophony: one melody with harmony or accompaniment
polyphony: two or more melodies of equal importance
Lizzy Wagman and Inna Zheng

Tonality: pull to a tonal center, ideas of resolution/dissonance/consonance/suspension

enharmonic notes are written differently but have the same pitch
techniques: retrograde (exact and pitch), transposition, modulation, inversion, repetition,
embellishments, shift, diminution, elongation