exam 3 Flashcards
(42 cards)
Strauss, Elektra
1909
Stravinsky, Rite of Spring
1913
1914-1918
World War 1
1923
Scoenberg, suite for piano
Gershwin, rhapsody in blue
1924
World war 2
1939-1945
Cage, 4’33
1952
Ligeti, Atmospheres
1961
Riley, In C
1964
Berio, Sinfonia
1969
Reich, Music for 18 musicians
1976
German composer and conductor of the late nineteenth and early twentieth century,
composed primarily song-cycles and, most notably, symphonies. His symphonic output is noteworthy for the
size of each of his works and their strongly emotional (and often autobiographical) content: no one of his symphonies
is written for an orchestra smaller than 90-100 players, and the shortest among them is over 50 minutes in length.
Gustav Mahler
) German composer and conductor of the late nineteenth and early twentieth century.
Sometimes a friend, and often a rival of Mahler, he worked in complementary genres to Gustav: tone poems and
operas. He was particularly innovative in 1890s and 1900s- and his operas Salome and Elektra trace the evolution of
German music from late Romanticism to Expressionism.
Richard Strauss
) Finnish composer of instrumental music, and most notably, symphonies. While
was often scorned in German speaking countries until the 1980s, his symphonies, among the first important works in
that genre by a non-German, were considered to be a model of the form to many non-Germans, particularly in
England and America. A nationalist composer, he represents Finland’s struggle for independence to many people of
that country, and he is celebrated on currency and with his own national holiday in Finland.
Jean Sibelius
French composer of the late nineteenth century, worked primarily in the
genres of piano, orchestral, and chamber music. He is notable for being perhaps the first composer of musical
impressionism, incorporating modality, elements of Asian musical traditions, harmonic stasis, and other nonEuropean elements in his output.
Claude Debussy
The most important French impressionist, alongside his friend and rival, Debussy,
similarly worked primarily in the genres of piano and orchestral music. A perfectionist, he was a notably slow
composer and his output is comparably small. He is noteworthy also for his orchestration: he has enjoyed a
reputation, and deservedly so, as one of the most skilled of all composers at writing for the orchestra.
Maurice Ravel
German composer of the early 20th century, disciple of Mahler, and influential
musical innovator. was one of the first composers to write wholly atonal music and, in the early 1920s,
developed the twelve-tone method- a system of composition that was to exert a massive influence on many
subsequent composers of the 20th century
Arnold Schoenberg
) An American composer of the early 20th century, was hugely innovative, anticipating
many compositional techniques of the mid-20th-century decades before their time. His works incorporated
microtonality, polytonality, tone clusters, and polyrhythm, among other innovations.
Charles Ives
Hungarian composer of the early 20th century, was, like his contemporary
Stravinsky, an influential musical innovator. Writing piano music, concerti, and, perhaps most notably, string
quartets, music often incorporated the folk music of his native country within a compositional language that
was revolutionary harmonically and formally.
Bela Bartok
Russian composer and perhaps the most influential musical innovator of the first half of
the 20th century, wrote in almost every musical genre in his long life. He is perhaps most notable for his
1913 ballet, Le Sacre du Printemps (The Rite of Spring), which famously caused a riot at its premiere and changed
European musical style inextricably and for the remainder of the 20th century.
Igor Stravinsky
American composer of popular songs and orchestral music, is most notable
for being one of the first composers to attempt to marry the traditions of jazz and classical music.
George Gershwin
Soviet composer of the early-mid 20th century. was most prolific in
the genres of symphony and string quartet. His large symphonies, often compared to Mahler’s in size and emotional
scope, are some of the most popular of all 20th century orchestral works. Throughout his life, he had a complicated
relationship with the Soviet state, and debate still continues as to whether or not the “patriotic” elements present in
his style are fully sincere.
Dmitri Shostakovich (
American composer of the 20th century, is often regarded as the father of
American music. Not only did he craft a distinctly American style in works like Billy the Kid, Rodeo, and Appalachian
Spring, among others, but he served as a teacher and mentor to a great deal of young American artists.
Aaron Copland
British composer of the mid 20th century, straddled the divide between the
avant-garde and more traditional composers- writing music that was innovative but often quite accessible. He is
perhaps best known as an opera composer, and his operas, especially Peter Grimes (1945) are among the most
important 20th-century examples of that genre.
Benjamin Britten
