The document discusses various musical styles that emerged in the 20th century in response to a shift away from classical conventions. These included Impressionism, Expressionism, Neo-Classicism, Avant-Grade music, and Modern Nationalism. Impressionism was influenced by art and used non-traditional harmonies. Claude Debussy was a major exponent. Expressionism used extreme emotions and lacked stable harmonies. Arnold Schoenberg was influential. Neo-Classicism partially returned to classical forms. Sergei Prokofiev combined elements. Avant-grade music abandoned traditional rules. Important figures included George Gershwin and Leonard Bernstein. Modern Nationalism combined modern techniques with folk music, seen in Bé

1. MUSIC OF THE
20TH CENTURY
1st Quarter Music
10

2. Music of the 20th Century
 The start of the 20th century saw
the rise of distinct musical styles
that reflected a move away from
the conventions of earlier
Western classical music

3. Music of the 20th Century
The new styles were:
Impressionism
Expressionism
Neo-Classicism
Avant-Grade Music
Modern Nationalism

4. IMPRESSIONISM
 Based on the art movement started by
19th century Paris-based visual artist,
specifically Claude Monet through his
painting “Impression Sunrise”
 There was an extensive use of different
timbre and effects, vague melodies and
innovative chords.
 Resulting in a non-traditional harmonic
order and resolution.

5. “Impression Sunrise” by Claude
Monet

6. Claude Debussy (1862-1918)

7. Claude Debussy (1862-1918)
 One of the most important and
influential 20th century composer.
 He was the primary exponent of the
impressionist movement
 He changed the course of musical
development by evolving traditional
rules and conventions into a new
language of possibilities in harmony,
rhythm, form, texture and color.

8. Claude Debussy (1862-1918)
 He was born in St. Germain-en-laye,
France
 On August 22, 1862
 His early musical talents were channelled
into piano lessons
 He entered Paris conservatory in 1873
 He added other system of musical
composition
 In 1884, he won the top prize at the Prix

9. Claude Debussy (1862-1918)
 His musical composition total more or less
227 which include orchestral music,
chamber music, piano music, operas,
ballets, songs and other vocal music
 Debussy highly admired the music of Franz
Liszt, Frederick Chopin, Johann Sebastian
Bach Guiseppe Verdi, and Richard Wagner
 He was fascinated by the Javanese
Gamelan that he heard at the 1889 Paris
Exposition which later used in his works to

10. Claude Debussy (1862-1918)
 He was named “The Father of the Modern
School of Composition”
 One of his famous composition are: Claire
de Lune, and La Mer
 He spent the remaining years of his life as
a critic, composer, and performer.
 He died of cancer in Paris on March 25,
1918

11. Maurice Ravel (1875-1937)

12. Maurice Ravel (1875-1937)
 He was born in Ciboure, France
 Entered the Paris Conservatory at the age of
14
 During his stint with the school where he
stayed until his early 20s, he composed a
number of masterpieces
 His composition style is mainly characterized
by its unique innovative but not atonal style
of harmonic treatment.

13. Maurice Ravel (1875-1937)
 Ravel was a perfectionist and every bit a
musical craftsman.
 A strong advocate of Russian music, he
also admired the music of Chopin, Liszt
and Schubert
 Totalling approximately 60 pieces for
piano, chamber music, ballet and operas.
 One of his pieces is the “Bolero”
 Died in Paris in 1937

14. EXPRESSIONISM
 The term “Expressionism was probably first
applied to music in 1918 especially to Arnold
Schoenberg.
 The emotions of the music are taken to the
extreme, leading to disturbing, unsettling and
sometimes violent.
 Lacking stable and conventional harmonies
 It served as a medium for expressing strong
emotions such as anxiety and rage.

15. Arnold Schoenberg (1874-
1951)

16. Arnold Schoenberg (1874-
1951)
 He was born in Vienna, Austria
 He taught himself music theory, he was
influenced by Richard Wagner.
 His works include: Pelleas und Melisande,
Three Pieces of Piano, Verklarte Natch
 He composed approximately 213 musical
compositions including concerti, orchestral
music and other instrumental music.

17. PRIMITIVISM
 It is a word that describes the
condition or quality that belongs to
something crude and unrefined.
 In its purest form, primitivism
combines two familiar or simple ideas
together creating new sounds.

18. Igor Stravinsky (1882-1971)

19. Igor Stravinsky (1882-1971)
 One of the greatest trendsetter of the 20th
century
 He was born in Oranienbaum (Lomonosov),
Russia
 He was influenced by his teacher, composer
Nikolai Rimsky Korsakov
 His first successful masterpiece, The Firebird
Suite (1910)
 Other outstanding works include the ballets
Petrouchka, featuring shifting rhythms and

20. Bela Bartok(1881-1945)

21. Bela Bartok(1881-1945)
 Born in Hungary (now Romania) on
March 25, 1881 to musical parents.
 He started music lessons with his
mother and later entered Budapest
Royal Academy of Music in 1899.
 His first nationalistic poem was
Kossuth in 1903

22.  In 1906, he published his first
collection of 20 Hungarian folk songs.
 His compositions were successful
because of their rich melodies and
lively rhythms.

23. Bela Bartok(1881-1945)
 He is famous for his Six String Quartets.
 This represent the greatest achievement
of his creative life, spanning a full 30 years
for their completion.
 Bartok’s approximately 700 musical
composition include concerti, orchestral
music, piano music and songs.

24. NEO-CLASSICISM
 It was a partial return to a Classical
form of writing music with carefully
modulated dissonances.
 It also adopted a modern, freer use of
the seven-tone diatonic scale.

25. Sergie Prokofieff (1891-1953)

26. Sergie Prokofieff (1891-1953)
 Is regarded today as a combination of a
neo-classicist, nationalist and avant-grade
composer.
 His style is uniquely recognizable for its
progressive technique.
 Born in Ukraine in 1891, he set out for the
St. Petersburg Conservatory. Equipped with
his great talent as a composer and pianist.
 His contact with Stravinsky gave him the
chance to write music for the ballet and

27. Sergie Prokofieff (1891-1953)
 Notably the ballet “Romeo and Juliet” and
“War and Peace”
 He also wrote “Peter and the Wolf” a light-
hearted orchestral work intended for children.
 Prokofieff was highly successful in his piano
music.
 His musical composition include concerti,
chamber music, film scores, operas and
ballets
 He died in Moscow on March 15, 1953

28. Francis Jean Marcel Poulenc (1899 –
1963)

29. Francis Jean Marcel Poulenc (1899 –
1963)
 One of few composers born into wealth
and privileged social position.
 Member of the group of young French
composers known as “Les Six”
 He rejected the heavy romanticism of
Wagner and the so-called Imprecision of
Debussy and Ravel
 His composition had a coolly elegant
modernity sense of proportion

30. Francis Jean Marcel Poulenc (1899 –
1963)
 His compositions include “Concert
Champetre”, the “Concerto for Two
Pianos”, which combines the classical
touches of Mozart and Ravel, Concerto for
Solo Piano written for the Boston
Symphony Orchestra.
 His musical composition total around 185
which include solo piano works as well as
vocal solo.
 He died in Paris on January 30, 1963

31. AVANT-GRADE MUSIC
 Closely associated with electronic music.
 It made use of variations of self- contained
note groups to change musical continuity
and improvisation.
 The absence of traditional rules on
harmony, melody and rhythm.

32. George Gershwin (1898 –
1937)

33. George Gershwin (1898 –
1937)
 Born in New York to Russian
Jewish immigrants.
 His older brother Ira was his
artistic collaborator who wrote
the lyrics of his songs.
 His first song was written in 1916
and his first Broadway musical
“La La Lucille” in 1919

34. He also composed
“Rhapsody in Blue” and “An
American in Paris” which
incorporated jazz rhythms with
classical form.

35. George Gershwin (1898 –
1937)
 His opera “Porgy and Bess” remains to
this day the only American opera to be
included in the established repertory of
his genre.
 Gershwin was more fascinated with
classical music. He was influenced by
Ravel, Stravinsky, Berg and
Schoenberg.
 Considered the “Father of American
Jazz”

36. Leonard Bernstein (1918 –
1990)

37. Leonard Bernstein (1918 –
1990)
 Born in Massachusetts, USA
 Known as charismatic conductor, pianist
and composer
 His big break came when ha was asked
to substitute for the ailing Bruno Walter
in conducting the New York Philharmonic
Orchestra in a concert in 1943.

38. He received pre eminence in
two fields: conducting and
composing for Broadway
musicals, dance shows and
concert music

39. Leonard Bernstein (1918 –
1990)
He was best known for his
composition for “West Side
Story” an American adaptation
of “Romeo and Juliet”

40. Philip Glass (1937 -

41. Philip Glass (1937 -
 Born in New York, USA
 Became accomplished violinist and
flutist at the age of 15
 He formed the Philip Glass Ensemble
and produced works such as “Music in
Similar Motion” and “Music in Changing
Parts” with rock-type grooves at extreme
volumes

42.  Produced a four-hour opera
“Einstein on the Beach” an instant
sell-out at the New York
Metropolitan Opera House

43. MODERN NATIONALISM
 Focused on nationalist composers
and musical innovators who sought to
combine modern techniques with folk
materials.
 In Europe , prominent figures of this
style were Bela Bartok and Sergei
Prokofieff who were neo classicist to
a certain extent.

44. 20TH CENTURY MUSIC
STYLES
Electronic Music
 it is the capacity of electronic machines
such as synthesizers, amplifiers, tape
recorders and loudspeakers to create
different sounds
 Music that uses the tape recorder is called
“ “musique concrete” or concrete music.

45. These sounds are arranged by the
composer in different ways, for example, by
playing the tape recorder in its fastest mode
or in reverse.
 In “musique concrete”, the composer is
able to experiment with different sound
that cannot be produced by regular
musical instruments such as the piano or
the violin

46. Edgard Varese (1883 – 1965)

47. Edgard Varese (1883 – 1965)
 Born in December 22 , 1883
 He was considered an “innovative French-born
composer”
 Pioneered and created new sound that
bordered between music and noise
 He invented the term “organized sound” which
means that certain timbers and rhythms can
be grouped together in order to capture a
whole new definition of sound.

48. Edgard Varese (1883 – 1965)
 He earned the title “ Father of
Electronic Music”
 Total of 50 compositions, with his
advances in tape-based sound

49. Karlheinz StockHausen (1928
- )

50. Karlheinz StockHausen (1928
- )
Born in Cologne, Germany
He continued to experiment
with Musique concrete

51. 20TH CENTURY MUSIC
STYLES
Chance Music
 refers to a style in which the piece sound
different at very performance because of the
random techniques of production.

52. John Cage (1912 – 1992)

53. John Cage (1912 – 1992)
 Born in Los Angeles, California, USA.
 One of the most original composers in the
history of Western music.
 He challenged the very idea of music by
manipulating musical instruments in order
to achieved new sounds.
 He experimented with what came to be
known as Chance music

54. John Cage (1912 – 1992)
 Cage created a “prepared” piano
where screws and pieces of wood
or paper were inserted between
the piano strings to produce
different percussion possibilities.