The Modernism movement brought about profound and all-encompassing changes in society affecting not only art, but literature and music as well. Much of its cause can be attributed to historical reasons, particularly the tumultuous happenings of the early 1900’s. After the atrocities of the Great War, many people were left questioning what they knew and had once thought. Much of this questioning resulted in radical changes of the Modernist movement. Artists, composers, and authors alike now sought to create works that mirrored the chaos of the period they lived in. Moving sharply away from the normality of the period, they created something people had never seen before. Much like the time period itself, these new creations were met with resistance …show more content…
Composed and debuted at an unsettling time, many did not receive Stravinsky’s new work well. In completing his work, Stravinsky took a sharp turn away from previous eras of music, instead turning towards the evolving idea of chaos provided by the newfound modern era. At first listen, many were not ready for this radical change. On its opening night, a riot ensued in the theater as many protested it and claimed that it was not real music. Upon hearing it performed the first time for myself in Paris, I immediately came to understand how it would be considered chaotic and how the audience would not receive it well. Although not a musical expert, I do have some background in music; it was clear to me that the tones were dissonant and the tune did not follow the crowd-pleasing formula that many of the previous works we had heard did. With his work, Stravinsky seemed to have created a gap between the artist and the audience. His work did not appear to be created to please the audience for it did not follow the previously typical aesthetic formula that people …show more content…
The relationship I felt with Stravinsky, as a listener, related quite clearly with what Ortega had been saying about Modern artists. While listening to his work, I was not only filled with a sense of indubitable chaos, but also, was overtaken by a feeling of panic. While creating his work in the new era, he brushed aside the human element and what people found to be aesthetic, hereby “dehumanizing” his work and creating something that was perceived as “unaesthetic” and therefore “not music” when it was performed on opening night. The regular emotions such as love, grief, and joy that people were used to receiving while listening to music were not present. As a result, the audience could not understand this new work. Having listened to the works of previous composers during my time in Paris, Stravinsky’s work provided a sharp and obvious contrast. The relationship between the artist and the listener that composers had always seemingly abided by had ended. Stravinsky’s work no longer seemed to be concerned with pleasing the listener, but rather, simply created a vast amount of chaos for the audience leaving them feeling the effects of this new tumultuous era that they were living in. The gap between the composer and the listener was now
A conductor may be seen by many as a very important part of a musical but others may see them as unnecessary. Stravinsky feels that conductors don’t deserve the all the attention and respect that is given to them by critics and audiences. The passage tells of how Stravinsky finds conductors to be more of a distraction than talented musicians. In the Passage, Stravinsky uses diction and metaphors to explain his disdain of conductors.
As indicated by musicologist Stephen Walsh the colossal advancement of the ritual is not the discord or the stationary nature of the consonant movement in light of the fact that both of these thoughts were by and by before Stravinsky's work. The genuine development was Stravinsky's utilization of musical parts and convincing rhythms to give a structure to drive the sensational activity and therefore free the solidified consonant riggings. Arrangers of the late nineteenth and mid twentieth century found a situation as the customary part of discord as a vehicle for consonant movement was deserted. The issue with disharmony that does not prompt an unavoidable determination is an aggregate discontinuance of consonant and in this way musical motion.Walsh refers to Debussy's Et la Lune Descend Sur le
Igor Stravinsky makes for a first-class example of differences and similarities between neoclassicism and modernism. Modernism is defined as “A term used in music to denote a multi-faceted but distinct and continuous tradition within 20th-century composition”1, while neoclassicism may be defined as “A movement of style in the works of certain 20th-century composers, who, particularly during the period between the two world wars, revived the balanced forms and clearly perceptible thematic processes of earlier styles to replace what were, to them, the increasingly exaggerated gestures and formlessness of late Romanticism”2 By not only comparing his works to others but within his own body of work the two movements can be better distinguished. Stravinsky composed in both styles throughout his musical career making his works not only a prime example but a map for the transition between periods/movements, thus giving distinctness to the movements. Stravinsky “cultivated a flexible and reciprocal association with his changing environment. While consistently producing work which transformed the sensibilities of those who heard it, he himself continuously allowed his own sensibilities to be fed, even transformed, by the music and music-making of others.”3 By comparing and contrasting the works of Stravinsky with not only his own works, but with his contemporary's of the early 20th century, the division and resemblances between neoclassicism and modernism can be thoroughly observed.
-Maurice Ravel (1875-1937) was a French composer and one of the most sophisticated musicians of the early 20th century. He began receiving lessons at the Paris Conservatoire in 1889 from pianist, Emile Decombes. During the 1920s, this was an emaciated period for Ravel, composing very little, although he did complete concert tours around the world, from Amsterdam, London, Milan, Madrid, and Vienna, which allowed him to become better known. Circa 1922, Ravel completed his well-known orchestrated version of Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition, commissioned by Serge Koussevitzky, which allowed widespread popularity and brought Ravel great fame and substantial income. Ravel is well known for his melodies and textures within his pieces. He composed what is now to be considered standard concert repertoire. Ravel greatly admired the past which resulted in his music in havin...
Given the name Igor Fydorovich Stravinsky at birth, Sir Igor was born on June 17, 1882. He was a Russian born American performer. He earned his middle name “Fydorovich” from his dad whose first name was Fyodor. He was a naturalized French and American composer, pianist and conductor.
Music has an ability to make the listeners feel what the composer felt when they composed it. That idea really took off during the Romantic Era, after Beethoven paved a new way for composers to express themselves. One of the most prominent figure of the Romantic Era that really expressed himself in his music was Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. Tchaikovsky’s wide and diverse musical repertoire made him into one of the most celebrated composer in history. But when he composed his sixth symphony, he declared it to be “the best thing I ever composed or shall compose.” Then, he suddenly died nine days after the premiere. There are many theories that might connect to the two and I will argue that Tchaikovsky composed his sixth symphony knowing that this
Sergei Rachmaninoff is considered to be the final, magnificent composer of the Romantic era in Russian classical music, ushering forward its traditions into the twentieth century. His four concertos are a reflection of his development as a composer and pianist, with regard to maturity and compositional style. The evolution of music during the late nineteenth century to early twentieth century had no significant effect on Rachmaninoff; rather he continued to produce ingenious works reflective of his Russian upbringing and the Romantic era.
In summation, Berlioz had a profound affect in showing the public the capabilities of emotion being represented in music, and his Symphonie fantastique was a turning point in his career as his first full-scale masterpiece. He expressed more intense emotion than had been done before through programmatic elements, the idée fixe, new combinations of instruments, as well as instruments not previously used in symphonic settings. He also employed tested techniques in new ways to achieve the individual expressionistic tendencies represented in the changes in society. The positive reception by his contemporary society as well as subsequent generations certainly qualifies this work to be included as a masterpiece.
Roughly from the 1900’s, the music started to obtain a big role in people’s life with its new aspects and it was not only made to please the listeners but carried meanings about life itself. With the modernist movement emotions other than love, anger and joy has started to be portrayed more securely and concisely. Composers like Claude Debussy, Igor Stravinsky and Arnold Schoenberg are very...
As a famous twentieth century composer, Igor Stravinsky shares his expertise on the music industry and its "worst obstacle"- conductors. He harshly criticizes the conductor's overrated role in music productions with rhetorical devices such as vicious diction, strong imagery, and figurative language. He uses vicious diction to convey his frustration with conductors compromising the integrity of the vary pieces composers like himself write. Moreover, Stravinsky uses figurative language to demonstrate how these conductors infiltrate the music industry like politicians with their charismatic personalities. In addition, he uses figurative language to establish a direct comparison between conductors and actors by accentuating the similarities between their "performances." Stravinsky wholeheartedly believes that conductors possess no measurable talent and seem to relish in their fame.
The premiere of the Rite of Spring is cemented as a major moment in music history when the crowd, angry at the strange new music rioted and ultimately burned the theatre to the ground. Stravinsky was not the only composer inciting riots with modern and often confusing music. An unruly American composer named George Antheil, influenced by the factory that sung him to sleep every night, produced riots in many European cities. But, the music and legacy of Antheil is almost entirely forgotten. The music of Stravinsky is praised and studied by millions, yet the equally innovative and iconoclastic music of George Antheil is often forgotten due to a series of bad decisions, a botched performance, and the inability to make a substantial salary, leading
In the time after World War One a new way of thinking became prominent. This new idea is what we call Modernism. After the war it was realized that many people had suffered absolute horrors, ones that they never could have imagined, or ever forget. The violence and pain witnessed by so many left them psychologically shell-shocked, and filled with disillusionment. These psychological effects would soon alter the world for years to come, and lead many to a loss in faith and questioning of everything they once believed true.
Modernism can be defined through the literary works of early independent 20th century writers. Modernism is exp...
In their books: Copland: 1900 through 1942 and Copland: Since 1943, Aaron Copland and Vivian Perlis give a detailed account of the life of one of America’s most influential composers. The books are arranged similarly to the Shostakovich biography that our class reviewed earlier this semester. That is, through personal accounts by Copland himself along with accounts of Copland’s friends and acquaintances, the authors manage to paint an accurate and interesting picture detailing the life of the great composer. When combined, the two books recount Copland’s entire life, dividing it into two periods for the purpose of easier organization and reading.
In the 19th century, under the suffocating weight of a centuries long tradition in academic art, artists began to break free. Tired of meaningless imitation and decoration, the avant-garde artists pushed for drastic revolutions in aesthetic and social taste. This experimentation rapidly grew less and less controlled, and new technique and new style, which shocked and enraged the critics and public, stopped being experimental and started desiring the side effects of shock and disgust. There is an error in believing the artist is always ahead of his time, will always be understood in the future, and is a well-intentioned progressive, because it ignores the present actions and consequences of modern art.