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Music Appreciation
Grade 12
Mr. Gribble
The Modern Era
 It is a blend of many
types of music.
 It blends forms of popular
music such as jazz, blues,
and folk and many new
techniques.
Claude Debussy 1862-1918
• Debussy began
composing music in the
1890’s and is considered
one of the first Modern
composers.
• When he was a student
in Paris, Debussy was
stimulated by the poetry
of Edgar Allen Poe and
the impressionist
paintings of Monet and
Renoir.
Debussy…Continued
• Debussy is known for inventing an
entirely new scale based on whole steps
called a “whole-tone scale” meaning the
pianist plays every other key from start to
finish.
• Some famous Debussy pieces include:
Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun,
Claire de Lune from Suite bergamasque,
La Mer, and Preludes for Piano.
Igor Stravinsky 1882-1971
• Like many before
him Stravinsky made
his mark with ballet
music.
• He became famous
with his music for a
ballet based on the
legend of the
Firebird.
Stravinsky…Continued
• In 1913, The Rite of Spring launched
Stravinsky into stardom when a riot
broke out between the people who loved
his music and the people who hated his
music.
Arnold Schoenberg 1874-1951
• At the same time
that Stravinsky was
in Paris, Arnold
Schoenberg was in
Austria creating
music that was
even more far out.
• This kind of music
was known as
“atonal”.
Schoenberg…Continued
• Atonal music is dissonant, which means
it sounds as if all the notes are wrong.
• After this, Schoenberg took it even one
step further and began using
mathematics to choose which notes to
play.
• He called this “12 – tone music” or
“serialism”.
George Gershwin 1898-1937
• Gershwin on the other
hand, was approaching
music in a completely
different manner.
• He took music from
dance halls and
Broadway and made it
into amazing orchestral
music.
Gershwin…Continued
• Gershwin was a self-taught composer
of classical music.
• Rhapsody in Blue is Gershwin’s most
famous piece.
• It has been said that no other music
better describes the America of the
early century.
Aaron Copland 1900-1990
• Copland worked very
hard also at creating
music that Americans
would recognize as
their own.
• Copland’s,
Appalachian Spring
won the Pulitzer Prize
for music Composition
in 1945.
Copland… Continued
• Billy the Kid and Rodeo are two
ballets that are easily liked.
• An interesting note is that
Copland had a day job as an
insurance executive throughout
his adult life.
Leonard Bernstein 1918-1990
• We probably all know
Bernstein best as the
conductor of the New
York Philharmonic
Orchestra.
• He was also known as
a talented pianist and
composer.
Bernstein…Continued
• He is also well known for his musical
score to West Side Story.
• Bernstein is known for picking up where
Gershwin left off and creating more
music that appealed to modern
audiences.
The Modern Era
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Claude Debussy
Igor Stravinsky
Arnold Schoenberg
George Gershwin
Aaron Copland
Leonard Bernstein