Download Chapter 23 - McGraw Hill Higher Education

America’s Musical Landscape
5th edition
PowerPoint by Brenda Leach
Towson University
Part 6
Tradition and Innovation in Concert
Music
Chapter 23: The Avant-Garde, Continued
© 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved
Experimentalism
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Rhythm and timbre – replaced melody and harmony as
elements of primary interest
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Use of traditional instruments and voices in nontraditional
ways such as whispers, shouts and groans
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Harry Partch (1910-1974)
 One of many composers who invented new instruments
such as the kithara, crychord, marimba eroica
© 2006 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
All rights reserved.
Part 6: Tradition and Innovation in Concert
Music
Chapter 23: The Avant-Garde, Continued
2
Tape Music and Electronic Synthesizer
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Tape Music
Electronic Synthesizer
Oscillators
Fingerboard
Electronic Filters
Computers
© 2006 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
All rights reserved.
Part 6: Tradition and Innovation in Concert
Music
Chapter 23: The Avant-Garde, Continued
3
Milton Babbit
(b. 1916)
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Used 12-tone technique as a young composer
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Extended this concept beyond pitch to include rhythm
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An exponent of electronic music
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Ensembles for Synthesizer – his work which is an early
example of electronic music
© 2006 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
All rights reserved.
Part 6: Tradition and Innovation in Concert
Music
Chapter 23: The Avant-Garde, Continued
4
John Cage and Chance Music
Chance/Aleatory music
 Counterparts in visual arts were Abstract
Expressionist painters like Jackson Pollack;
moving sculptures of Alexander Calder
 Committed to
Zen Buddhism
 Role of Improvisation
 Random music
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© 2006 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
All rights reserved.
Part 6: Tradition and Innovation in Concert
Music
Chapter 23: The Avant-Garde, Continued
5
Important Works by Cage

Imaginary Landscape no. 4 (1951)
composed for 12 radios
4’33” – experimental
piece based on “silence”
 His music reflected his belief that all
sounds are worthy of attention
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© 2006 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
All rights reserved.
Part 6: Tradition and Innovation in Concert
Music
Chapter 23: The Avant-Garde, Continued
6
Other Composers of Chance Music

Morton Feldman (1926-1987)
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Earle Brown (b. 1926)

Christan Wolff (b. 1934)
© 2006 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
All rights reserved.
Part 6: Tradition and Innovation in Concert
Music
Chapter 23: The Avant-Garde, Continued
7
Notation
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Laurie Anderson (b. 1947)
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Clusters
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Graphs
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Music notated as visual art
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Pauline Oliveros (b. 1932)
© 2006 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
All rights reserved.
Part 6: Tradition and Innovation in Concert
Music
Chapter 23: The Avant-Garde, Continued
8