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Unit 8 (Chapter 55 (War Is Hell: Berg and Expressionist Opera (. (Alban…
Unit 8
Chapter 55
War Is Hell: Berg and Expressionist Opera
.
Arnold Schoenberg
Alban Berg
music is post-romantic but drew on the twelve-tone system
Wozzeck
expressionist opera about a disturbed man who moves between reality and hallucination
Anton Webern
Twelve-Tone Method
aka serialism
method of composition in which various musical elements (pitch, rhythm, dynamics, timbre) may be ordered in a fixed series
tone row
an arrangement of the twelve chromatic pitches
transposed row
shifting of a piece of music to a different pitch level
inversion
upside-down image of a melody or pattern
retrograde
backward statement of a melody
retrograde inversion
mirror image of the backward statement of a melody
Second Viennese School
the first being the school of Haydn, Mozart, and Beethoven
Listening Guide 46 :red_flag:
Berg: Wozzeck, Act III, scene 4
(1922)
opera, in three acts
expressionist play by Georg Büchner
characters
Wozzeck (baritone)
Captain (tenor)
Marie (soprano)
Doctor (bass)
son (treble)
Drum Major (tenor)
Melody
use of
Sprechstimme
(speechlike melody)
disjunct line
Rhythm / Meter
alternates between metric and free-flowing
Harmony
tonal and atonal language
dissonant and chromatic
Expression
emotional vocal line
supported by dissonance and surging dynamics
Timber
eerie mood created by a celeste and unusual instrument combination
colorful orchestral effects
Chapter 61
Classic Rethinking: Bartók and the “Neo-Classical” Turn
composers used more authentic folk and traditional elements in their nationalistic music
Béla Bartók
Hungarian composer
collected traditional songs and dances from his native land and incorporated elements into his compositions
music displays new scales and music ideas and a modern, polytonal harmonic language
Neo-Classical
twentieth-century style that combined elements of Classical and Baroque music with modernist trends
ethnomusicology
comparative study of musics of the world, with a focus on the cultural context of music
Listening Guide 54 :red_flag:
Bartók: Interrupted Intermezzo, from Concerto for Orchestra
(1943)
Melody
three contrasting themes
folklike and pentatonic
broad and lyrical
harsh descending line in clarinet
Rhythm / Meter
shifting meters
irregular rhythms
Harmony
polytonal and atonal harmonies
dissonant
Expression
nostalgic and sentimental
violent interruption at idea of Nazi invasion
Timber
solo woodwinds featured
(oboe, clarinet, flute)
darkly colored
(violas)
orchestra concerto
Chapter 69
Reality Shows: Adams and Contemporary Opera
John Adams
American composer
combines elements of minimalism with traits of neo-Romanticism
Doctor Atomic
about the creation of the atomic bomb by a team of scientists
post minimalist style
several of his works have caused controversy
Listening Guide 65 :red_flag:
Melody
short, choppy phrases with declaimed text
much repetition of ideas
Rhythm / Meter
many offbeat accents
syncopated
Harmony
sharply dissonant
Form
verse/refrain structure with repeated sections and text
Expression
fiery mood
mysterious electronic sounds
Timbre
fiery mood
mysterious electronic sounds
Performing Forces
chorus and orchestra
Text
Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 11
Adams: Doctor Atomic, “At the sight of this”
(2005)
characters
J. Robert Oppenheimer (baritone)
Kitty Oppenheimer (mezzo-soprano)
General Leslie Groves (bass)
Edward Teller (baritone)
Robert R. Wilson (tenor)
Jack Hubbard (baritone)
Captain James Nolan (tenor)
Pasqualita (mezzo-soprano)
setting
Los Alamos, New Mexico, 1945
Chapter 35
Disrupting page 180 the Conversation: Beethoven and the Symphony in Transition
Beethoven
wrote nine symphonies
Symphony No. 5
the first movement is in a sonata-allegro form marked “Allegro con brio”
the second movement is a serene theme and variations
the third in the cycle is the scherzo
the fourth movement bursts forth without pause, once again bringing back the unifying rhythmic motive
cyclical form
structure in which musical material, such as a theme, presented in one movement returns in a later movement
first two symphonies are closest in Classical style
third symphony is called Eroica
Listening Guide 23 :red_flag:
Beethoven: page 183 Symphony No. 5 in C Minor, Op. 67
First Movement
Melody
fiery four-note motive
the basis for thematic development
contrasting, lyrical second theme
Rhythm / Meter
four-note rhythmic idea shapes the movement
(short-short-short-long)
Harmony
C-minor
dramatic shifts between minor and major tonality
Texture
mostly homophonic
Form
concise sonata-allegro form, with extended coda
repetition, sequence, and variation techniques
Expression
wide dynamic contrasts
forceful, energetic tempo
Second Movement
Melody
smooth first theme
rising second theme built on four-note idea
Rhythm / Meter
flowing triple meter
Harmony
related key: A-flat major
Texture
mostly homophonic
Form
variations, with two themes
varied rhythms, melodies, harmony
Expression
warm strings
brilliant woodwinds
powerful bass
Third Movement
Melody
wide-ranging, ascending scherzo theme
more conjunct, quick trio theme
Rhythm / Meter
quick triple meter throughout
insistent focus on four-note rhythm
Harmony
dramatic c-minor scherzo
trio in c-major
Texture
homophonic
some fugal treatment in the trio
Form
A-B-A'
link to the final movement
Expression
wide-ranging dynamic contrasts
fast tempo
Timbre
themes in low strings
plucked strings at the return of the scherzo
timpani in transition to the last movement
Fourth Movement
Melody
triumphant theme outlining c-major triad
energetic second theme
Rhythm / Meter
very fast duple meter
four-note rhythmic idea
Harmony
c-major
remains in major throughout
Texture
mostly homophonic
Form
sonata-allegro form, with long coda
Expression
forceful dynamics
fp effects; intense and spirited
Performing Forces
added instruments (piccolo, contrabassoon, trombones)