20th-Century Music Movements & Concepts

40 question-and-answer flashcards covering key composers, styles, characteristics, and technological devices discussed in the lecture notes.

Which country was the birthplace of musical Impressionism?

France

During which period did musical Impressionism develop?

The late 19th and early 20th centuries

Which Claude Monet painting gave Impressionism its name?

Impression, Sunrise

Name three scales frequently employed by Impressionist composers.

Whole-tone, chromatic, and pentatonic scales

Which French composer is regarded as the founder and leading exponent of musical Impressionism?

Claude Debussy

What is Claude Debussy’s most popular composition called?

Clair de Lune ("Moonlight")

List three genres in which Debussy composed music.

Possible answers: orchestral music, chamber music, piano music, operas, ballets, songs, and other vocal music

Which composer wrote the famous orchestral work Bolero?

Joseph Maurice Ravel

With which eminent French composer did Maurice Ravel study?

Gabriel Fauré

Ravel’s Bolero is admired for his mastery of what musical skill?

The art of instrumentation

In which country did the Expressionism art movement in music begin?

Germany

Expressionist music is characterized by subjectivity, dissonance, and what kind of tonality?

Atonality

Name two compositional techniques often used in Expressionist music.

Polytonality and the twelve-tone scale

Which musical trend combines two simple ideas to create new sounds and images?

Primitivism

Which style borrows simple musical materials from other cultures?

Exoticism

Which term describes music that uses materials from one specific country?

Nationalism

What style develops materials from European ethnic groups into new ideas and sounds?

Ethnicism

What 20th-century style revived 18th-century clarity and balance between WWI and WWII?

Neoclassicism

What is the literal English meaning of the term “Avant-Garde”?

Advance guard or vanguard

Which post-1945 musical movement is known as the center of experimentation and innovation?

Avant-Garde Music

What is another common name for Chance Music?

Aleatory Music

In Chance Music, who determines some of the musical elements during performance?

The performers

What type of music is created using synthesizers, computers, and other electronic devices?

Electronic Music

Name a keyboard-based electronic device commonly used to produce electronic sounds.

Synthesizer

Which optical storage medium abbreviated CD is used for music playback?

Compact Disc (CD)

Which optical disc format, abbreviated DVD, is mentioned among electronic music devices?

Digital Video Disc (DVD)

What portable Apple music player is listed among electronic devices?

iPod

Which digital audio file format popular for music playback is cited in the notes?

MP3

Which digital video file format, also used for music videos, is mentioned?

MP4

Which sing-along home-entertainment device is included among electronic music devices?

Karaoke

What handheld communication device is also listed as an electronic music player?

Mobile phone

What term describes the simultaneous use of multiple keys in Expressionist music?

Polytonality

What compositional method orders all twelve chromatic tones before repeating any?

Twelve tone technique Chromatic

Which six-step scale made entirely of whole tones is a hallmark of Impressionist harmony?

Whole-tone scale

Which musical movement is regarded as one of the earliest concrete forms announcing the entry of 20th-century music?

Impressionism