Slides - Avant-Garde Music

Igor Stravinsky (1882-1971)

• Composed the iconic work Rite of Spring.

• Noted for his innovative and percussive use of the orchestra.

• Pushed the limits of dissonance in music composition.

Arnold Schoenberg (1874-1951)

Emancipation of Dissonance

• Advocated for the freedom of dissonance in music.

• Developed the concept of atonality, moving away from traditional harmonic structures.

• Composed Pierrot Lunaire in 1912, a seminal work in atonal music.

12-Tone Row

• A method of composition devised by Schoenberg.

• Utilizes all twelve notes of the chromatic scale in a particular sequence or row, forming the basis for the composition.

Thaddeus Cahill's Telharmonium

• An early electronic musical instrument developed in the late 19th century.

• Pioneered innovations in sound synthesis and electronic music.

Lev Termin (Leon Theremin)

• Inventor of the Theremin, an electronic instrument controlled without physical contact.

Components of Electronic Music

• Volume Antenna: Controls the volume of the sound.

• Pitch Antenna: Controls the pitch or frequency.

• Lowpass Amplifier Filter: Filters out high frequencies.

• Envelope Oscillator: Shapes the sound over time.

• Filter Detector: Analyzes incoming signals.

• Speaker Mixer: Combines audio outputs to speakers.

Futurism in Music

Francesco Balilla Pratella and Luigi Russolo

• Composers associated with the Futurist movement.

• Emphasized the use of acoustic noise to mimic machinery sounds.

• Advocated for new timbres and sound beyond traditional instruments.

• Authored The Art of Noises, proposing a new understanding of musical sound.

Edgard Varèse (1883-1975)

• Born in Paris in 1883; significant figure in modern music.

• Studied composition at Schola Cantorum and the Paris Conservatoire.

• Relocated from Paris to Berlin, influenced by composer Ferruccio Busoni.

• Attended a performance of Schoenberg’s Pierrot Lunaire in 1912, which greatly impacted his compositional style.

Varèse's Vision on Instruments

• Proposed the urgent need for new instruments to advance music composition.

• Encouraged collaboration between musicians and machinery specialists to innovate.

Philips Pavilion

• Designed by Iannis Xenakis for the Brussels World Fair in 1958.

Poème Électronique

• A notable work by Edgard Varèse that integrated electronic music with spatial sound experiences.

Henry Cowell (1897-1965)

• Born in Menlo Park, California, and largely self-taught.

• Studied with Charles Seeger at UC Berkeley.

• Known for his exploration of atonality and polytonality in composition.

• Authored New Musical Resources in 1919, exploring avant-garde musical possibilities.