Chapter 22: The Late Twentieth Century

1. Chapter 22:The Late Twentieth Century The Postwar Avant-Garde

2. Postwar avant-garde Sound complexes Musique concrète Architecture Chance music Noise Key Terms

3. The Postwar Avant-Garde (1) • After World War II, modernist composers emerged from all corners of the globe • Stockhausen (Germany), Messiaen & Boulez (France), Berio (Italy), Xenakis (Greece), Ligeti (Hungary), Lutoslawski & Penderecki (Poland), Takemitsu (Japan), and Babbitt, Cage, & Carter (United States) • Many are still actively composing!

4. The Postwar Avant-Garde (2) • Some works from modernism’s 1st phase are now “classics” • Berg’s Wozzeck, Bartók’s string quartets, Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring • Postwar modernists have not yet gained a firm place in the repertory • Or in the hearts of most listeners • …in the United States, at least

5. György Ligeti(b. 1923) • Trained at Budapest Academy of Music • Appointed professor there as a young man • Unable to pursue his unique sound vision • Due to Communist restrictions in Hungary • Ligeti left for the West in 1956 • Was past 30 before his music became known • 1960s saw growing recognition in the U.S. & Europe • Use of his music in 2001: A Space Odyssey brought international fame

6. Sound Complexes • His music is based on “sound complexes” • Blocks of sounds – no clear pitches, chords, tonality, melodies, or even rhythm • Ligeti is more like a sculptor than a painter • A music of surging & receding textures & colors

7. Ligeti, Lux aeterna • For a chorus of 16 solo singers a cappella • Words from the old Latin Requiem Mass • Polyphony & canon – Renaissance features! • Voices create sound complexes that expand & contract in various ways • Astonishing rich sonorities in the ebb & flow • Form made of four lengthy sound surges • Nos. 1 & 4 balance & parallel each other with a very high note added halfway through • Used in 2001: A Space Odyssey

8. Edgard Varèse(1883-1965) • Found his voice in the U.S. in the 1920s • One of the most radical composers of his day • New approaches to rhythm & sonority – he worked with sound objects • Ionisation the 1st major percussion work • 13 percussionists play 45 instruments • A musical work made entirely of “noises” • His growing vision outstripped the means available in the mid-1930s • Unable to compose again until the 1950s

9. Varèse, Poème électronique • Advances in electronic music gave Varèse the tools he needed to compose again • Déserts (1950-54), Poème électronique (1958) • Poème électronique is a masterpiece of early electronic music • Mixes musique concrète & electronically generated sounds • Uses humming, singing, bells, organ, & a train • Punctuated with percussive rhythms • At the end a 3-note sliding motive & siren give way to a violent noise crescendo

10. Modernist Music and Architecture • Poème électronique was part of a novel, extraordinary multimedia experience • Written for Philips Radio exhibit at 1958 Brussels World Fair • Pavilion designed by modernist architect Le Corbusier, assisted by Xenakis • Colored lights & images were projected • Varèse’s 3-track tape was played from 425 speakers • As visitors walked through, sounds, lights, & images came at them from different angles

11. John Cage(1912-1992) • The father of chance music • Studied with Schoenberg in California • Early works for percussion, prepared piano • Wrote his 1st chance work in 1951 • Cage challenged the assumptions of traditional music • Should music differ from everyday sounds? • Why use “musical” sounds instead of noises? • Is a “purposeful order” really more interesting than leaving it to chance?

12. Cage, 4’ 33” • Cage’s most controversial work • For any number of players • Performer(s) sits silently for 4’33” • Ambient sounds become the composition • Is silence even possible? • There is always something to listen to • Do we really listen, or do we dismiss it if it is not “musical” or “interesting”? • Cage wants us to open our ears – to listen afresh to all of life’s unpredictable, surprising sounds!