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Modern Music: 1900-1960 >> Content Detail



Listening



Listening

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This page lists the recordings, plus a few videos, of works assigned for each class session. When this course was taught during the Fall 2006 term, some recordings were different; the recordings below aim for a balance between being of the highest quality and being in print for purchase today.



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LEC #TOPICSLISTENINGSCORES

Part 1: European Music Before WWII

(Composers and ideas which gained in importance before 1939 or at least 1945. Some works studied will be from as late as 1956 but in "older" styles.)

1

Introduction

Antecedents and the State of Music, 1899. The "Long Nineteenth Century." 1900-1960: the big questions.

Listening done in class - this week only:

Amazon logo Dvořák, A. Symphony No. 9 in E-minor, Op. 95 ("From the New World") (1893), mvmt. 1. New York Philharmonic, Bernstein. Sony Classical, 1992.

Amazon logo Strauss, R. Don Quixote, Op. 35 (1897). Themes and variations 1-2. Boston Symphony, Ma, Ozawa. Sony, 1990.

Amazon logo Wagner, R. Tristan Und Isolde (1859). "Prelude." Bayreuther Festspiele Orchester. Deutsche Grammophon, 1997.

Amazon logo Joplin, Scott. "Maple Leaf Rag." (1899). Joshua Rifkin, piano. Ragtime: Music of Scott Joplin. Angel, 2005.

Dvořák: Symphony No. 9 in E minor ("From the New World")

Strauss: Don Quixote

Wagner: Tristan und Isolde

Joplin: Maple Leaf Rag
2Stravinsky Throws Down the Gauntlet

Amazon logo Stravinsky, Igor. Petrushka (1911); Le Sacre du Printemps (The Rite of Spring) (1913). New York Philharmonic, Bernstein. Sony Classical, 1993.
[Notes: In Petrushka, focus on Tableaux 1-2: esp. The Shrovetide Fair and Petrushka's Room (~14'). In Le Sacre du Printemps, listen to the complete work (~ 30'); focus especially on the introduction and Augurs of Spring (2nd section; a.k.a. "Dance of the Young Girls").]

3Bartok

Amazon logo Bartók, Béla. Mikrokosmos, Book 2, no. 50 (Minuetto), (1926, 1932-1939). György Sándor. Bela Bartok: Mikrokosmos. Sony Classical, 1993.

Amazon logo ———. String Quartet No. 4 (1928). Mvmt. 1. Juilliard Quartet. Bartok: The Six String Quartets. Sony Classical, 1997.

Amazon logo ———. Music for Strings, Percussion, and Celesta (1936). Mvmt. 3. Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Solti. Bartok: The Orchestral Masterpieces. Decca, 2002.

Amazon logo Ravel, Maurice. Ma mère l'oye (1911-12): "Laideronnette, Impératrice des Pagodes," and "Les entretiens de la Belle et de la Bête." Orchestre symphonique de Montréal, Dutoit. Ravel: Bolero [et al]. Decca, 1999.

Ravel: Ma mère l'oye

4German Music between the Wars (And a Little Before and After...)

Amazon logo Hindemith, Paul. Symphony in B-flat for Band (1956). Cincinnati Wind Symphony, Eugene Corporon. Klavier, 1995.
[Focus on mvmt. 1 but listen to all three at least once to see how they use material from mvmt. 1.]

Amazon logo Weill, Kurt, and Bertolt Brecht. Kölner Rundfunkorchester, Latham-König. Aufstieg und Fall der Stadt Mahagonny (The Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny) (1929 based on material from 1927). Capriccio CD, 1988. Opening scenes (1-6) and "God Comes to Mahagonny" (scene 19).

Amazon logo DVD: ———. Aufstieg und Fall der Stadt Mahagonny (The Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny). From the Salzburg Festival, 1998. Radio Symphony Orchestra Vienna/Davies and Konzertvereinigung Wiener Staatsopernchor/Maczewski. Kultur Video, 2001.

5The Second Viennese School: Tonality and Atonality

Late modern Schoenberg:

Amazon logo Schoenberg, A. Verklärte Nacht (1899). New York Philharmonic, Boulez. Die glückliche Hand [et al.] Sony, 1993.

Atonality without process:

Amazon logo ———. Six little piano pieces, Op. 19, nos. 2 and 6 (1911). Mitsuko Uchida, piano. Schoenberg: Piano Concerto. Phillips, 2001.

Amazon logo ———. "Nacht." (no. 8) from Pierrot Lunaire, Op. 21 (1912). Lucy Shelton, soprano. Schoenberg: Pierrot Lunaire. Bridge, 1992.

Amazon logo Webern, Anton. Fünf Sätze (Five Movements) for String Quartet, Op. 5, movements 1 & 4. (1909). Juilliard Quartet. Webern: Complete Works. Sony, 1991.

Amazon logo Berg, Alban. Wozzeck, Act I, first scene, and Act III, scene 3. (1917-1922). Hamburg State Philharmonic Orchestra; Ingo Metzmacher, conductor. EMI/Angel, 2002.

Amazon logo DVD: ———. Wozzeck. Frankfurt Opera. Kultur Video, 2003.

Schoenberg: Six Little Piano Pieces

Webern: Five Movements for String Quartet, Op. 5
6The Second Viennese School: Twelve-Tone Tonality

Amazon logo Schoenberg, Arnold. String Quartet No. 4, Op. 37 (1936), 1st mvmt. Arnold Schoenberg 2: String Quartets 1-4. Disques Montaigne, 1994.

Amazon logo Webern, Anton. Symphonie, Op. 21 (1929) (for nine instruments). Members of London Symphony Orchestra, Boulez. Webern: Complete Works. Sony, 1991.

7

Neoclassicism and Stravinsky (ca. 1920-1952)

First Unit Ttest

Amazon logo Prokofiev, Sergei. Symphony no. 1 ("Classical"), Op. 25 (1917). Mvmt. 1. New York Philharmonic, Bernstein. Prokofiev: Symphonies Nos. 1 & 5. Sony Classical, 1993.

Amazon logo Stravinsky, Igor. Symphony of Psalms (1930). Mvmt 1. Berliner Philharmoniker, Boulez. Stravinsky: Symphony of Psalms; Symphony in Three Movements. Deutsche Grammophon, 1999.

Stravinsky, Igor. The Rake's Progress (1951). Act II scene 1. Royal Philharmonic, Stravinsky. Sony Classical SM2K 46299, 1991.

Amazon logo DVD: ———. The Rake's Progress. Glyndebourne Opera. Arthaus Musik, 2005.

Part 2: American Music Before WWII
8Introduction; Antecedents

Amazon logo Sousa, John Philip. Washington Post March (1889). Sousa Marches played by the Sousa Band. Crystal Records, 2000.

Amazon logo Beach, Amy. Grand Mass in E-flat major, Op. 5 (1890). "Gloria." Barbara Schramm, Daniel Beckwith, Paul Rogers. Newport Classical, 1989.

Amazon logo Chadwick, George. Symphonic Sketches (1895-1904). Mvmts. 2 ("Noël") and 4 ("A vagrom ballad"). National Radio Symphony Orchestra of Ukraine, Kuchar. Naxos, 2005.

Beach: Mass in E-Flat
9Charles Ives

Amazon logo Ives, Charles. "General William Booth Enters Heaven." (Song 1914, rev. 1933). Steven Blier, piano, and William Sharp, baritone. Charles Ives: Songs, vol. 3. Albany Records, 1995.

Amazon logo ———. Three Places in New England (1929, from movements dating as far back as 1915). Mvmts. I and II. Cleveland Orchestra, von Dohnányi. Ives: Three Places in New England; Ruggles: Sun-treader. London/Decca, 1995.

Amazon logo ———. Second Piano Sonata ("Concord, Mass. 1840-60") (1916-19; rev. from 1920-40). Mvmt. 3 "The Alcotts" and mvmt. 4 "Thoreau." Pierre-Laurent Aimard, piano. Ives: Concord Sonata; Songs. Warner Classical, 2004.

10Ruth Crawford Seeger and Other American Modernists

Amazon logo Seeger, Ruth Crawford. String Quartet (1931); Ricercare 2: "Chinaman, laundryman" (1932); Piano Study in Mixed Accents (1930). Schoenberg Ensemble, Lucy Shelton. Ruth Crawford Seeger: Portrait. Deutsche Grammophon, 1997.

Amazon logo Ruggles, Carl. Sun-Treader (1926-1931). Cleveland Orchestra, von Dohnányi. Ives: Three Places in New England; Ruggles: Sun-treader. London/Decca, 1995.

11The "Art-Scientists": Cowell, Antheil, Varese

Amazon logo Cowell, Henry. Piano works (mostly 1917-1925): "The Tides of Manaunaun," "The Aeolian Harp," "The Banshee," and "Fabric." Chris Brown, Sorrel Hays, piano. New Music - Piano Compositions By Henry Cowell. New Albion, 1999.

Antheil, George. Ballet Mécanique (1925).
Amazon logo Version 1 : Ballet mécanique and other works for player pianos, percussion, and electronics. University of Massaschusetts Lowell Percussion Ensemble. EMF, 2000. [A newer recording with Disklaviers etc.]
Amazon logo Version 2 : Ballet Mécanique: Digital recreation of the Carnegie Hall Concert of 1927. Music Masters Classics, 1995. [A more traditional recording.]

Amazon logo Varèse, Edgard. Ionisation (1931). ASKO Ensemble. Varese: The Complete Works. London/Decca, 1998.

12Still, Gershwin (And Bernstein)

Amazon logo Still, William Grant. Afro-American Symphony (1930). Mvmts. 1 and 3. Chicago Sinfonietta, Freeman. African Heritage Symphonic Series, Vol. 1. Cedille Records, 2000.

Gershwin, George. Rhapsody in Blue (1924):
Amazon logo Version 1: Los Angeles Philharmonic, Bernstein. Leonard Bernstein: The Americans. Deutsche Grammophon, 2004. [Orchestral/Grofé.]
Amazon logo Version 2: Netherlands Wind Ensemble, Louis Lortie, piano. Bernstein: West Side Story; Gershwin: Rhapsody in Blue. Chandos, 1993. [Original small band arrangement.]

Amazon logo Bernstein, Leonard. West Side Story. MGM DVD, 1961.

13Aaron Copland (Guest Lecture)

Amazon logo Copland, Aaron. Piano Variations (1930). Gil Kalish, piano. Copland: Sextet; Piano variations; Piano quartet. Elektra/Nonesuch, 1987.

———. Appalachian Spring (1944).
Amazon logo Version 1 (chamber): Columbia Chamber Ensemble, Copland. A Copland Celebration, Vol. 1: Famous orchestral and chamber works. Sony, 2000.
Amazon logo Version 2 (orchestral): Los Angeles Philharmonic, Bernstein. Gershwin: Rhapsody in Blue; Copland: Appalachian Spring; Barber: Adagio. Deutsche Grammophon, 1985.

14

Virgil Thomson

Second Unit Test

Amazon logo Thomson, Virgil, and Gertrude Stein. "Pigeons on the Grass, Alas." Orchestra of Our Time. Four Saints in Three Acts (1928; orch, 1933; fp. 1934), excerpts: Act I, Scene 1; Act 2, Elektra/Nonesuch, 1982.
Part 3: Music During and After WWII
15The Continued Tonal Tradition I: Britten and Barber

Amazon logo Britten, Benjamin. Peter Grimes (1945). Act III. Chorus and Orchestra of the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden; Colin Davis. Philips Classics, 1999.

Amazon logo DVD: ———. Peter Grimes, Chorus and Orchestra of the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden; Colin Davis. Kultur Video, 2003.

Amazon logo Barber, Samuel. Knoxville: Summer of 1915 (1947). Dawn Upshaw, Orchestra of St. Luke's. Elektra/Nonesuch, 1990.

16The Continued Tonal Tradition II: Shostakovich

Amazon logo Shostakovich, Dmitri. Symphony No. 7 in C major ("Leningrad"), Op. 60 (1941). Mvmt 1. Chicago Symphony, Bernstein. Shostakovich: Symphonies 1 & 7. Deutsche Grammophon, 1989.

Amazon logo ———. String Quartet No. 8 in C minor, Op. 110 (1960). Kronos Quartet. Black Angels. Elektra/Nonesuch, 1990.

17Oliver Messiaen

Amazon logo Messiaen, Oliver. Quartet for the End of Time (1942), mvmts. 1, 3, 6, and 8. Yordanoff, Tetard, Desurmont, and Barenboim. Deutsche Grammophon, 1999.

Amazon logo ———. Quatre études de rhythme (1949). Mvmt. 2: Mode de valeurs et d'intensités. Gloria Cheng, piano. Messiaen: Petites Esquisses d'Oiseaux [etc.]. Koch International, 1994.

Amazon logo ———. Oiseaux exotiques (1959). Peter Donohoe, piano; Netherlands Wind Ensemble. Messiaen: Et Exspecto Resurrectionem Mortuorum [etc.]. Chandos, 1994.

18Total Serialism 1: Babbitt and Stockhausen

Amazon logo Babbitt, Milton. Three Compositions for Piano (1947). Robert Taub, piano. Babbit: Piano Works. Harmonia Mundi, 1986

———. Composition for Four Instruments (1948). 33 1/3 rpm LP. Composers Recording CRI 138, 195.

Stockhausen, Kreuzspiel (1951, rev. 1959). Stockhausen-Verlag CD, 1991.

19Serialism 2: Nono and Stravinsky

Amazon logo Nono, Luigi. Il canto sospeso (1956). Mvmts. 2, 6, 7, and 9. Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, Abbado. Sony Classical, 1993.

Amazon logo Stravinsky, Igor. Agon (1957). London Symphony Orchestra, Thomas. Stravinsky In America. RCA Red Seal, 1997.

Amazon logo ———. Elegy for J.F.K. (1964). Cathy Berberian, mezzo-soprano. Igor Stravinsky: The Recorded Legacy. Sony Classical, 1991.

20Boulez, Carter and the Legacy of Serial Aesthetic

Amazon logo Boulez, Pierre. Le Marteau sans maître (pour voix d'alto et 6 instruments) (1958). Mvmts. 1-3. Hillary Summers, mezzo-soprano; Ensemble intercontemporain. Boulez Conducts Boulez. Deutsche Grammophon, 2005.

Amazon logo Carter, Elliot. String Quartet No. 2 (1959). Juilliard String Quartet. The Four String Quartets. Sony Classical, 1991.

Amazon logo ———. Contemporary Chamber Ensemble, Kalish, Jacobs. Double Concerto for Harpsichord and Piano (1961). Elektra/Nonesuch, 1992.

21Electronic Music

Stockhausen, Karlheinz. Gesang der Jünglinge (1956). Stockhausen-Verlag CD 3.

Amazon logo Varèse, Edgard. Poeme électronique (1958). OHM: the early gurus of electronic music, 1948-1980. Ellipsis Arts, 2000.

Amazon logo Babbitt, Milton. Philomel (1964). Bethany Beardslee, soprano. New World Records, 1995.

22Cage and Aleatory

Mozart, W. A. (1756-1791), Musikalisches Würfelspiel (Musical Dice game).

Amazon logo Cage, John. In a landscape (for piano) (1948). Works for piano & prepared piano, Vol. . Wergo, 1993.

Amazon logo ———. Sonatas and Interludes for Prepared Piano (1948). Sonatas 1-4, Interlude 1. Maro Ajemian, piano. CRI, 1995.

Amazon logo ———. TV Köln (for piano) (1958). Works for piano & prepared piano, Vol. 2. Wergo, 1993.

Amazon logo ———. Music of Changes book 1 (piano) (1951). Martine Joste, piano.The Works for Piano, Vol. 6. Mode, 2005.

Amazon logo ———. Imaginary Landscape No. 4 for 12 radios (1951). Will You Give Me to Tell You? Norway Music, 2003.

Amazon logo ———. 4'33" (1956). Amalinda Percussion Group. Hungaroton, 1993.

23

Aleatory 2: Open Form, New York School and Fluxus

Bring Instruments Today!

Amazon logo Stockhausen, K. "Klavierstück XI." Herbert Henck, piano. Klavierstück I-XI. (1956). Wergo, 1993.

Amazon logo Wolff, Christian. Burdocks (1971). Other Minds Ensemble. Tzadik, 2001.

Feldman, Morton. Straits of Magellan (1961). Music Before Revolution. Ensemble Musica Negativa. 33 1/3 rpm LP. Odeon, 1972. [Although this recording is out of print, multiple versions are available on iTunes®.]

Amazon logo ———. De Kooning (1963). Feldman: For Frank O'Hara; Bass Clarinet & Percussion; De Kooning (1963). New Millenium Ensemble. Koch International, 2000.

[For further listening: Fluxus composers: La Monte Young (Compositions 1960); Nam June Paik, Allison Knowles, Dick Higgins, Yoko Ono]

24Nancarrow and Partch: Two American Originals

Amazon logo Nancarrow, Conlon. Studies for Player Piano. Nos. 4, 14, 21 (Canon X), 25 (1950s and early 60s). Wergo, 2000.

Amazon logo Partch, Harry. The Wayward: IV. Barstow (1941 rev. 1954/1968). Gate 5 Ensemble of the World. The Harry Partch Collection, Vol. 2. New World Records, 2004.

———. Delusion of the Fury (1969). VHS videocassette. American Composers Forum/Innova Recordings 404, 1997.

Third Unit Test

 








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