MFAT

Okay, it is getting closer and we are in the throes of practice tests. Many of the questions have a clue to the answer which can be determined through the process of elimination. Furthermore each composer tends to have a theoretical association that ought to be helpful. When dealing with Classical form--think Mozart. When talking about Development--think Beethoven. When addressing the Fugue--Bach, Opera--Wagner and Verdi. Symphonies--Beethoven, Mahler. Songs--Schubert, Schumann. Tone Poems--Strauss and Sibelius (Liszt also). Neoclassicism--Stravinsky, 12-tone--Schoenberg and Webern. The list goes on and on.

Just keeping things categorized in your mind and eliminate the obviously wrong answers as you go. Take your time and don't get overwhelmed. Some of it is easy while other parts seem impossible. Lots of listening as well. We haven't really listened carefully enough, in fact we haven't really learned anything carefully enough! On the other hand, we have covered early and late music fairly extensively. Now it is time to do your own research and explore the fascinating and never-ending world of music.

Use web resources, youtube, Naxos, and of course books to learn about form, counterpoint, theory, history, musical language, trends, influences, genres, and philosophies. All these and more will help you.

I hope this course has been helpful to you. I hope you have learned new things and mostly I hope you are sparked for further musical growth. Classes like this one tend to show us more about what we don't know than what we do. I, myself, am convinced that I will never know enough and each day brings a new revelation of musical knowledge. Let's all keep flapping our wings, flying higher and faster in the world of music, bringing it to the people as we work to improve our abilities and our knowledge.

Best wishes to each of you.

Britten, Stravinsky and the Creative Process

What makes great composers tick? How do they get their ideas? Will their music live on or be forgotten? All curious questions for sure. Benjamin Britten, the exquisite melodist, wrote in an older vein with contemporary harmonic language. Known more for his vocal works, his instrumental works are clever, charming, and full of vibrancy of orchestration and rhythmic energy. We listened to Peter Grimes and Young Person's Guide both of which are nice representations of his style. Unfortunately Britten does not seem to be faring well in the professional world and aside from some choral works is rarely heard. Still his music is inventive, lyrical, energetic, and bold.

Stravinsky, on the other hand, continues to be performed at a high rate. We need to remember his three distinct styles and periods--early ballets of rich color, primitivism, rhythmic, and experimental; Neoclassicism of traditional forms, sounds, harmony, and clean balance; Serialism of the last few years invoking the 12-tone row and various ordered systems of composing. His music, regardless of which phase you are hearing, is uniquely his with a clean, strident approach that seems calculated yet wonderfully creative at the same time.

Using parallelism, exotic rhythms, harshness, and unpredictable shifts, Stravinsky's music seems to be standing the test of time. While some of it may fall into obscurity, most seems to stand on its own. His output includes ballets, chamber music, choral music, piano music, and theatrical elements. Quite a gifted composer and worth a lifetime of study.

Thanks to Charles and Kris for their reports. We now wrap up this class. Time to ask questions and get everything learned!

It's been a great semester.

Samuel Barber

Caitlan's report on the music of Samuel Barber was excellent, as all the reports have been. Samuel Barber, one of and perhaps my favorite 20th century composer, is known for his post-tonal, neo-romantic style music that has an elegant, lyrical quality bathed in rich counterpoint and powerful emotion. Each song, piece is distinctly Barber but also original to itself, containing a consistently not applicable to anything but that work. This makes his music highly unified but also quite varied. From choral works, operas, symphonies, concertos, piano pieces to songs, Barber covered the gamut of music literature. At times edgy and angular, other times warm and resonant, Barber's music has something for everyone. We listened to Adagio for Strings, the Piano Concerto, a piano piece, and a song, all to great enjoyment.

I must confess that in my humble estimation, Barber is the greatest of the 20th century composers particularly among Americans. My Philip Glass today ended up vacillating with Barber as well!

So we are nearing the end with reports on Stravinsky and Britten. A couple more practice tests and it is time for the big one--Major Field Achievement Test in music. I think we are nearly ready but all of us need to do some additional study.

See you in class.

Schedule

Don't forget that we are NOT having class on April 20. We will have class on the 22 at which time we will hear from Charles Skipping and Kris Redus. In addition, go ahead and work on the test that Rebekah sent to you. We will also be taking some more practice tests as we get closer to the real date.

The next couple of weeks will be spent listening and learning a little more about 20th century theory, composers, and styles. We will return for a quick look at Classical forms and briefly touch on Romantic music with a quick return where we began--Wagner!

Start studying www.lcsproductions.net, particularly the glossary of terms and the composers associated with time periods.

See you Thursday morning!

Prokofiev, Rachmaninoff, and Webern

Two great reports on the music of Prokofiev and Rachmaninoff, both from Russia. Prokofiev, known for his piano music, chamber music, concertos, symphonies, and Peter and the Wolf. At the top of his game, his music is energetic, complex, expressive, and demonstrates a thorough knowledge of harmony, rhythm, and drama. At times though, his music lacks in originality, falling into a tonally predictive framework. Perhaps he was overly restricted by his own government and found himself trying to write music to please the leaders. We will never know, but it does seem that way at times. Don't forget to watch the cartoon of Peter and the Wolf! Great stuff and worth seeing. I feel sad to think of a generation that misses out on the gems of the film and music world! (pardon my old geezer tendency).

Rachmaninoff--wow. Cara covered this quite well. Stunningly beautiful melodies, long melodic lines, gripping emotion, powerful and rich harmonic language, all within a traditional Romantic model. He may have been "behind" times with his musical language, but he sure was good at it! Symphonies, concertos, chamber music, choral music, and piano music all glow with Romantic sensitivity. I would urge you to listen to the 2nd Symphony, Adagio and at least once a month to the 2nd Piano Concerto. Good for a "life" reflection moment!

I keep being drawn to the music of Webern. The more I hear and study, the more I like. Using pointillism, serialism, canon and counterpoint, he achieves a beauty of form and expression unlike any other composer. Very special music that is both complex and simple. The lack of a singable, lyrical melody is its charm, its power being that of the opaque and the transparent.

Okay, onward to Stravinsky, Hindemith, and Barok. We need to know a little bit about the Fibonacci series, the Hindemith language, and the 3 periods of Stravinsky. We also need to take some practice tests.

Don't forget that with Naxos, you have the entire "cultivated" repertoire at your fingertips. Go for it. Today is a Philip Glass day for me. What day is this for you?

Ravel and Tonality

Thanks to Rebekah for the report on the music of Ravel. It was very enlightening and I was once again struck by his genius, his creativity, and mostly his commitment to musical excellence. Every piece he wrote is a gem, worth hearing, difficult to perform, emotionally charging, and shimmering with energy. In addition, he was one of the great orchestrators of all time as demonstrated in Pictures at an Exhibition. Ravel's language is that of neo-classicism, impressionism, modality, tonality, and layers of sounds.

Our brief discussion on functional versus non-functional harmony took us to a new understanding of why composers began to seek out other forms of musical expression. Does a 7th chord have to resolve to the tonic? Are there appropriate uses of parallel fifths or unprepared modulations or equality of pitch? Can planing or the breaking of the harmonic series have purpose? Does all music have to be in Sonata-Allegro form? Is there a place for other instruments or sounds in music? What is music?

All these questions and more shaped and continue to shape the music of today. As we continue to learn the details of composers, their languages, their influences, and way music is put together, keep in mind that we are expanding the definition of excellence in music.

So honestly folks, what kind of music do you prefer? What is the first thing you hope to hear when you get in your car?

Just curious!

Sibelius, 12-tone, Messiaen, and the future

Another great report, this time from Tabitha, gave us a new appreciation for the music of Sibelius. Remember that he is known for his Romantic layering of sounds, long phrases, strength of orchestration, and national spirit of the country of Finland. It has been said that he quit writing music due to not being able or maybe not liking the "new" sounds of the 20th century. In spite of his being a late romantic, and lacking in some originality, he remains in a league of his own for his Orchestral suites and tone-poems. A remarkably gifted and expressive composer, his music continues to find favor with concert audiences everywhere.

We then did a little more work on 12-tone. There are several ways to understand the 12 tone row, from basic numbering to a more advanced system. Modern analyses tend to label the first note as number 0, following the chromatic scale upward to number 11. The matrix is the built on numbers which correlate to the notes. This makes for a cleaner understanding of 12-tone music and serialism in general. For sheer complexity, and depth of expression, 12-tone serial music remains intriguing and wonderfully fascinating for its magnitude and musical force. While the genre has never caught on as the ultimate expression of music, it has influenced countless composers and given us sound and music that remains in the repertoire. I would urge you to do further study on serialism and various techniques. I especially ask that you remain open-minded to this music and seek out opportunities to experience it.

We are not done with 12-tone, but do need to press forward with our reports. It is time to take some practice tests for the MFAT. Some of these will be done in class on the screen, others may be given for homework. Also, we need to do some more listening of music in class for identification purposes.

Our brief visit with Messiaen with his bird sounds, modes of limited transposition, and expansive use of the orchestra, maybe gave us a new perspective of music. While his music does not seem to be performed much (perhaps due to its difficulty and complexity), it does have a particular following. My awareness of the rhythmic and melodic qualities of bird calls has been quite keen lately? Have you noticed the amazing sounds of birds in the environment?

Up to this point, what has been the most interesting thing you have learned in class? Has there been anything that you just haven't liked? Do you think that our "conservative" traditionalism in music programming is a result of general preference or deep-rooted philosophy?