I'm interested in getting into modernist composers. I've been listening to Stravinky and Shostakovich for a few years but want to get in a little deeper.

Philip Glass, Steve Reich etc...?

I'm sure one of you geeks* is into this stuff.

Any "Primer" advice would be well appreciated.







* This is meant with affection

I suppose it partly depends on what you consider "modernist" versus "modern". Does this period begin in 1889? 1894? 1947? For me "modern" begins when Debussy hears Javanese Gamelan at the 1889 Paris Expo. For some it begins when Schoenberg writes Pierrot Lunaire, or when Boulez composed his first piano sonata.

I can eloborate more later, but for the moment these are good starting points:

(BTW: I'm not much of a fan of "minimalism" as it were. So I will not be mentioning much of Reich, Glass, etc... I much prefer "maximalism", Shostakovich's 12th or 13th for example)

Bartok: Miraculous Mandarin (the Fisher and Boulez [on Sony] recordings are quite good), Music for Strings Percussion and Celesta (Reiner/CSO is the one to have)

Penderecki: Threnody, Dream of Jacob, De Natura Sonorus I & II, etc.... (I have a two disc set by EMI with the composer conducting....very nice)

Ligeti: Atomospheres, San Fransisco Polyphony, Lontano, Lux Aeterna

Lutoslawski: Concerto for Orchestra, Double Concerto, Dance Preludes (there's a great 2-disc set on Philips....recommended)

Webern: Five pieces for Orchestra (a great start to "serial" music, the Mercury disc with Schoenberg's Five Pieces will serve you well)

Ravel: Daphnis et Chloe (the RCA reissue with Charles Munch and the Boston Symphony is supreme) I know, I know, technically Ravel wasn't a modernist and didn't write outside of traditional tonality.....but fuck it. I hate labels anyway....and this is great music - some of the greatest, in fact.


All for now. I can add more, and would encourage the Capn' of Reverb to do the same - as my knowledge base is a mere smattering of his; especially when speaking of chamber stuff.

Gramsci wrote:I'm interested in getting into modernist composers. I've been listening to Stravinky and Shostakovich for a few years but want to get in a little deeper.

Philip Glass, Steve Reich etc...?

I'm sure one of you geeks* is into this stuff.

Any "Primer" advice would be well appreciated.

Edgard Varese
Arnold Schönberg
Alban Berg
Anton Webern
Gyorgi Ligeti
John Cage
Pierre Boulez

I think the CSO is playing Shostakovich, Symphony No. 4, on 1/26, 1/27, and 1/28.

G. Ligeti is the guy who wrote the music (Atmosphères, Requiem and Lux Aeterna) that was played in "2001 A Space Odyssey" when Dave Bowman flew into the monolith toward the end of the film after Hal went nuts. Ligeti may or may not be considered a true "modernist" composer, but I think his music is fantastic. I also like Varese and Schönberg's music a great deal.

Gramsci wrote:Philip Glass, Steve Reich etc...?

You might be interested in the pianist and composer Colin Mcphee. His work was instructed by his studies of Balinese music. In turn, he influenced Glass and Reich, who were seeking to move away from modern european traditions.

Here is a mp3 program about him: Colin McPhee

geiginni wrote:Webern: Five pieces for Orchestra (a great start to "serial" music [snippety snip]

geiginni does a service to the thread with his post but I felt compelled by some deep, sick insecurity to point out that Webern's first serial pieces were:

Three Traditional Rhymes, op. 17
Three Songs, op. 18
Two Songs, op. 19
String Trio, op. 20
Symphony, op. 21
Quartet op. 22

The texts used for the three traditional rhymes are absolutely hilarious. If you don't believe me, look them up, I can't ruin it with a spoiler. Webern was an excellent song composer and spent a lot of energy on vocal music.
Don't look to Webern's Five pieces for Orchestra op. 10 for a primer on serialism, however excellent it may be, it ain't serial. Go with his Symphonie op. 21 or the Piano Variations Op. 27 if that's what you're easing yourself into. If you can find John Rahn's Atonal Theory, that's a good companion while you're getting into that material. That's going to be in a library, not a bookstore, it's out of print AFAIK. The Kubelik Mercury performances geiginni mentions are fantastic.

Juche wrote:

geiginni wrote:Webern: Five pieces for Orchestra (a great start to "serial" music [snippety snip]

geiginni does a service to the thread with his post but I felt compelled by some deep, sick insecurity to point out that Webern's first serial pieces were:

Three Traditional Rhymes, op. 17
Three Songs, op. 18
Two Songs, op. 19
String Trio, op. 20
Symphony, op. 21
Quartet op. 22

The texts used for the three traditional rhymes are absolutely hilarious. If you don't believe me, look them up, I can't ruin it with a spoiler. Webern was an excellent song composer and spent a lot of energy on vocal music.
Don't look to Webern's Five pieces for Orchestra op. 10 for a primer on serialism, however excellent it may be, it ain't serial. Go with his Symphonie op. 21 or the Piano Variations Op. 27 if that's what you're easing yourself into. If you can find John Rahn's Atonal Theory, that's a good companion while you're getting into that material. That's going to be in a library, not a bookstore, it's out of print AFAIK. The Kubelik Mercury performances geiginni mentions are fantastic.

Oooh, my bad. Thanks for setting it straight regarding the works of Webern. You obviously have a passion for the man's music that I have yet to cultivate. Time to revisit.

Cheers!

geiginni wrote:I suppose it partly depends on what you consider "modernist" versus "modern".

I'm talking about Modernism with a capital "M".

Elliott Carter, Stravinsky, Ives and Varèse, etc.

My interest was sparked by an article in yesterday's Guardian

I've had good results with Behr for my modernist endeavors.


http://www.behr.com/behrx/act/view/products?catId=20&sc_name=Primers

If we want to broaden the scope a little bit, and indulge in modern classical, rather than explicitly modernist classical, then I would really encourage anyone to check one the following people and or music (in addition to much that has been mentioned)

Luigi Nono - lo, frammeto da Prometeo
Giacinto Scelsi - Konx-Om-Pax (1968) for large Orchestra
James Dillon - Ignis Noster / Helle Nacht
Heinz Holliger - Scardanelli Cycle
Luciano Berio - Sequenza XII for Basson
Morton Feldman - SQ2 (if you have six hours to spare)
Iannis Xenakis - metastatis
Toru Takemitsu - Soundtracks for Kwaidan and Woman in the Dunes
James Tenney - 4 Forms
Edgar Varese - (everything there of)
Liza Lim
and I almost forgot
Jani Christo - if you can find any


Also of interest but outside the scope of composition

Gruppo di Improvvisazione Nuova Consonanza
Otomo Yoshide's Cathode


This collection doesnt really constitue a thesis, but all pretty much floats my boat. I just got a new Scelsi CD on Wergo, it has some gorgeous solo Double Bass stuff.

Keep rocking the stiff collars

Mazec wrote:I've had good results with Behr for my modernist endeavors.


http://www.behr.com/behrx/act/view/products?catId=20&sc_name=Primers

as funny as having a war criminal for an avatar...