New American Traditionalists

1
New American Traditionalists

• MUSC315

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The Internationalist American composers

• Almost all American composers who reached musical
  maturity during the 1920s were trained in Europe.
  (A. Copland, R. Harris, V. Thomson)
  
• These composers consciously strove to find a
  distinctly American style within the
  well-established forms and genres of the European
  tradition.
• Most of them studied with the French-woman Nadia
  Boulanger, who encouraged them to follow the
  voice of their vernacular American music.
  
• Thus, these American composers fashioned and
  indigenous style grounded in the European
  tradition.

3

• Common characteristics
• Embraced European developments
• Neo-classicism (Stravinsky)
• Twelve-tone System (Schoenberg)
• Nationalism (Bartok)
• American elements the vernacular quality
• Driving, sharply accented irregular folk rhythms
• Inflections, idiom and spirit of Jazz music

4
George Gershwin (1898-1937)

• Listening Rhapsody in Blue (1924)
• For solo piano and jazz band
• Combines elements of classical and jazz music
• Classical modeled on the concerto genre (solo
  instrument with orchestra) is written for solo
  piano with orchestra. A rhapsody differs from a
  concerto in that it features one extended
  movement instead of separate movements.
• Jazz Ragtime, Cuban clave rhythm, and the use
  of vernacular instruments such as accordion,
  banjo, and saxophones in the orchestra contribute
  to its jazz or popular style
• The version for piano and symphony orchestra
  (1942) has become one of the most popular
  American concert works
  

5
Aaron Copland (1900-1990)

• Most prominent American composer of his
  generation and instrumental in creating a
  distinctly American style of composition
  
• Devoted to concert, ballet, and film music
• Accomplished pianist
• Began his musical studies late in life (1917),
  and decided to travel to Paris to pursue his
  musical training under Nadia Boulanger.
  
• Copland's music achieved a balance between modern
  music and American folk styles
  
• His style is characterized by the use of
  percussive orchestration, changing meter, clear
  formal structures, and an intense expressive
  quality.

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• Listening Appalachian Spring (1944)
• Utilizes American folk materials to create a
  simple musical atmosphere
  
• The Gift to Be Simple
• Exemplifies Coplands ability to transform
  basically simple materials into a personal and
  interesting musical language.

7
The Experimental American Tradition Cowell and
Varese

• The American Individualism
• A small group of composers follow Charles Ives
  experimental approach to music as a model.
  
• They looked for an alternative stream in modern
  American music dedicated to a highly personal
  musical style.
  
• Common characteristics
• Eagerness to experiment with sound for its own
  sake
  
• Tendency to draw inspiration not only from local
  sources but from exotic cultures Eastern
  cultures
  

8
Henry Cowell (1897-1965)

• Born in San Francisco. Remained in California for
  most of his life.
  
• Exposed to a varied range of world music father
  was an Irish man.
  
• Tone-clusters (harmony of seconds) adjacent
  keys on the piano. Keys are played with forearm,
  flat of the hand, side of the fist.
  
• Expanded timbral possibilities of the piano
  plucking, strumming, stroking the piano strings
  
• rather than using the keys to play, the pianist
  reaches inside the instrument and plucks, sweeps,
  and otherwise manipulates the strings directly
  
• Listening The Banshee (1925)

9
Edgard Varese (1883-1965)

• Original of France, arrived to the United States
  when he was 32.
  
• US became his primary residency. Married an
  American and acquired citizenship soon after.
  
• All of his principal compositions were written in
  America American composer.
  
• Scientific background (mathematics and
  engineering) had an important influence upon this
  musical approach.
  
• He was trained at the Paris Conservatory (1903)
• In his music Varese emphasizes the role
  percussion instruments
  
• Works with large percussion instruments
• The percussion section offered opportunities for
  significant expansion of instrumental sounds.
  Fresh timbral resources.
  
• Pitch (melody) is no longer the primary musical
  material
  
• Changed the focus of compositional activity to
  non-pitched elements
  

10

• Listening Integrals (1925)
• New organization of musical materials
• Sound masses the principal concern is on
  textural and timbral effect rather than melody
  and harmony