Project Four – Contemporary classical music

Having little experience with contemporary classical music, I am excited to embark on the challenge of discovering this world.  Whilst I understand that there are many different styles and genres within this family of music, I am keen to explore the more ‘experimental’ styles.  McCleery (2008:12) suggests that, despite a lack of public acceptance, ‘experimental’ techniques are merely a way to move music forward and push the boundaries of tradition. 

However, before choosing which style and composer to further research, I wanted to gain a further understanding of the styles listed in the course material.   I have made brief notes on each section below.

Minimalism

It is clear to see that minimalism has been a huge influence of some of the more popular genres of today.  The introduction of simple, repeating motifs creates a modern feeling to this style, whilst the layering of these motifs creates a more ‘traditional’ motion by creating a development and eventual crescendo of the pieces.

Steve Reich – Music for 18 Musicians (1976)

The gradual introduction of instruments into this suite takes the listener through a variety of emotions.  The piece begins with the gentle introduction of a number of instruments repeating simple patterns and gradually growing in volume.  As the composition develops, other layers appear, until the piece takes on a ‘hectic’ feel.   Towards the end of the piece the ‘layers’ begin to disappear giving the listener a feeling of ‘winding down’.

Terry Riley – In C (1964)

Much like Reich’s composition, Riley has used repetition and simple motifs to create this piece.  Due to the emphasis on percussion in this piece, at times an almost tribal theme appears, creating tension and a ceremonious feel.  During the course of this composition, I experienced a growing feeling of tension and during the middle section, the tones of the percussion gave me a sense of overload.  Although I may not particular have liked the instruments used in this piece, I have to respect that, despite the overwhelming tones of the percussion, a light and more traditionally ‘classical’ melody was present throughout.  This offered an interesting backdrop to the harsh ‘worldly’ tones of the wooden-percussion section. 

Religious Composers (holy minimalism)

Holy minimalism is simply the application of ‘minimalism’ to the previously more traditional techniques of composing religious music.  ‘Holy Minimalism’ refers to a number of composers who applied the techniques of Riley and Reich to prayer.

Taverner – The Protecting Veil (1989)

It is clear to see how Taverner has ‘tweaked’ the ideas of minimalism for this composition.  Although the same principles of ‘layering’ apply, there is definitely a wider sense of ceremony and grandeur associated with prayer and an infinite being. 

Arvo Part – Spiegel in Spiegel (1978)

This pieces varies slightly from the one above in its use of layering to create crescendo effect.  Unlike Taverner’s great and grand composition to God, Part’s piece seems to give a more constant feel and sound, perhaps referring to the heavens. 

New Complexity

To me, new complexity is best thought of as ‘when maths meets music’.  The academic and scientific method in which these pieces are composed leaves me questioning the presence of ‘emotion’ behind a piece.   As I stated earlier in this blog, I believe very strongly that good music stems from emotion and an understanding of the techniques and complexity of music.  However, this style does also allow for the musician to choose how the piece is played, given the sometimes very difficult nature of the composition.

Brian Ferneyhough – Mnemosyne (1986)

To me, this piece held no feeling of movement or development.  Although the instruments technically ‘worked’ together in terms of pitch and tone, I found the variations between dissonant and consonant tones to detract from any melodic value.  There just seems to be a lack of excitement and danger in the piece, with no sudden or dramatic changes or movements. 

Brian Ferneyhough – Carceri d’Invenzione I (1982)

Unlike Mnemosyne this piece was filled with drama and intrigue.  Somehow in this piece the dissonance really worked with the choice of instruments, and the varying dynamics gave further motion to the piece.  Whilst listening to this piece I found myself comparing it to film scores and feel that this piece would fit extremely well as a backdrop to a horror picture. 

I found the choice and range of instruments in this composition to be very different from the last.  This time a wide range of instrument, spanning different families and ranges were included to create such a powerful piece. 

Choral Music/Tonality

Leading a choir of children has given me a deeper insight into the intricacies of choral music.  Whilst Choirs may have traditionally been associated with the church and religion, today they are used within much larger audiences and span a range of musical genres.  By following the traditional ‘key systems’ choral music presents a sound which the human ear is trained to hear as harmonic and ‘correct’. 

John Rutter – Requiem (1985)

Whilst this piece is tonally perfect, I found its style to still be quite in keeping with older choral pieces.  Much like its older counterparts, it contains very strong vocals, layered to create a very grand and awe-inspiring effect.  

Morten Lauridsen – O Magnum Mysterium (1994)

Once again, I found this piece to be quite dated in its style, which leads me to question whether there have been any substantial developments in Choral music in the past hundred years.   Although this piece, and Requiem were written in the twentieth century, it is hard to see any modern techniques in their compositions. 

Microtonality and spectralism

The system of using the ‘tones between tones’ provides a very novel idea in terms of western composition, but has actually be used in other world music for many years.  The development of specialist instruments on which to plays these tones does demonstrate a significant progression in musical styles, but it once again falls to the skills of classically trained musicians to pull off this type of music.