Post WW2

There is a a very dramatic shift of music in its conception, philosophy, goal, process and effect on the audience.

WW2 has shocked the world profoundly in a number of ways, and the arts as a result have turned back on expressing idealism, progress, elitism as well as romanticism or beauty.
The artists of the world are disillusioned and have turned to a more conceptual, experimental, intellectual and less emotional work.

The question that came up for me again and again this week had to do with the definition of music, since this week's pieces stretch the meaning more and more.

Pierre Boulez (1925- ) - Structures for 2 pianos

Building on Schoenberg and Massiaen, this piece is mathematical, conceptual tone row work based on matrix, mathematical principles when it comes to the selection of pitch, rhythm and dynamic. It's hard for me to fully understand this work because I am not mathematically inclined and the explanations and diagrams of it make little sense to me. It is very carefully and meticulously planned out even though it is not something that can be heard.
With many post modern works, I feel like we are listening to audible formulas, and I don't if our ears and their perception are at all relevant to the exploration of "pitch math". This piece is not meant for auditory enjoyment but rather intellectual and scientific exploration.


John Cage (1912-1992) 4'33

John Cage is a fascinating and very interesting individual. Such an individual. I regard to him more as an original thinker, as a philosopher. I don't know if I can think of him as a composer, he notably was not a good musician. More then anyone on this list he constantly asked "what is music" of himself and his audience and challenged every barrier of it. I like to think of his creations as "sound philosophy".
In 4'33, the famous "piece" where the pianist just sits there and occasionally turns pages meant to bring awareness that even silence is music, even outside and incidental noise is music. This type of art becomes more about the concept and the reaction of the audience to that concept then about "musical talent". John Cage pushed forward the ideas opened up by Cowell and opened up the door to conceptual "sound art" that is such a big part of what current art music is today. For better or for worse.


Here he explains it for himself:


and here's my favorite 4'33



Krysztof Penderecki (1933 - ) Threnody for the victims of Hiroshima

Once again the stretch of the definition of music. With the creation of expended technique and notation Penderecki is able to get a completely different sound out of the strings and create an "auditory experience". The piece is very powerful and very effective in visualizing the tragedy. I can see Cowell's inspiration here, using the instruments unusually. I can also see the tremendous effect this piece had on future composers as well as film soundtracks. He successfully brought out sounds and an emotional response that can even be thought of as literal. May I dare to compare this to madrigal text painting?
I first was exposed to this piece in middle school, and absolutely hated it because of the way sonority and pitch was used. I didn't know how to react to a more conceptual work.

this is stupid:



Laurie Andreson - O Superman

I have a hard time being objective about this. Although I studied this piece before I still have the same problem with it - I don't find it to be any different then some other pop music, especially since the technology of the looping and the vocoder sounds incredibly outdated and sounds like something anyone can replicate on their garageband. Why is she studied in the same course as Beethoven? I don't know, I don't know how this piece made the cannon, I don't find much appeal in it intellectually, performance based or technologically. I do find merit in the text and acknowledge her use of "O Souverain...", and see her influence on present day indie artists, and  I'm sure that in the 80s the technology and performance aspects of this were probably more revered but I don't think this is a timeless piece of music that can be appreciated 100 years from now...
Sorry Laurie Andreson, I do find you an intelligent, strong and creative woman and your eulogy to Lou Reed was beautifully written.

This is the "music video" for this song from the MOMA exhibit