🎶Experimental Music Unit 2 – Early 20th Century Avant-Garde Movements

What's the deal with Avant-Garde?

• Avant-garde refers to innovative, experimental, and boundary-pushing artistic movements that challenge traditional norms and conventions
• Originated in the early 20th century as a response to the rapidly changing world and the desire to break free from established artistic traditions
• Encompasses various art forms including music, visual arts, literature, and theater
• Characterized by a rejection of realism, emphasis on abstraction, and exploration of new forms and techniques
• Avant-garde artists sought to provoke, shock, and challenge audiences, often creating controversial and unconventional works
  • Dadaism (1916-1922) embraced absurdity, irrationality, and rejected logic and reason in art
  • Surrealism (1924-1966) explored the subconscious mind, dreams, and automatism in creative expression
• Fueled by the belief that art should be a catalyst for social, political, and cultural change
• Influenced by the rapid technological advancements, industrialization, and the horrors of World War I

Key players and their crazy ideas

• Igor Stravinsky (1882-1971) revolutionized music with his dissonant and rhythmically complex compositions like "The Rite of Spring" (1913)
  • Incorporated elements of Russian folk music and pushed the boundaries of tonality and meter
• Arnold Schoenberg (1874-1951) developed the twelve-tone technique, a method of composition that treated all 12 notes of the chromatic scale equally
  • Pioneered the concept of atonality, which broke free from traditional harmony and tonality
• Edgard Varèse (1883-1965) experimented with electronic music, spatial sound projection, and unconventional instrumentation
  • Coined the term "organized sound" to describe his approach to composition
• John Cage (1912-1992) explored the use of chance operations, indeterminacy, and silence in his compositions
  • His famous work "4'33"" (1952) consists of four minutes and thirty-three seconds of silence performed by a seated pianist
• Karlheinz Stockhausen (1928-2007) pioneered electronic and serial music, creating groundbreaking works like "Gesang der Jünglinge" (1956)
  • Developed the concept of "moment form," where each moment in a composition is independent and self-contained
• Luigi Russolo (1885-1947), a futurist painter and composer, created "The Art of Noises" (1913), a manifesto that called for the incorporation of industrial and urban sounds in music
  • Invented noise-generating devices called "intonarumori" to create new sonic possibilities

Shaking up the music scene

• Avant-garde composers rejected traditional forms, harmony, and tonality in favor of experimentation and innovation
• Embraced atonality, dissonance, and unconventional scales and modes to create new sonic landscapes
• Incorporated elements of chance, indeterminacy, and improvisation in compositions, challenging the role of the composer as the sole creator
• Explored the use of non-musical sounds, found objects, and extended techniques in performances
  • John Cage's "Imaginary Landscape No. 4" (1951) utilized 12 radios as instruments, with performers manipulating the frequencies and volumes
• Blurred the lines between music, noise, and silence, questioning the very definition of music
• Collaborated with artists from other disciplines, such as dance, visual arts, and theater, to create interdisciplinary works
  • Merce Cunningham (1919-2009) and John Cage frequently collaborated, with Cage providing indeterminate scores for Cunningham's choreography
• Challenged the traditional concert setting by staging performances in unconventional spaces and encouraging audience participation
• Influenced the development of new musical genres, such as minimalism, experimental rock, and electronic music

Weird instruments and tech breakthroughs

• Avant-garde composers embraced new technologies and invented unconventional instruments to expand the sonic palette
• Theremin (1920), invented by Léon Theremin, was one of the first electronic musical instruments, controlled by the performer's hand movements in proximity to two metal antennas
• Ondes Martenot (1928), invented by Maurice Martenot, was an early electronic keyboard instrument that could create eerie, wavering tones
  • Used in Olivier Messiaen's "Turangalîla-Symphonie" (1948) and Edgard Varèse's "Ecuatorial" (1934)
• Tape music, which involved manipulating and splicing recorded sounds on magnetic tape, became a key tool for avant-garde composers
  • Pierre Schaeffer's "Cinq études de bruits" (1948) was one of the first works of musique concrète, composed entirely from recorded sounds
• Synthesizers, such as the RCA Mark II Sound Synthesizer (1957), allowed composers to generate and manipulate electronic sounds with unprecedented precision
• Graphic notation, which used visual symbols and shapes instead of traditional musical notation, allowed for greater interpretive freedom and experimentation
  • Krzysztof Penderecki's "Threnody to the Victims of Hiroshima" (1960) utilized graphic notation to convey the emotional intensity of the piece
• Extended techniques, such as prepared piano (placing objects on or between the strings), expanded the timbral possibilities of traditional instruments
  • John Cage's "Sonatas and Interludes" (1946-48) featured a piano with various objects placed on the strings, creating percussive and otherworldly sounds

Famous works that blew minds

• Igor Stravinsky's "The Rite of Spring" (1913) caused a riot at its premiere due to its dissonant harmonies, pounding rhythms, and provocative choreography
• Arnold Schoenberg's "Pierrot Lunaire" (1912) featured a novel vocal technique called Sprechstimme, a combination of speaking and singing, and explored atonality and expressionism
• Edgard Varèse's "Poème électronique" (1958) was an immersive electronic work composed for the Philips Pavilion at the Brussels World's Fair, utilizing spatialized sound projection
• John Cage's "4'33"" (1952) challenged the very notion of music by featuring a performer sitting silently at a piano for the duration of the piece, emphasizing the role of ambient noise and the listener's perception
• Karlheinz Stockhausen's "Gruppen" (1955-57) was a groundbreaking work for three orchestras, exploring spatial composition and the concept of "moment form"
• Steve Reich's "It's Gonna Rain" (1965) was an early example of phase music, created by looping and gradually shifting the phase of a recorded speech fragment
• Terry Riley's "In C" (1964) was a seminal work of minimalism, consisting of 53 short musical phrases that performers could repeat and layer at their own pace, creating a mesmerizing and evolving soundscape

How it changed music forever

• Avant-garde music expanded the boundaries of what could be considered music, incorporating noise, silence, and unconventional sounds
• Challenged traditional notions of harmony, tonality, and form, paving the way for new approaches to composition and performance
• Encouraged experimentation and innovation, inspiring generations of composers to push the limits of musical expression
• Introduced new technologies and instruments that would shape the future of electronic and experimental music
  • The development of synthesizers, samplers, and computer music software can be traced back to the avant-garde's embrace of electronic sound
• Emphasized the role of the listener in the musical experience, challenging passive listening and encouraging active engagement with sound
• Blurred the boundaries between music, visual arts, theater, and dance, fostering interdisciplinary collaborations and multimedia works
• Influenced the development of new musical genres, such as minimalism, ambient, and experimental rock
  • Bands like The Velvet Underground, Pink Floyd, and Radiohead drew inspiration from avant-garde music's unconventional approaches and sonic experimentation
• Challenged the elitism and exclusivity of classical music, making it more accessible and relevant to a wider audience
• Paved the way for the acceptance of non-Western musical traditions and the incorporation of world music influences in contemporary composition

Why it still matters today

• Avant-garde music continues to inspire and influence contemporary composers, musicians, and artists across various genres
• Encourages critical thinking, creativity, and innovation, challenging artists to question established norms and push the boundaries of their medium
• Provides a historical context for understanding the development of contemporary music and its various subgenres
• Offers a rich repository of techniques, ideas, and approaches that can be adapted and incorporated into new works
  • Contemporary composers like Nico Muhly, Caroline Shaw, and Anna Thorvaldsdottir draw from avant-garde influences in their genre-defying compositions
• Serves as a reminder of the importance of artistic freedom, experimentation, and the power of art to provoke, challenge, and inspire
• Promotes cross-disciplinary collaborations and the integration of music with other art forms, fostering a more holistic and immersive artistic experience
• Challenges listeners to expand their musical horizons, embrace unconventional sounds, and engage with music on a deeper, more contemplative level
• Encourages a more inclusive and diverse musical landscape, celebrating the value of individual expression and the beauty of the unexpected

Cool facts and trivia

• The term "avant-garde" comes from the French military term meaning "vanguard" or "advance guard," referring to the forefront of an army
• The premiere of Igor Stravinsky's "The Rite of Spring" in 1913 caused a riot at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées in Paris, with the audience divided between supporters and detractors of the controversial work
• John Cage studied Zen Buddhism and incorporated elements of chance and indeterminacy in his compositions, believing that all sounds could be music
  • He once said, "There is no noise, only sound"
• Edgard Varèse's "Poème électronique" was played through 425 loudspeakers inside the Philips Pavilion at the 1958 Brussels World's Fair, creating an immersive spatial sound experience
• Karlheinz Stockhausen's "Helicopter String Quartet" (1993) featured four musicians performing in separate helicopters, with the sounds mixed and broadcast live to an audience on the ground
• Yoko Ono, known for her avant-garde performances and conceptual art, was a key figure in the Fluxus movement, which emphasized interdisciplinary and experimental art practices
• Brian Eno, a pioneer of ambient music, drew inspiration from avant-garde composers like John Cage and Erik Satie, incorporating elements of chance and minimalism in his works
• Frank Zappa, an eclectic and prolific composer, was heavily influenced by avant-garde music, incorporating elements of musique concrète, electronic music, and unconventional instrumentation in his works
  • He once conducted a concert featuring a vacuum cleaner as a solo instrument