The first semester 2020-2021

Our topic will be 20th century music from around 1914 until around 1950.

An important characeristic of this period is the existence of principally different styles and musical idioms.

The following DIVISION has been presented:

1. (Continued) romanticism: with composers like Richard Strauss, Ralph Vaughan WIlliams, Jean Sibelius, Sergej Rachmaninoff etc.
2. "Reactionary" movements directed at atonality: free as well as structured atonality (dodecaphony):
   with composers like Arnold Schoenberg, Alban Berg, Anton Webern. Later continued with serial techniques
3. Rediscovered and revitalized modality, (often with very refined harmonic colour effects as a result of the use of chromaticism and enharmonicism):
   with composers like Gabriel Fauré, Maurice Ravel and Claude Debussy.
4. A variety of "neo" styles: approaches that stick to a tonal orientation, but also work with "echoes" from the past:
   with composers like Paul Hindemith, Igor Stravinsky, Arthur Honegger.
5. "Personal" styles: composers who can belong to the previous categories, but with a personal identifying "fingerprint":
   with composers like Béla Bartók, Claude Debussy, Olivier Messiaen, Igor Stravinsky, Maurice Ravel.

With regard to aspects of harmony and counterpoint, we will discuss topics like:

1. chromaticism 
2. enharmonicism, both with an open eye for underlying goals, such as
   "concentric", connected with a background framework of major-minor tonality. 
   "excentric", aiming at fading and blurring of tonality
3. modality, paying attention to special colour effects as a result of the introduction of modal elements in a major-minor context 
4. atonality, paying attention to a new view on dissonance/consonance, the emerging of new chord types, and the twelve tone row as a background framework for musical choices by the composer 

For the historical perspective we will use the chapters 31-38 from A History of Western Music (Part Six) 9th edition. We will use chapter 30 as a stepping stone towards Part Six.

In case of clear references to the past we will also revert to earlier chapters. This will be mainly the case with so called "neo"-styles.