Music 3812

Music 3812
Study Guide #22
The American Twentieth Century

Assignment: Grout and Palisca, Chapter 22
            Read: 759-760
            Skim: 760-772
            Read: 772-775 (top)
            Skim: 775 (top)-777
            Read: 777-778
            Skim: 778-782
            Read: 782-803

Study Questions:

1. In what ways did American music of the twentieth century combine European
traditions with indigenous cultural elements?--p. 759-760

2. Be able to describe Ives’s style and influence. How does he employ borrowed
material?--p. 773-775

3. Be able to describe Copland’s style and influence. How does he employ bor-
rowed material?--p. 777-778*

4. What is "metric modulation"? How does Carter employ this technique in coun-
terpoint?--p. 783

5. How does Babbitt extend the principles of serial composition? What is
"maximalism"?--p. 787-788

6. Be able to describe the technological advances in instrumentation made by Nan-
carrow, Partch, Johnston, and Crumb--p. 788-791

7. How does Babbitt combine various techniques in Philomel?--p. 791-792 (and
NAWM 149)

8. What is "third stream" music? How does Schuller incorporate jazz styles into
his works?--p. 793-794

9. Be able to describe Cage’s musical philosophy. How does it relate to non-
Western thought?--p. 794-795

10. What is "minimalism"? What is "phase music," and how does Reich employ
this technique in Violin Phase?--p. 797 (and NAWM 151) What contributions
to this method have been made by Glass and Adams?--p. 798**

11. What are the characteristics of "mainstream" composers??p. 798—799 of
"post-modern" composers?--p. 800-802.

*The parallel language with the previous question (on Ives) is intentional. Indeed, a comparison of the two
composers and their works in NAWM (143 and 145) should be very revealing.

**Note that minimalism is compatible with works of operatic proportion. Glass has also provided film
music for several full-length features that also employ visual minimalism.