Middle & Late 20th Century Counterpoint
Neoclassical and Neoromantic
These labels are sometimes used to categorize the music of composers that continue to apply methods that are reminiscent of the music, or the ethos, of earlier periods. Labelling a composer’s output is not a very revealing practice, because they usually go through periods of applying different techniques during their personal development. Igor Stravinsky (1882-1971) wrote in a variety of styles, but he referred to himself as a classicist.
However, these labels can be used to identify pieces of music that harken back to earlier times rather than ones that are completely experimental, or based on a new system like the the 12-tone serialism created by Arnold Schoenberg (1874-1951). That being said, both of these composers employed counterpoint frequently and effectively.
Clarity and restraint were common characteristics of the neoclassical style, while more passionate and emotional music is considered neoromantic. However, composers seldom constrained themselves to one or the other mode of expression. It might be more useful to view the music of the 20th century as being influenced by varying degrees by music of the past. Listen to and analyze the pieces listed below, looking for similarities and differences between this contemporary music and what went before. They are linked in the Activities below.
Dmitri Shostakovich (1906-1975) wrote a set of Preludes and Fugues for Piano, Op. 87 in 1951. Two fugues from this collection, No. 6 in B Minor, and No. 23 in F Major are representative examples.
Benjamin Britten (1913-1976) wrote The Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra, Op. 34 in 1946. The work demonstrates the unique features of each orchestral instrument, and was intended to introduce young listeners to the instruments in the ensemble context. The composition, originally entitled Variations and Fugue on a Theme of Purcell, ends with an extensive Fugue. It incorporates individual instruments and sections presenting the subject in a masterful piece of orchestration.
Elliott Carter (1908-2012) wrote an energetic fugue in the later part of his Piano Sonata, Movement II, Allegro giusto, in 1946.
Samuel Barber (1910-1981) also wrote a fugal finale in his Piano Sonata in E-flat minor, Op. 26, Movement IV, Fuga, published in 1949. It was premiered by Vladimir Horowitz (1903-1989), who requested a virtuosic finale rather than the slow movement that Barber had planned.
These mid-century composers leaned toward the classical ideal, along with others such as Walter Piston (1894-1976), who wrote textbooks addressing Counterpoint, Harmony, and Orchestration. There is also a significant amount of polyphony written by major composers with a more romantic spirit, such as Aaron Copland (1900-1990), Serge Prokofiev (1891-1953), Jean Sibelius (1865-1957), and Ralph Vaughn Williams (1872-1958). They used counterpoint texturally to contrast homophony and promote independent linear motion in sections of their music.
Expressionist and Avant-Garde
In contrast to the practice of composing with quasi-tonal and consonant materials as ways to modernize contemporary music, these two camps rejected traditional means of organizing pitch and rhythm. Many composers who wrote music in the middle of the 20th century experimented with organizing pitches using tone rows. They were referred to as Expressionists, following in the footsteps of Arnold Schoenberg (1874-1951). Some modern composers were also attracted to electronic music, computer music, and synthesis when new sound sources became available. Less formal structure was preferred by others, who wrote indeterminate, aleatoric music and used non-traditional forms of notation. Avant-garde composers pushed the listener’s definition of music and exposed them to new ways to organize sound.
A few important avant-garde composers were Edgar Varese (1883-1965), Henry Cowell (1897-1965), Olivier Messiaen (1908-1992), Luciano Berio (1925-2003), Pierre Boulez (1925-2016), and Karlheinz Stockhausen (1928-2007). Explore a few works by each of them. Here are some examples of works by two of the most influential avant-garde composers in the mid to late 20th century. They are linked in the Activities section.
Gyorgy Ligeti (1923-2006) was one of the most original and important composers of the 20th century. His works span a wide range of genres. A small sample of his piano music is provided here from the Musica ricercata. The music from his late period is full of rhythmic complexity, and each piece in this collection differs greatly from the others. Number VII, Cantabile, molto legato has a sotto voce ostinato that runs through the entire piece. Number XI, Andante misurato e tranquillo is an homage to Girolamo Frescobaldi. What do you see and hear that is derived from Frescobaldi’s music?
John Cage (1912-1992) was a radical thinker with a powerful influence on music in the 20th century. He promoted the concept that all sounds are music, which demanded an innovative approach to listening. His most famous piece, 4’33”, frames a period of time and invites the listener to consider the sounds of the environment to be the content of the composition. Cage discarded inherited structures, and had little use for rule-based musical traditions. Counterpoint has traditionally involved the application of rules and guidelines in a particular style, but Cage insists that we broaden our definition of counterpoint along with music itself. He pioneered indeterminacy after studying Indian music and philosophy. He created a specially prepared piano with objects placed between or on the strings and hammers, and wrote Sonatas and Interludes during 1946-48 for the instrument. These pieces have a strong focus on rhythm, as do many of his later works. Sonata V is a delightful example from this collection, not without careful attention to the principles of counterpoint, which he studied with Arnold Schoenberg (1874-1951). Another piece by Cage that is highly contrapuntal is Living Room Music. Composed in 1940, it is a quartet for unspecified instruments, all of which may be found in the living room of a typical house. The spoken movement is based on a poem by Gertrude Stein (1874-1946), The World is Round.
Postmodernism
This term has been used loosely to address an aversion that listening audiences felt upon hearing atonal music that did not appeal to their musical tastes. Some modernist music of the Post-Tonal era that began in the early 20th Century began to meet resistance because it was so dissonant and academic. Around mid-century, when contemporary music was cast in opposition to what went before, extremist modern composers writing atonal, serial music were losing some of their audience. In contrast, postmodern music offered a more consonant, derivative, and eclectic experience. It appealed more to the casual listener than to the academic. Regarding counterpoint, the music just seemed to evolve with less focus on closed forms and structure, and more interest in openness, indeterminacy, and improvisation. Cultural influences, popular music, and new forms of media changed the musical landscape. The line between music for art’s sake and music to be enjoyed as a commodity was becoming blurred. The group of composers dubbed Minimalists felt the need to develop new ways to write music that did not place demands on the listener to develop a taste for atonality, and the pendulum swung back.
Activities
Counterpoint Analysis
Listen to and analyze some of the pieces below, included in the Counterpoint Examples: 20th Century Concert. Identify these parameters to discover features and relationships in the music:
- Texture: Number of parts, voices, instruments, their independence
- Melody: Stepwise or leaping; similar, oblique or contrary motion
- Harmony: Modes, keys, pitch centers, modulations, cadences
- Intervals: Numerical analysis of harmonic intervals between parts
- Structure: Themes, phrases, sections, points of imitation, episodes
- Rhythm: Tempo, meter, duration, proportions, or based on a text
- Form: Canon, round, fugue, invention, chorale prelude, trio sonata
- Personal Observations: Unique and striking features, impressions
Pieces for Analysis
Neoclassical & Neoromantic
Benjamin Britten (1913-1976)
The Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra, Op. 34, Fugue (Orchestra) [YouTube] begin at 14:27 to end
Avant Garde
John Cage (1912-1992)
Sonatas and Interludes for Prepared Piano, Sonata V (Piano) [YouTube]
Living Room Music (Assorted Noise Makers) [YouTube]