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MUSIC

FOR EVALUATION PURPOSES ONLY

  

Saint Mary Academy

Augustinian Recollect Sisters
Guindulman, Bohol
Email: saintmaryacademy@yahoo.com
Mobile No: 09369369248

Module 1
Musical Elements in the
Twentieth Century
(Impressionism and
Expressionism)

INTRODUCTION

I Start
The music of the twentieth century can be perfectly described as
eclectic, simply because the musical styles in this period have provided
listeners a wide array of music to choose from. In this module, you are
expected to:
describe distinctive musical elements of given pieces in
twentieth century styles;
relate twentieth century music to other art forms and media
during the same time period; and
perform music sample from the twentieth century.
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GRADE 10 QUARTER 1

I Know
Classify the following musical compositions. Write I on the line for
Impressionism and E for Expressionism.

1. Suite Bergamasque
2. Pierrot Lunaire, Op. 21
3. Violin Concerto, Op. 36
4. A Survivor from Warsaw
5. Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun

I Learn
Since the 1900s, there are a number of stylistic trends in music. These
trends do not follow a chronological sequence. They are not developed one
after the other. Instead, these developments overlap each other. A single
composer could utilize more than one trend in his style by synthesizing these
trends.

Impressionism and Debussy

The term “Impressionism” in music was borrowed from visual arts,
particularly painting. The primary aim of impressionism in art is to capture a
momentary glimpse of a subject. Impressionistic music shares a similar aim.
Generally, music with Impressionistic style is programmatic. It describes
emotions based on what the composer sees and demonstrates vague-
sounding scales. Specifically, music with Impressionistic style has the
following characteristics:
Free rhythms and less use of regular rhythms
Wide intervals and extreme registers like in piano music
Open chords having fifths and octaves but without thirds
Whole-tone mode uses a scale having six whole steps to the
octave

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GRADE 10 QUARTER 1

Parallelism of two or more melodies moving simultaneously in the same

direction and by the same intervals

Claude Debussy (1862–1918)

The foremost Impressionist composer, Claude Debussy, was born in
France on August 22, 1862. His father wanted him to enter a career in
the navy, but one of Chopin’s students saw his talent and helped him
qualify for the Paris Conservatory. He gained knowledge of the music of
the Russian composers Tchaikovsky, Borodin and Mussorgsky. He
graduated at the conservatory in 1884. His friends were mostly
Impressionist painters and Symbolist poets. These acquaintances had led
Debussy to create music that reflects emphasis on color, mood and misty
atmosphere.
Compositions written by Debussy are the following:

A. Orchestral Works B. Piano Compositions

La Mer (The Sea) Petite Suite Petite
Suite
Nocturnes Estampes Estampes
Images

Expressionism and Schoenberg

The term Expressionism is also borrowed from the visual arts.

Expressionism emphasizes intense and subjective emotions rather than
portraying the outward appearances. Expressionist painters abandoned the
traditional beauty but employed distorted images and irritating effects of
colors. This trend can also be used in making one’s voice heard on some
issues in the society. That is why an Expressionist painting can say much
about the agony of the poor and oppressed or the horrible killings war.
There are three composers who are identified with Expressionism:
Arnold Schoenberg, Alban Berg, and Anton Webern. Examples of their
compositions with the Expressionistic style are:
Pierrot Lunaire, Op. 21 (1912) and A Survivor from Warsaw, Op.
46 (1947) by Schoenberg

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GRADE 10 QUARTER 1

Wozzeck and Lulu by Berg

Five Pieces for Orchestra, Op. 10 by Webern

Expressionism is also an attempt to break with traditions. To achieve this

goal, composers have come up with the following techniques and methods:
A. Atonality - Expressionistic composers use tones from outside the
underlying major or minor key. When music is atonal, it has no tonal
center or underlying key.
B. Twelve-tone System - When you hear the description twelve-tone or
dodecaphonic, it refers to music based on serial manipulation of the
twelve chromatic pitches—C, C#/Db, D, D#/Eb, F, F#/Gb, G#/Ab, A,
A#/Bb, and B.
C. Multiple Serialization - The twelve-tone system is one form of
serialism, in which only the pitches of the tone row are manipulated
in series. In addition to the serialization of pitch, composers used
the serialization of rhythm.

Arnold Schoenberg (1874–1951)

Arnold Schoenberg, was born in Austria in 1874. For the most part
of his life, he was self-taught. He learned to play cello and violin at an
early age. At age 16, he had to take a job as a bank clerk when his father
died. He earned extra money too by arranging songs and orchestrating
operettas.
Schoenberg wrote a string sextet Verklärte Nacht (Transfigured
Night), Op.4 in 1899. It was his first masterpiece. He also wrote a huge
cantata, Gurrelieder (Songs of Gurre) from 1901 to 1910. In 1904, he
taught music theory and composition in Vienna. Alban Berg and Anton
Webern were his students.
Schoenberg’s works with Expressionistic style include the following:
A. Pierrot Lunaire, Op. 21 (Moonstruck Pierrot, 1912)
The twelve-tone method was used in this masterpiece. In this work,
he developed a gliding speech-song called sprechstimme or
sprechgesang. This unique vocal style is half-spoken, half-sung text.
B. A Survivor from Warsaw, Op. 46 (1947)
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GRADE 10 QUARTER 1

Aside from the twelve-tone technique, Schoenberg also employed

sprechstimme in this dramatic cantata.

C. The Violin Concerto, Op. 36 and Piano Concerto, Op. 42

The twelve-tone technique was employed in these compositions.

I Accomplish

A. Listen to the following representative music in YouTube.

Debussy Claire de Lune
Schoenberg Piano Cocerto, Op. 42
Write a two-paragraph reaction based on what or how you feel after
listening to each piece of composition. Send your reaction to your
teacher through email. Wait for his or her feedback.
B. Analyze the distinct style of the two compositions based on six simple
musical elements. Fill the table for your analyses. Take a close-up picture
of the table and send it to your teacher through email. Wait for his or
her feedback.
Claire de Lune Piano Concerto, Op.
42
Pitch
Do the notes sound high or
low?
Dynamics
Is the music loud or quiet?
Tempo
Is the music fast or slow?
Duration
Are the notes short or
sustained?
Timbre
What is the sound quality?
Theme
What do you think is the
theme of the composition?

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Saint Mary Academy

Augustinian Recollect Sisters
Guindulman, Bohol
Email: saintmaryacademy@yahoo.com
Mobile No: 09369369248

C. Watch the following videos on impressionist and expressionist art. The

links are given after the titles.
The Impressionists
8 Brilliant Paintings in Expressionism
Relate the twentieth century music to these visual art movements.
Create your own painting or drawing of either impressionist or expressionist
art based on how you understand the music and examples of paintings for
each movement. Take a close-up picture of your artwork and send a copy to
your teacher. The artwork is assessed based on the rubric.
I Create
To show appreciation of twentieth century music, more specifically of
the impressionist and the expressionist genre, perform any representative
selection with your own accompaniment. The accompaniment may be a
group of instruments as long as you practice health safety and social
distancing. Request somebody to take a video of your performance. Send a
copy of the video to your teacher through email. Your music video will be
assessed based on the rubric.

RUBRICS FOR
8-10 4-7 0-3
THE MUSIC VIDEO

The performance The performance The performance is

Quality of sounds professional. looks professional. dismal and so is the
Performance The accompaniment is The accompaniment is accompaniment.
outstanding. satisfactory.
Integrity of The performance is The performance has The performance is
the close to the original semblance to the disrespectful to the
Representative musical selection. original music. original music.
Selection
Sound is distinct and Sound is distinct and Sound and picture
Video Quality audible. Color is audible. quality are poor.
bright and sharp.
The music video is The music video is The video is
Impact beautiful and beautiful. uninspired.
inspirational.

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Saint Mary Academy

Augustinian Recollect Sisters
Guindulman, Bohol
Email: saintmaryacademy@yahoo.com
Mobile No: 09369369248

I Achieve
Write D on the line if the music is composed by Debussy. Write S if it is
composed by Schoenberg.

1. Violin Concerto, Op. 36

2. Suite Bergamasque
3. Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun
4. Pierrot Lunaire, Op. 21
5. A Survivor from Warsaw

I Review
In this module, you learned that…

The twentieth century is the age of musical diversity due to

the various kinds of styles, techniques and approaches in
music.

Musical Impressionism employs open chords, whole-tone scales,

parallelism, free rhythms and wide intervals.
Musical Expressionism is emotionally oriented, harshly dissonant
and atonal.