THE TECHNIQUES THAT

E O R G E CR U M B
GUSED IN POSTMODERNISM
GROUP FIVE
GEORGE CRUMB
1 Born October 24, 1929
American Composer for modern
2 classical and avant-garde music
Known for his unusual timbres,
alternative forms of notations, and
3 extended instrumental and vocal
techniques
4 Famous works include:
Ancient Voices of Children ;
a set of songs on texts by Federico
Garcia Lorca composed for virtuosic
mezzo Jan DeGaetani
5 Black Angels, written for electric
string quartet in evocation of the
Vietnam War.
 DEFINITION OF TERMS
1. Postmodernism
a. authors are often concerned with the physical impact of sound on the listener, and
sometimes the spirituality that underlies it.
i. To restructure the experience of music
ii. This comes term scholars use “a piece disassembled and put it together
2. Hermeneutics
a. The study of interpretation.
3. Makrokosmos
a. the title of Crumb’s series on four volumes of pieces for piano
4. Palindrome
a. a piece or passage where a retrograde follows the original from which it is derived
5. Avant-Garde
a. music considered to be at the forefront of innovation and experimentation in its field
b. music that is a critique of popular conventions and taste wherein there’s a striving of
originality that can be intentionally alienating
MAIN QUESTION
How does George Crumb’s
technique/style and works contribute
to postmodernism?
SUBQUESTION A
What are the elements used in his works? Who are his influences?
Vox Balanae (The Voice of the Whale) -
electronic amplification (highlighting the haunting nature of his music)
in acoustic instruments, tuning alterations (exploitation of unusual
timbral effects), theatrical components (wearing of half-mask in
performance), extended technique in instruments
Makrokosmos books -
extended technique in instruments, time-suspension
Musical influences:
Webern (brief and condensed musical gestures)
Debussy (timbre and the extended use of the sustaining pedal)
Mahler
Bartók (timbre and formal organization: use of cyclic and arch forms)
 SUBQUESTION B
How do his techniques and methods contribute to the progress
of music as it entered the postmodernism era?
1. Techniques and Methods
a. Symbolism
i. derived from both human psyche and nature. This brought his work closer to the philosophy of nature and the early
Renaissance concept of natura naturata (nature natured).
ii. Crumb’s symbolic motifs include the moon, mountains, and evening. These motifs recur in his works as Vox
Balaenae.
iii. In Echoes of Time and River, he uses mountains as a metaphor for freedom.
b. Fragmented Techniques
i. Crumb utilizes “echo acoustics” to play distant music - remote music from a distance. He locates instruments
outside the stage to make their sound come from afar. (example: Oboe solo in the last movement of Ancient Voices
of the Children)
ii. A use of fragments or “Division of a musical idea [Gesture, Motivem theme, etc] - Crumb’s fragments do not seem
to form into complete phrases until the end of each madrigal.
iii. Fragmented Techniques Influenced by Bartok - A few of Crumb’s melodies for the piece Music for a Summer
Evening were influenced by Bartok.
SUBQUESTION B
How do his techniques and methods contribute to the progress
of music as it entered the postmodernism era?

a. Theatrical Sensibility
i. Voice of the Whale (Vox Balaenae)(1971) - In the performance for Voice of the Whale, Crumb
required the performers to wear masks and for the stage to be washed in deep-blue lighting.
ii. Ancient Voices of the Children - He utilized unusual instruments including an electrically amplified
grand piano, a toy piano, a musical saw, a harmonica and Tibetan prayer stones.
b. Arch-Form/Palindromic
i. Black Angels(1971) follows a palindromic structure (4-3-2-1-2-3-4-3-2-1-2-3-4, with the 7th being
the center of the piece) to emulate the feeling of angelic-music side-by-side with devil-music. (?)
SUBQUESTION C
Why are his works considered important examples of
postmodern music?

1. Postmodernism marks a development predominantly on a textual level.

2. Often tries to blend different styles from different generations and explains non-
traditional uses of instruments and voices to create unusual sounds.
3. Often focused on experimentation or Avant-Garde approaches the cutting edge
of modern music
GRAPHIC NOTATION