oscar@utcsrgv.UUCP (Oscar M. Nierstrasz) (12/15/83)
In response to ..!astrovax!tss's article:
Terminology: How about distinguishing between "classical" music (i.e. "serious")
and "Classical" music (i.e. Mozart). The former is merely a convenient
epithet and the latter is a Period in Music. Same trouble you get into
with "man" and "Man". If *that* doesn't make you happy, there's always
"longhair music". Moot point, really.
Real Art after 1955: This is not really a fair question since modern longhair
music is not that popular, being rather "difficult" or "heavy" in most
people's opinions. Consequently it is hard to say that any works are
*recognized* masterpieces. You're dealing with a strictly limited
market. All the same, you can find many "masterpieces" among the
later works of Shostakovich and Tippet. People prefer Stravinsky's
"earlier, funnier" works, but there is much that's worthwhile that
was composed later. On the less familiar side is music by John Cage,
Hans Werner Henze, Pendericki (sp?) and even Leonard Bernstein (eg.
the symphonies).
Schoenberg: I'll bet you like kicking small dogs and shooting fish in barrels.
Sure, "Verklarte Nacht" is not a great work. I still like to listen
to it once it a while in the wee hours of the morning when I'm
feeling morbid and sentimental. Much more interesting are "Pelleas
and Melisande" (sp?) and "Gurrelieder". All three works, though, date
from Schoenberg's "earlier, funnier" period, before he and his pals
Berg and Webern got heavily into (so-called) "atonal" or
dodecaphonic (twelve-tone) music. Try listening to some of the later
string quartets, for starters. That'll wake you up!
Oscar Nierstrasz
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