Calendar

LEC # TOPICS AND WORKS KEY DATES
1 Welcome

Ritual Reading of the Syllabus

Overview
 
Prelude: 1900-1960
2 Expressionism and Serial Technique

Arnold Schoenberg: Pierrot lunaire (1912), Variations for Orchestra (1928)

Alban Berg: Five Orchestral Songs (Altenberg-Lieder) (1912), Wozzeck (1922), Lulu (1935)

Anton Webern: Slow Movement for String Quartet (1905), Six Bagatelles for String Quartet (1913), Piano Variations (1936)
 
3 Primitivism, Neoclassicism, Mavericks

Igor Stravinsky: The Rite of Spring (1913), The Rake's Progress (1951)

Maurice Ravel: Le tombeau de Couperin (1917)

Béla Bartók: Music for Strings, Percussion, and Celesta (1936)

Olivier Messiaen: Quatuor pour la fin du temps (1940)

Edgard Varèse: Hyperprism (1923)
 
4 Electronics and Other Developments after World War II

Pierre Boulez: Structures I (1952), Le marteau sans maître (1954)

Karlheinz Stockhausen: Gesang der Jünglinge (1956), Zyklus (1959)

Edgard Varèse: Poème électronique (1958)

Iannis Xenakis: Metastasis (1954)
 
Unit One: Order and Entropy
5 Pierre Boulez: Pli selon pli [Fold upon Fold] (1957-62)

Ralph Shapey: Incantations (1961)

Luigi Nono: Canti di vita e d'amore (1962)

Igor Stravinsky: Requiem Canticles (1965-66)
 
6 Donald Martino: Notturno (1973)

Elliott Carter: A Mirror on which to Dwell (1975)

Iannis Xenakis: Pleïades (1979)

Charles Wuorinen: Capriccio (1981)
 
7 Karlheinz Stockhausen: Samstag [Saturday] (1981-83) from Licht [Light]

Brian Ferneyhough: Intermedio alla ciccona (1986)

Pierre Boulez: Sur incises (1996-98)
 
Unit Two: Mavericks
8 Krzysztof Penderecki: Threnody (1960)

György Ligeti: Atmosphères (1961)

Witold Lutoslawski: Trois poèmes d'Henri Michaux [Three Poems by Henri Michaux] (1963)

Karel Husa: Music for Prague (1968)

Giacinto Scelsi: Khoom (1962)

Harry Partch: And on the Seventh day Petals fell in Petaluma (1964)
Listening quiz 1 due
9 George Crumb: Ancient Voices of Children (1970)

György Kurtág: Messages of the Late R. V. Trussova (1976-80)

Harrison Birtwistle: Secret Theatre (1984)
 
10 Conlon Nancarrow: Selected Studies for Player Piano

György Ligeti: Selected Études for Piano Solo (1985-)

Henri Dutilleux: Mystère de l’instant (1989)

Harrison Birtwistle: Selected movements from Harrison's Clocks (1997-98)
 
Unit Three: New Sounds, New Technologies
11 John Cage: Aria (1958)

Milton Babbitt: Phonemena (1969-70)

Luciano Berio: Sequenza III (1966)

Mario Davidovsky: Synchronisms no. 3 (1965)

Mario Davidovsky: Synchronisms no. 6 (1970)
Prospectus due
12 Paul Lansky: Six Fantasies on a Poem by Thomas Campion (1978-79)

Pierre Boulez: Répons (1981-84)

George Benjamin: Antara (1985-87)

Mario Davidovsky: Synchronisms no. 9 (1988)
 
13 Kaija Saariaho: Noa noa (1992)

Jonathan Harvey: Song Offerings (1985)

Tristan Murail: Allégories (1989)

Joan La Barbara: Shamansong (1992)

John Oswald: Plunderphonic

Richard D. James (a.k.a. Aphex Twin): Selected pieces arranged for chamber orchestra
Listening quiz 2 due
Unit Four: Quotation and Polystyle
14 Stockhausen: Hymnen (1966-67)

Luciano Berio: Sinfonia (1968)

Peter Maxwell Davies: Eight Songs for a Mad King (1969)
 
15 The Beatles: Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967)

Leonard Bernstein: Mass (1971)

HK Gruber: Frankenstein!! (1971-78)

William Bolcom: Songs of Innocence and Experience (1981-84)
 
16 Alfred Schnittke: String Quartet no. 3 (1983)

John Harbison: November 19, 1828 (1988)

John Zorn: Cat-o'-nine-tails (1988)

Osvaldo Golijov: Ayre (2004)
 
Unit Five: The Minimalist Impulse
17 Terry Riley: In C (1964)

Steve Reich: Music for 18 Musicians (1976)

Philip Glass: Einstein on the Beach (1976)

John Adams: Shaker Loops (1978)

King Crimson [Robert Fripp et al.]: Discipline (1981)

Laurie Anderson: United States, parts I-IV (1981)
Drafts due
18 Henryk Górecki: Symphony no. 3 (1976)

Louis Andriessen: De staat (1972-74)

Arvo Pärt: Berlin Mass (1992)

John Adams: Nixon in China (1985-87)
Listening quiz 3 due
19 Meredith Monk: Atlas (1987-91)

Michael Torke: Adjustable Wrench (1987)

Elena Ruehr: Shimmer (1994)

Julia Wolfe: Lick (1994)

Evan Ziporyn: Partial Truths (1997)

John Adams: On the Transmigration of Souls (2002)

Brian Robison: The Congress of the Insomniacs (2003)
 
Unit Six: The Persistence of Tonality
20 Dimitri Shostakovich: String Quartet no. 8 in C Minor (1960)

Benjamin Britten: War Requiem (1961)

George Rochberg: String Quartet no. 3 (1972)

David Del Tredici: Final Alice (1976)

Joan Tower: Petroushskates (1980)

Joan Tower: Fanfare for the Uncommon Woman no. 1 (1986) and no. 4 (1992)
 
21 John Harbison: Mirabai Songs (1982)

Stephen Albert: Symphony: RiverRun (1983)

Astor Piazzolla: Hora cero (1965), Sex-tet (1989)

Ellen Taafe Zwilich: Clarinet Quintet (1990)

John Corigliano: Symphony no. 1 (1990)
 
22 Libby Larsen: Marimba Concerto: After Hampton (1992)

Aaron Jay Kernis: Still Movement with Hymn (1993)

Tan Dun: Ghost Opera (1994)

Jennifer Higdon: Running the Edge (1996)

Peter Child: Fantasia (2003)

Charles Shadle: The Penny Ballad of Elvious Ricks (2005)
Listening quiz 4 due
Unit Seven: Agora
23-26 Student Presentations of Term Papers Final version due two days after Lec #24
  Final Exam