1
Select the genres most used by impressionist composers,
A. Tone poem
B. Symphony Character
C. piece for piano
D. All of the above
2
Neoclassicism was a reaction against impressionism and expressionism.
A. True
B. False
3
12-tone composers: (Mark all that apply)
A. Stressed dissonance and fragmentation
B. Avoided a tonal center
C. Favored extensive programmatic works
D. Created angular and disjointed melodies
The correct answer and explanation is:
- Correct Answer: D. All of the above
Impressionist composers often experimented with different genres and forms to express their unique artistic vision. The genres most commonly used by impressionist composers include:
- Tone poem: Composers like Claude Debussy and Paul Dukas were known for their tone poems, which are orchestral works that aim to evoke a specific mood or narrative. For instance, Debussy’s La Mer is a prime example of a tone poem that depicts the sea’s dynamic and changing nature.
- Symphony Character: Impressionists also engaged with symphonic character pieces, works that feature vivid orchestral color and evoke specific scenes or emotions. For example, Debussy’s Nocturnes is a great example of symphonic works that blur the boundaries between traditional symphonies and tone poems.
- Piece for Piano: The piano played a significant role in the impressionist era. Many works for piano, such as Debussy’s Clair de Lune, are prime examples of impressionistic music that focuses on texture and atmosphere rather than traditional harmonic progression or structure.
The blending of these genres allowed impressionist composers to push boundaries and create music that was fluid and evocative, focusing on mood, color, and texture over traditional forms and structures.
- Correct Answer: A. True
Neoclassicism was, in fact, a reaction against both impressionism and expressionism. While impressionism and expressionism sought to express the subjective experience, emotions, and moods through music, often through blurred tonality, dissonance, and unconventional structures, neoclassicism aimed to return to the clarity, form, and structure of earlier musical periods like the Classical era. Neoclassical composers like Igor Stravinsky and Sergei Prokofiev turned away from the chaos and vagueness of impressionism and expressionism to embrace clear, defined forms like sonata form, symphonic structures, and counterpoint.
- Correct Answer: A. Stressed dissonance and fragmentation, B. Avoided a tonal center, D. Created angular and disjointed melodies
12-tone composers, such as Arnold Schoenberg, followed a strict compositional technique known as the 12-tone technique, which sought to eliminate tonality.
- A. Stressed dissonance and fragmentation: 12-tone composers often used dissonance as a tool to create tension and fragmentation in their music. The technique allowed for greater freedom in terms of avoiding harmonic conventions, which created more fragmented and dissonant sound worlds.
- B. Avoided a tonal center: The hallmark of 12-tone music is that it avoids a clear tonal center or key, using all twelve notes of the chromatic scale in a specific, predetermined order. This created a sense of atonality, where no note functions as the “home” or tonic note.
- D. Created angular and disjointed melodies: The melodies in 12-tone compositions often sounded angular and fragmented due to the use of the 12-tone rows, where intervals were varied and unpredictable, leading to disjointed melodic lines.
12-tone composers did not prioritize programmatic music, as suggested in option C (Favored extensive programmatic works). Instead, they focused on the structural rigor and the atonal aspect of their music.