The Death of Classical Music?

[dubaifox]

In my opinion, if children are exposed to classical music, and their music classes are not too heavily weighted on, or soley focused on, the early standards, if they would have greater width to include lots of selections from romantinc period and early to mid 20th century, and some selections of the latests 21st century new artists, then the future of Classical music will be just fine.

Name a movie or TV show we have ALL seen in the last year. It would be pretty easy to do. We could name dozens.

Name a single composer (not from film) in the last 20 years we have all heard of. You can't. You might not even be able to name one!

There is not only no future for classical music, but the past stopped about 50 years ago.

"Times..... they have already changed" (Bob Dylan)

[jesshmusic]

The other is purely historical. Both Jazz and Classical music has run it's course, from a compositional/stylisitic standpoint. There is nothing you or I can do with an orchestra or Jazz ensemble that has not been done before. This occurs when a musical style goes through an Avante Garde period. So essentially, yes both classical and Jazz is dead. Alone, it can no longer evolve and advance human thought and expression in a significant way.(notice I say "advance", we can still enjoy new and old works, but they wont blow our mind for their innovation)

I don't believe this even for a second. Many 20th century composers, most notable Hindemith, have often that the Avante Garde came much too soon. After Wagner composed Tristan, music was supposed to gradually evolve from this, but instead Wagner never composed anything as innovative as this (with regards to breakdown of tonality) and everything went back to normal, boring romanticism. Debussy and Ravel were closer to the next step of music, picking up where Tristan left off, but no one picked up where they left off... they skipped a whole bunch of steps into the serial era. Of course, the time was right in the world for that mood of music. World War I was a harsh, harsh thing, so that music almost paints a picture of the chaos and loss of hope.

There is still plenty of room for innovation. The art of music is still sound and with the new, advanced instruments (like bassoons with keys.. not just a bunch of holes) many new sounds are possible. We are free to mix unusual ensembles and come up with new, innovative sounds all the time. And this does not mean writing atonal music either. Has the major and minor scale run its course? Not entirely. The major and minor scale didn't even come into prominence until the late Renaissance. Why did composers suddenly decided to limit themselves? The funny thing is, they didn't. They looked for every excuse they could to break that mold and prove that tonality does not require only the white keys. For hundreds of years before the 17th century, music was wild, sometimes modal, sometimes diatonic, sometimes chromatic. Although I digress, the point is, a lot of composers have started to adopt new ways of thinking about music, so there is plenty of innovation left.

[jesshmusic]

Name a single composer (not from film) in the last 20 years we have all heard of. You can't. You might not even be able to name one!

There is not only no future for classical music, but the past stopped about 50 years ago.

Jospeh Schwantner
Karel Husa (won the pulitzer, by the way)
Gyorgi Ligeti (just died... fantastic composer)
Harry Partch (barely makes last 20... but listen to him and tell me he is not innovative)
Aaron Copland... (note his year of death)
Phillip Glass (I cringe, but he is still out there)
John Adams
Malcolm Arnold (band music composer... classical is not just about orchestra, there are many more bands and wind ensembles in the US than orchestras)
Morton Gould
Francis McBeth
Vincent Persichetti


I could keep going? And I am willing to bet most people know at least one of those, if not others.

[Skysaw]

There is nothing you or I can do with an orchestra or Jazz ensemble that has not been done before.

Anyone who believes this should not be writing music. It is your job to find something new. The job may be increasingly difficult, but that is not an excuse.

[germancomponist]

Anyone who believes this should not be writing music. It is your job to find something new. The job may be increasingly difficult, but that is not an excuse.

I agree with you 100%

[SeanHannifin]

Anyone who believes this should not be writing music. It is your job to find something new. The job may be increasingly difficult, but that is not an excuse.

I disagree 100% ... we do not have some predefined job or duty. The reason you create art does not have to be the reason anyone else does.

[Steve_Karl]

Money is frozen energy.

Bravo!
Best definition I've ever seen and I totally agree.

[Steve_Karl]

Jospeh Schwantner
Karel Husa (won the pulitzer, by the way)
Gyorgi Ligeti (just died... fantastic composer)
Harry Partch (barely makes last 20... but listen to him and tell me he is not innovative)
Aaron Copland... (note his year of death)
Phillip Glass (I cringe, but he is still out there)
John Adams
Malcolm Arnold (band music composer... classical is not just about orchestra, there are many more bands and wind ensembles in the US than orchestras)
Morton Gould
Francis McBeth
Vincent Persichetti


I could keep going? And I am willing to bet most people know at least one of those, if not others.

Please do keep going and as much as possible.
I'd add Walter Piston but he died in 1976.

[qccowboy]

Please do keep going and as much as possible.
I'd add Walter Piston but he died in 1976.

how about Samuel Barber, he died only a few years later, but still.

John Corigliano (did some film, but would be terribly insulted if refered to as a "film composer")
Elliot Goldenthall (again, did some filmscores, but is ALSO a wonderful composer of concert and stage works - go out and buy "Fire, Paper Water: a Vietnam Oratorio" - it is SO worth it)
Arvo Pärt
Lowell Liebermann (btw, even more tonal than I am, if that is possible, AND almost all his works are available on CD or being played somewhere in concert on any given day)
John Rutter

[Steve_Karl]

Great. These are all new to me other than Barber.
Thank you!

P.S. Let's add Deems Taylor!