89971 - History of Twentieth Century Music (1)

Learning outcomes

By the end of the course the student: understands the phenomena and the compositional and aesthetic choices that, by the end of 19th and the beginning of 20th centtury, determined the crisis of the tonal system and the related stylistic and syntactic forms between; learns the stylistic and poetic trends summarized under the category of ‘neoclassicism’, in relation to or in opposition to trends that persisted in the radical linguistic research started before the First World War; knows and understands the avant-garde experiments and innovations in the second half of the 20th century.

Course contents

The course will focus on a crucial forty-year period in European music, marking the transition from late Romanticism to Modernism. The events and issues of this period will be addressed both through an examination of historical–stylistic categories (“late Romanticism,” “exoticism/folklorism,” “impressionism/symbolism,” “expressionism,” “neoclassicism”) and of linguistic–grammatical ones (“expanded tonality,” “aphoristic form,” “modalism,” “polytonality,” “pantonalism”), as well as by illustrating the output and historical roles of eight major composers—Mahler, Strauss, Debussy, Schoenberg, Stravinsky, Bartók, Webern, and Berg—who, in different ways, played a fundamental role in shaping the ‘New Music’ of the early twentieth century.

Readings/Bibliography

- Guido Salvetti, La nascita del Novecento, Torino, EDT, 1991, (“Storia della musica, a cura della Società Italiana di Musicologia”, nuova edizione, volume 10), capitoli 1-20; 24-33.

- Two essays, to be chosen from the list below:

1.  Th.W. Adorno, Wagner Mahler, Torino, Einaudi, 1966, pp. 139-149.

2. C. Debussy, Il Signor Croche antidilettante, Milano, SE, 2000, pp. 3-20.

3. R. Taruskin, Le sacre du printemps. Le tradizioni russe, la sintesi di Stravinsky [sic!], Roma-Milano, Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia-Ricordi, 2002, i paragrafi “I precedenti di un sogno”, “L'ideazione”, “Lo scenario e gli abbozzi iniziali”, pp. 3-46.

4. R. Stephan, Il pensiero musicale in Schönberg, in Schönberg, a cura di G. Borio, Bologna, Il Mulino, 1999, pp.113-127.

- Students are required to demonstrate familiarity with, and be able to discuss, the principal characteristics of one of the following three compositions, all of which are included in The Norton Anthology of Western Music, Vol. II: Classic to Modern, 4th ed., edited by Claude Palisca (New York: W. W. Norton, 2001), and in the subsequent edition, The Norton Anthology of Western Music, Vol. II: Classic to Twentieth Century, 5th ed., edited by Claude Palisca and J. Peter Burkholder (New York: W. W. Norton, 2006). For the student's convenience, the anthology number is given for both the fourth and fifth editions.

While studying the score, students are expected to listen to recordings of the selected work and become familiar with its essential musical features.

1. Gustav Mahler, Lied for voice and orchestra Nun will die Sonn’ so hell aufgeh’n, from the cycle Kindertotenlieder, in Norton Anthology, 4th edition, no. 123; 5th edition, no. 137.

2. Claude Debussy, Trois Nocturnes for orchestra, first movement: Nuages, in Norton Anthology, 4th edition, no. 128; 5th edition, no. 138.

3. Arnold Schoenberg, Pierrot Lunaire for voice (“Sprechgesang”) and five instruments, op. 21, the following two movements: no. 8, Nacht; no. 13, Enthauptung, in Norton Anthology, 4th edition, no. 135 A and B; 5th edition, no. 141 A and B.

Teaching methods

Lecture

Assessment methods

The assessment consists of an oral examination based on questions covering the course syllabus. The examination requirements are the same for attending and non-attending students.

The assessment will primarily focus on the accuracy of the content, followed by the clarity of the presentation.

The use of AI tools during the examination is strictly prohibited in any form, including chatbots, text generators, advanced translation tools, content summarization tools, and AI features integrated into electronic devices. Any use of AI constitutes a violation of the principles of academic honesty and integrity set out in the University's Policy and may result in the examination being declared invalid by the instructor.

Students with Specific Learning Disabilities (SLD), temporary or permanent disabilities, or other certified learning needs are encouraged to contact the University's dedicated support office as early as possible (https://site.unibo.it/studenti-con-disabilita-e-dsa/it ) as well as the course instructor, so that appropriate arrangements and effective strategies for attending classes and/or preparing for the examination can be discussed.

Office hours

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