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In the Forum: Musical Discussions
In the Thread: Prokofiev
Post Subject: Music stylesPosted by steverino on: 1/14/2022
Paul,
20th C classical music wasn't that popular when it was new except in vocal works. The few exceptions either had some rhythmic or melodically memorable aspect. What I mean is that people can accept something more novel and complicated when they have words or stage action to hang onto. Listen carefully to movie soundtracks - they are often quite modern sounding but you don't notice because you are concentrating on the visual images and dialogue. Obvious examples are Richard Strauss operas Elektra and Salome although less well known opera composers like Schreker, Korngold and Zemlinsky were also popular in Europe in the early decades.
The issue is that it is quite difficult to write longer pieces of instrumental music that hold the attention. In early music they developed isorhythm and cantus firmus tenor parts which provide very clear organization but it was non harmonic. Rossini or Mozart could write a three hour opera but no one can write a compelling 3 hour concerto or symphony. But some methods are more effective than others. The use of chromatic leading tone harmonies did enable the creation of very slow music that didn't fall apart but after 60 years from 1860 or so, by the 1920s every possible combination had been used over and over. So composers felt forced to use different organizational methods that have proved much less effective. So the question becomes what is your tolerance for more discursive structurally ambiguous music? The evidence is that a relatively small proportion of people enjoy that kind of less obvious structure.
Regarding sonics and modern music your point about the hifi system is quite perceptive. The nature of 20th C with its more complex harmonies does stress the recording process even before the playback system is involved. Most conventionally harmonic classical music has all kinds of octave doubling so that when the recording process thins out the harmonic overtones there is quite a bit of harmonic fullness left. With 20th C music though that is less true. I often find a big difference on how it sounds in the concert hall versus the playback system. The only suggestion I can make other than what you suggest is to try listening in the nearfield to these works at a slightly lower volume.
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