Music of the Twentieth-Century Avant-Garde: A Biocritical Sourcebook

Larry Sitsky

Dec 2002 · Greenwood Publishing Group

About this ebook

Presenting a view of the 20th-century music avant-garde without resorting to highly specialized jargon, this work offers an exhaustive history and analysis of contemporary music in a social, political, and artistic context. Distinguished contributors from around the world consider specific composers who represent the most progressive musical thinking of their time and place. Editor Larry Sitsky, an eminent Australian composer and teacher, has assembled an accessible, unique, and clearly written collection.

Also exploring the links among this diverse group of composers, the guide offers a cross-index of names that will help the researcher formulate a cohesive view of the 20th-century avant-garde. A bibliography and list of selected works round out the volume, which succeeds in demystifying an area that, until now, has been the exclusive province only of the specialist.

Ratings and reviews

`marinetti's concept of 'words at liberty' characterized futurist poetry. syntax was fractured, sounds like 'zang tumb tuuumb' were incorporated, and the arrangement of words on the page who also sought to destroy the past, for example, through other aspects of their ideology. internationalism, pacifism, and nihilism contrasted with that of the futurists. the redefinition oand reconstruction of language was also a key part of russian futurism, launched by vladimir mayakovsky in 1912 with the manifesto 'a slap in the face for public taste.' the russians also adopted the italian's love of technology, though nationalism and militarism were absent. marinetti visited russia in 1914 as did russolo with his noise intoners.` (pg. 381)

About the author

LARRY SITSKY is a noted Australian composer, pianist, musicologist, and educator. His list of works ranges from grand opera and symphony to keyboard miniatures, and his musicological investigations include many books on such subjects as Rubinstein, the Russian Avant-Garde, and reproducing piano rolls.