Thursday, January 10, 2008

5 Favorites from post 1968

Alright - if you are reading this then we are doing good so far! I thought it would be fun to make short lists of 5 favorite pieces of music from after 1968 (not to be confused with a "Top 5" list which is much more difficult). You will need to click on the bottom right of this window where it says "X number of comments" to reply - this will be more effective than a new post. I encourage everybody to just think of 5 things that come to mind quickly and throw them up on the list!

So here it goes - here is my list:
1. Steve Reich - New York Counterpoint

2. Paul Lansky - Idle Chatter

3. Michael Gordon - Trance

4. John Supko - This Windoow Makes Me Feel...

5. David Lang - Child Album

On a more practical note, I find this works best when you use Firefox for your internet browser. Also, you can use bold and italic (which is by far easier in Firefox), but it is a little bit of a pain. Just an FYI.

Also, once you have gone through the steps, feel free to put up a post of your own. Once people get comfortable, it is very easy to link to other sites/blogs or post photos and videos which makes things very interesting. Hope to hear from you all soon!


Andy

8 comments:

Charlie said...

Oh man, this is a toughy.

1. Electric Counterpoint- Steve Reich
Without this piece, I'd probably still be listening to tepid rock music exclusively. Electric Counterpoint opened my eyes to contemporary music.

2.David Lang- Cheating, Lying, Stealing
The future of music lies in chamber music, and Davig Lang is right at the forefront of contemporary chamber music development.

3.Robert Ashley- Perfect Lives
This piece doesn't just prefigure contemporary opera; it prefigures the whole of contemporary art. From American Beauty to Fargo to The Cave (the opera, not the particularly odious horror movie), none of these would exist without Perfect Lives.

4.The Beatles- Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
I'm going to cheat and cite this as one long piece, since, in effect, as a concept album, it is. This is the first real incidence of the convergence of rock and roll and art music, the eventual fusion of which would necessitate the creation of an amorphous and intensely avant-garde genre, NonPop.

5.Basilica- Breakdown in B
The fusion of the most extreme genres of rock and art music, Basilica is redefining how we look at listening to these "fused" genres. Certainly not for popular consumption, can we label this strange melding of Carcass and Penderecki rock music? I would argue no; that rather this is clear evidence that rock music has established itself as legitimate art music when composed in an art-intended context.

Leah said...

1. Different Trains-Steve Reich. This was the first piece I heard which mixed electronics with a string quartet. It was definitely the first time I had really enjoyed a "minimalist" piece.

2. 3 Suites for solo cello- Benjamin Britten. Though the first two were composed in 1964 and 1967, respectively, with the completion of the third in 1974, the works are a landmark in the solo cello repetoire. Additionally, they encompass what I believe to be some of the most beautiful and cathartic music written for the instrument.

3. Choir Concerto- Alfred Schnittke. A friend was playing this in the background while we were hanging out and it ended up drawing our complete attention and we ended up listening straight through. There are moments where it seems like it would be hard not to be taken in by the sheer power of the music.

4. Symphony No. 3- Heinrich Gorecki. Like the Choir Concerto, this piece took me by surprise. It was on low volume and I wasn't really planning on listening to it, but sections kept on pulling me in. To me, it mixes a harmonic language that is well known to me with one that is less comfortable but just as cogent.

5. Qatsi trilogy- Phillip Glass. A combination of film and music examining "life out of balance", "life in transformation", and "life as war", these works explore and question the world we know by means of a documentary without narrator. I was transfixed the first time I saw them and could not get enough.

Niky Tejero said...

Wow! That's some really cool stuff! Here are five others:

1. George Crumb: Ancient Voices of Children

2. John Adams: A Short Ride in a Fast Machine

3. Steve Reich: Four Organs

4. John Corigliano: Chaconne from the film The Red Violin

5. Libby Larsen: Corker

Paul Deatherage said...

Some of the music I thought of fell just short of the 1968 mark. But, I felt compelled to include it anyway.

Iannis Xenakis- Mycenae Alpha

Pink Floyd- Dark Side of the Moon

Reich- Music for Pieces of Wood

David Lang- Anvil Chorus

Penderecki- Threnody for the Victims of Hiroshima

Ligeti- Requiem (Do 2 pre-1968 pieces equal 1 post?) I first heard this one on the 2001: A Space Odyssey soundtrack in high school. I listened to it quite a lot. There are so many memories tied up in it, I had to include it.

David Sinclair said...

1. Psappha - Iannis Xenakis

2. Broken Drum - Matthew Burtner

3. XY - Michael Gordon

4. Alone - Jordan Munson

5. Planet of the Apes (Soundtrack) - Jerry Goldsmith

Dr. Bliss said...

(From Paula...)

This is my first try writing here so, I am not sure if it will work.

Andy, I didn't get the "X" on the right site for comments!! Can't see it but anyway, here goes my 5 favorites.

1. Almeida Prado - Cartas Celestes (Celestial Charts)
2. Jaceguay Lins - O Reino de Duas Cabeças (The Two Heads Kingdom)
3. Ricardo Tacuchian - Ciclo Lorca (Lorca Cicle)
4. Marlos Nobre - Homenagem a Arthur Rubinstein
5. Steve Reich - The Desert Music

A lot of Brazilian music in there, but I am Brazilian after all! Those were the first ones that came to my mind. I hope more can come later! There is a lot going on down there!
Now, truth's time! Posting...

Dr. Brunner said...

Hey, I better post here lest I set a very bad example as a blogger. I am not going to answer the "5 Favorites" question, since I don't know where to begin. Perhaps it would be better to post my five favorites for this week!

I have been doing a lot of listening and really enjoying it. Funny how when you listen with a purpose, it changes your perception. I used to write music criticism for one of the local papers (when there was more than one!). This was back in the late 70s and early 80s. I would go to a concert and realize that I would have to write about it, the music, the performance, etc., and that writing came with a lot of responsibility, since I wanted to be truthful but also honor the performances as much as I could, with integrity. In any case, I came with very awake ears.

This week reminded me of that experience, since I am listening to make sense of the music (in a sense), so that I can be helpful in the seminar. What seems to happen is that I have a sense of "fresh ears" and my listening was filled with surprises.

I will tell you about the pieces I listened to and my reactions in the seminar today (if you are interested), but starting this coming week I will be barking, I mean blogging, a lot more in the hopes of having something to add to our learning process.
See you in a few mintues!
LB

Bryan Winningham said...

I agree with Charlie that this is a tough question, but here it goes...

1. The Cave--Steve Reich
2. Metropolis, Part 2--Dream Theater
3. Kecak--Akira Nishimura
4. Watchman, Tell Us of the Night--Mark Camphouse
5. Rebonds--Iannis Xenakis