Live and recent posts from across the Fediverse tagged #20thcenturymusic, aggregated by home.social.
If my babbling about Shostakovich's symphonies makes you curious, listen to:
- Symphony No. 7
- Symphony No. 10
- Symphony No. 4
Solid, at times slightly dissonant 20th century orchestral music, with plenty of earworms that'll stick to ya. These three will progressively stretch your ears.
Want more? Check out:
- Symphony No. 8
- Symphony No. 11
- Symphony No. 9
You likely can get 'em from your local library. These are my personal Dmitri preferences. YMMV.
Damn, that third movement of Shostakovich's Symphony No. 4! I just love how he finishes it with this unconventional, somber fade-away in four, with just the timpani, glockenspiel, and a figure from part of the reed section, after what you *thought* would be the full-orchestra climax. Did he hear this stuff in his dreams?
He got in trouble with Stalin for this one. Written in 1934-36, it wasn't performed until the '50s.
Here is a work from one of my favourite composers from Italy from the year 1986.
Luciano Berio (1925-2003): Formazioni, for orchestra (1986).
https://youtu.be/18H-PeBsTOs
#ClassicalMusic #ModernClassicalMusic #20thCenturyMusic
Avshalomov -- Hutongs of Peking -- Yu Long & Shanghai Symphony Orchestra
https://youtu.be/dlI-VGJLTWc?si=9mYiGMA-TGkQBFVD
This is the first time I've heard of Aaron Avshalomov, let alone the 1931 "Hutongs of Peking"; of course, this might reflect ignorance or at least parochialism on my own part rather than any obscurity of Avshalimov.
Oddly enough, I was reminded of another piece of orchestral topographic programme music composed only a few years before, Resphighi's "Pines of Rome".
I wonder how popular or well known this piece is amongst Chinese music lovers today.
The notes by DW in the description section provide helpful biographical information on Avshalimov.
#ClassicalMusic #Avshalomov #HutongsOfPeking #ChineseMusic #Beijing #20thCenturyMusic #1930s #ProgrammeMusic
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As an impecunious teenager in the UK years ago, I was delighted to pick up this recording of the 5th Symphony of Shostakovitch for 50p at W. H. Smith.
I had already heard and been delighted by the 1st Symphony, so I spent my money on the strength of the composer's name alone.
It's a very different work, of course -- dramatic, bleak at times, but also lyrical and perhaps ironic too. I've never tired of it.
I've listened to some of the other symphonies since then (not the 2nd or 3rd) but come back to the 1st and the 5th as my favourites.
It might not be obvious from the garish album cover that this recording is in fact a reissue of....
#ClassicalMusic #Shostakovitch #5thSymphony #RussianMusic #SovietMusic #20thCenturyMusic #Symphonic #1930s #Stalinism
Chants D'Auvergne: Vol. II, No. 3: Pastourelle
https://youtu.be/Ke4k0TUDf2U?si=94fn5CpMGFesjdUl
The Chants D'Auvergne are amongst my favourite pieces of vocal music. "Baïlèro" is deservedly widely known, but there are so many others to love; for example, I cannot imagine ever tiring of "Pastourelle".
The songs also make me think about the relationship of folk music to concert music, regionalism in French culture, and the tension between art we like and politics we don't; Canteloube was a conservative who tied his promotion of the traditional music of the French regions to the values of the Vichy regime.
#ChantsDAuvergne #JosephCanteloube #FrenchMusic #20thCenturyMusic #FredericaVonStade
I was just reminded of Hanns Eisler's cantata "Gegen den Krieg". I once sang it with a choir and it was both challenging and beautiful.
And it's so apropos current events.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B-Ue7Srm8nE
OK, thanks so much for revisiting with me, the music of my high school years.
Let's close with a beautiful ballad: "My Funny Valentine," live at the Philharmonic Hall, Feb. 1964, NAACP benefit concert.
#BlackHistoryMonth
#BlackMusic
#20thCenturyMusic
#MilesDavis (trump.)
#GeorgeColeman (t. sax)
#HerbieHancock (piano)
#RonCarter (bass)
#TonyWilliams (drums)
Getting toward the end of the month....
OK, here's something different that might be odd to some ears: "Saturn," from "Interstellar Space." Things to listen to: (1) how there's cellular time, but not a pulse; (2) how Rashied responds to John's phrasing; (3) how John works the different registers of the tenor, and the overtones. A different vocabulary.
#BlackHistoryMonth
#BlackMusic
#20thCenturyMusic
#JohnColtrane (tenor sax)
#RashiedAli (drumming)
So what was Wayne Shorter up to, post 2nd great quintet? Here's "Black Market," from Weather Report's 1976 album of the same title.
#BlackHistoryMonth
#BlackMusic
#20thCenturyMusic
#WayneShorter (tenor, soprano, lyricon)
#AlphonsoJohnson (elec. bass)
#JoeZawinul (lotsa keys & synths!)
#ChesterThompson (drums)
#NaradaWalden (drums)
#DonAlias (percussion)
Continuing with funky '70s Miles Davis work, here's a jaunty A/B piece from "Get Up With It" called "Mtume," recorded in 1974. Musicians can be found on the wikipedia page; Miles is on the organ, and on trumpet through a wah-wah. Enjoy.
OK, as promised, here's "Black Satin" from Miles Davis' "On the Corner" (1972). Kinda defies category. You can see the extensive musicians list at the wikipedia entry for the album.
For Monday, listen to Miles Davis' "He Loved Him Madly," from "Get Up With It" (1974). Begins ambiently, then develops a slow pulse. Haunting.
#BlackHistoryMonth
#BlackMusic
#20thCenturyMusic
#MilesDavis (organ, trumpet, wah-wah)
#DaveLiebman (flute)
#ReggieLucas (elec. guit.)
#DominiqueGaumont (elec. guit.)
#MichaelHenderson (elec. bass)
#AlFoster (drumming)
#JamesMtume (perc.)
This is a good piece for a Sunday, reflective and spiritual, to my ear. So listen to the John Coltrane Quartet's gorgeous, modal "Suite," from "Transition," recorded in 1965 (but released posthumously in 1970). When I was younger, I would lie on the floor between two speaker cabinets to listen to this LP; I prefer it to "A Love Supreme" (heresy I know, but there it is).
#BlackHistoryMonth
#BlackMusic
#20thCenturyMusic
#JohnColtraneQuartet
Coltrane with the Red Garland Trio, 1957. Listen to "Traneing In":
#BlackHistoryMonth
#BlackMusic
#20thCenturyMusic
#JohnColtrane (tenor sax)
#RedGarland (piano)
#PaulChambers (bass)
#ArtTaylor (drums)
In 1974 Herbie Hancock released "Thrust." Here's the album closer, "Spank-A-Lee." Maupin's neat and sometimes shouty solo over the top of everything kicks off at 3:05.
#BlackHistoryMonth
#BlackMusic
#20thCenturyMusic
#HerbieHancock (lots o' keys)
#BennieMaupin (tenor sax)
#PaulJackson (bass)
#MikeClark (drumming)
#BillSummers (percussion)
Sitar? Tabla? Harmon mute? 7/4 meter? Recorded a few months after the Bitches Brew sessions in 1969, here's "Great Expectations."
#BlackHistoryMonth
#BlackMusic
#20thCenturyMusic
#MilesDavis (trump.)
#SteveGrossman (sop. sax)
#BennieMaupin (bass clar.)
#JohnMcLaughlin (elec. guit.)
#Khalil Balakrishna (elec. sitar)
#BihariSharma (tabla)
#HerbieHancock (elec. piano)
#ChickCorea (elec. piano)
#RonCarter (bass)
#HarveyBrooks (bass)
#BillyCobham (drums)
#Airto (perc.)
Back to Mr. Hancock. "Sextant" wasn't a hit, so it was time to throw down some funk. Here's "Chameleon," from "Head Hunters" (1973). Likely should be played loud.
#BlackHistoryMonth
#BlackMusic
#20thCenturyMusic
#HerbieHancock (lots o' keyboards)
#BennieMaupin (tenor sax)
#PaulJackson (bass)
#HarveyMason (drumming)
#BillSummers (percussion)
Listen to "Spanish Key," from Miles Davis' "Bitches Brew" (1970). Large ensemble (see personnel below).
Continuing with the theme of how the music moved in different directions after 1970, but jumping ahead a couple of years, here's "Hidden Shadows," from Herbie Hancock's wild "Sextant" (1973).
#BlackHistoryMonth
#BlackMusic
#20thCenturyMusic
#HerbieHancock (keyboards)
#BennieMaupin (reeds)
#EddieHenderson (trumpet, flugelhorn)
#JulienPriester (low brass)
#BusterWilliams (bass)
#BillieHart (drumming)
#PatrickGleason (synths)
#BuckClarke (percussion)
Listen to Miles Davis' "Right Off," recorded in 1970, released in 1971 as part of "A Tribute to Jack Johnson." Got Billy Cobham hittin' the 2 and 4 accents for that rock beat now. Likely should be played loud.
#BlackHistoryMonth
#BlackMusic
#20thCenturyMusic
#MilesDavis (trumpet, no wah-wah yet)
#SteveGrossman (soprano sax)
#JohnMcLaughlin (elec. guitar)
#HerbieHancock (organ)
#MichaelHenderson (elec. bass)
#BillyCobham (drumming)
In 1970, everyone flew off in different musical directions. Listen to "Eurydice" from Weather Report's first album:
#BlackHistoryMonth
#BlackMusic
#20thCenturyMusic
#WayneShorter (soprano sax)
#JoeZawinul (keyboards)
#MiroslavVitous (bass)
#AlphonseMouzon (drumming)
#AirtoMoreira (percussion)
The logical next music to visit with, after "Filles de Kilimanjaro," is "In a Silent Way" (1969). Listen to "It's About that Time." Miles hasn't hooked up a wa-wa pedal yet, but Wayne has switched to soprano, and McLaughlin has arrived. The sound is evolving quickly.
#BlackHistoryMonth
#BlackMusic
#20thCenturyMusic
#MilesDavis (trumpet)
#WayneShorter (soprano sax)
#JohnMcLaughlin (electric guitar)
#TonyWilliams (drumming)
#DaveHolland (bass)
and more!
After "Nefertiti" (1968), Miles Davis began to move away from a fully acoustic sound and toward what would be called fusion. Listen to "Tout de Suite," from "Filles de Kilimanjaro" (1968), as they make their way forward:
#BlackHistoryMonth
#BlackMusic
#20thCenturyMusic
#MilesDavis (trumpet)
#HerbieHancock (electric piano)
#WayneShorter (tenor saxophone)
#RonCarter (bass guitar)
#TonyWilliams (drumming)
How about a little edgy bass clarinet? Listen to Bennie Maupin's "Neophilia," from "Lee Morgan Live at the Lighthouse" (1971).
#BlackHistoryMonth
#BlackMusic
#20thCenturyMusic
#BennieMaupin (bass clarinet)
#LeeMorgan (flugelhorn)
#HaroldMaburn (piano)
#JymieMerritt (bass)
#MickeyRoker (drumming)
OK, how about some more of the John Coltrane Quartet, augmented with a brass section arranged by Eric Dolphy and McCoy Tyner, representing wildlife? Dense, layered, modal, gorgeous. Listen to "Africa" (1961):
#JohnColtrane (tenor)
#McCoyTyner (piano)
#ReggieWorkman (bass)
#ElvinJones (drumming)
and more!, if you check Wikipedia.
Listen to one of the most beautifully constructed alto solos ever. Julian Adderley on "Freddie Freeloader," from "Kind of Blue" (1959). He's the fourth soloist, at about 9:46. Gorgeous.
#MilesDavis (trumpet)
#WyntonKelly (piano)
#JulianAdderly (alto saxophone)
#JohnColtrane (tenor saxophone)
#PaulChambers (bass)
#JimmyCobb (drums)
#BlackHistoryMonth
#BlackMusic
#20thCenturyMusic
So what would happen if you put Wayne Shorter in front of John Coltrane's rhythm section? Blue Note records asked this question! Listen to "Twelve More Bars to Go," from "Juju" (1965):
#BlackHistoryMonth
#BlackMusic
#20thCenturyMusic
#WayneShorter (tenor saxophone)
#McCoyTyner (piano)
#ReggieWorkman (bass)
#ElvinJones (drumming)
Here are two versions of John Coltrane playing the Billy Eckstine ballad, "I Want to Talk About You." First, from "Soultrane" (1958).
#JohnColtrane
#RedGarland (piano)
#PaulChambers (bass)
#ArtTaylor (drums)
#BlackHistoryMonth
#BlackMusic
#20thCenturyMusic
https://youtu.be/G4cQkkObYDY?list=RDG4cQkkObYDY
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Listen to "Dear Lord" (1965) by the John Coltrane Quartet. I first heard this on the LP "Transition." It forms the most gentle interlude between two hugely powerful compositions. I hope you can feel the restrained power and energy of this band.
#BlackHistoryMonth
#BlackMusic
#20thCenturyMusic
#JohnColtrane
#McCoyTyner
#JimmyGarrison
#ElvinJones
From Eric Dolphy's 1961 album, "Out There," here's "17 West." He has such an energetic, fluid voice on the flute.
#BlackHistoryMonth
#BlackMusic
#20thCenturyMusic
#EricDolphy (flute)
#RonCarter (cello!)
#GeorgeDuvivier (bass)
#RoyHaynes (drumming)
Miles Davis, from "Sketches of Spain" (1960). This is "Solea," which closes the album.
#BlackHistoryMonth
#BlackMusic
#20thCenturyMusic
#MilesDavis
#GilEvans
The Duke Ellington Band, from "Far East Suite" (1967). Listen to the finale, "Ad Lib on Nippon." The soloists are Ellington (piano) and Jimmy Hamilton (clarinet).
#BlackHistoryMonth
#BlackMusic
#20thCenturyMusic
#DukeEllington
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e3ww3WnSDJ0&list=RDe3ww3WnSDJ0&start_radio=1
OK, a bit more edgy for Tuesday. From Herbie Hancock's "Crossings" (1972), listen to "Water Torture."
#BlackHistoryMonth
#BlackMusic
#20thCenturyMusic
#HerbieHancock
#EddieHenderson
#BennieMaupin
#JulianPriester
#BusterWilliams
#BillieHart
#PatrickGleason