Anthology for Music in the Twentieth and Twenty-First Centuries

by Joseph Auner, Walter Frisch (Series Editor)

A concise anthology including a wide range of music from the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. Anthology for Music in the Twentieth and Twenty-First Centuries , part of the Western Music in Context series, is the ideal companion to Music in the Twentieth and Twenty-First Centuries . Twenty-six carefully chosen works―including music by Claude Debussy, Kurt Weill, William Grant Still, Pauline Oliveros, and Chen Yi―offer representative examples of genres and composers of the period. Commentaries following each score present a careful analysis of the music, and online links to purchase and download recordings make listening easier than ever.

Genres: Music, Nonfiction

308 pages, Paperback

First published May 8, 2013

Reviews

[Peter P. Bernard]

This is an excellent book but I wonder why jazz wasn't included at greater length.
Most composers, certainly those working after 1950 are profoundly influenced by jazz and those 21st Century composers show a definite influence.

William Austin and Alex Ross both deal extensively with jazz composers and jazz-influenced composers. Both American and European composers display a jazz influence.

I was particularly intrigued by the discussion of Debussy's rag-time influence but without noticing the influence of Ernest Guiraud's on Debussy. Guiraud, Debussy's teacher at the Paris Conservatoire grew up on his family's New Orleans plantation and included slave-music in his early compositions.

There is a lot of room for deeper discussions on 20th and 21st Century music and Auner's book is a great start. I enjoyed it immensely

Peter P. Bernard

[Patrick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not too many surprises here, Auner's 26 selections cover portions of many of the most important and performed pieces of the 20th c. repertoire. Like the other anthologies and texts in the series, instructors will most likely wish to (I'd even say find it necessary to) supplement the contents with some of their own choosing, but the breadth covered here is an excellent start.

Music enthusiasts (non-professionals/students) wishing to learn more about the period should feel free to approach the anthology and its accompanying text with confidence. The whole series is written in an accessible and often entertaining prose.