A composer for each period

[Mark]

Let's say you're asked to pick the composers who broadly represent each of the (generally agreed upon) periods in Western Art Music.

But you're only allowed one composer per period.

Who do you choose?

For me:

Renaissance - Palestrina
Baroque - Bach (JS)
Classical - Mozart
Romantic - Beethoven*
Modern - Shostakovich
Contemporary - Schoenburg

I wouldn't necessarily conclude that these composers are the representatives of each period. They're just the 'archetypes' that spring to mind for me, personally.




*Yes, I appreciate this one is technically inaccurate. But I see Beethoven as the birth of the Romantic period, and therefore its representative.

[johnshade]

I'm not clear on the differece between modern and contemporary.

Baroque - Bach
Classical - Mozart
Romantic - Beethoven
20th Century 1 - Stravinsky
20th Century 2 - Strauss
20th Centruy 3 - Bartok
20th Century 4 - ?

[Mark]

As I understand it, 'Modern' runs from about 1910-1960, and 'Contemporary' is from 1960 onwards.

A generalisation, obviously.

[Bonehelm]

Can we split Romantic into Early and Late?

Middle Ages: Hildegard von Bingen
Renaissance: I don't care
Baroque: Bach
Classical: Mozart
Early Romantic: Beethoven
Late Romantic: Mahler
20th Century: Schoenberg, Stravinsky, Webern, whatever

[Wendell_E]

As I understand it, 'Modern' runs from about 1910-1960, and 'Contemporary' is from 1960 onwards.

A generalisation, obviously.

You do realize Schoenberg died in 1951, while Shostakovich wrote quite a bit of music after 1960?

Renaissance - Don't care
Baroque - Bach (JS)
Classical - Mozart
Romantic - Berlioz
Modern - Berg
Contemporary - Carter

[Bonehelm]

You do realize Schoenberg died in 1951, while Shostakovich wrote quite a bit of music after 1960?

Renaissance - Don't care
Baroque - Bach (JS)
Classical - Mozart
Romantic - Berlioz
Modern - Berg
Contemporary - Carter

Wheres the love for LvB? 

[longears]

Renaissance - Dowland
Baroque - Bach (JS)
Classical - Haydn
Romantic - Berlioz
Modern - Stravinsky
Contemporary - Adams

[Mark]

You do realize Schoenberg died in 1951 ...

Actually, I didn't know that. But as I said, I'm not saying my representatives are the representatives.

[George]

Renaissance - Josquin
Baroque - Bach (JS)
Classical - Mozart
Romantic - Brahms
Modern - Schoenberg
Contemporary - Part

[longears]

I'm not clear on the differece between modern and contemporary.

In the arts, "modern" refers to that movement of the late 19th and early 20th Centuries during which the artist became a cultural hero lionized in proportion to his success in shattering and remaking traditional forms.  The aesthetic was generally direct, economical, theoretical, individualistic, and highly influenced by the materials, technologies, and social changes wrought by industrialization...often fueled by a new faith in man as the measure of all things and the promise of a technological Utopia just around the bend.

Contemporary, on the other hand, means present day.

[Mark]

Here's the timeline I was using:


As to why Schoenberg under 'Contemporary', I think I hear his influence the most in works by later composers like Lutoslawski or Penderecki, both of whom I consider (rightly or wrongly) as contemporary.

[BachQ]

BAROQUE - Bach/Handel
CLASSICAL - Haydn/Mozart
CLASSICO-ROMANTIC - Schubert/Beethoven
ROMANTIC - Wagner/Brahms/Mahler/Tchaikovsky
MODERN - Schoenberg/Stravinsky/Shostakovich/Bartok
CONTEMPORARY - Ligeti/Schnittke/Xenakis/Carter

[Mystery]

Renaissance - Palestrina
Baroque - Bach
Classical - Mozart
Romantic - Brahms
Modern - Stravinsky/Schoenberg/Debussy

[Mystery]

Post Modern - Bartok

I don't get this postmodernism malarky - want to help me out here? How can anything be postmodern if modern is by nature be now? As you may have seen in some of my other posts, I have exams soon and one of them is twentieth century, part of it perhaps mentioning postmodernism but not sure I've quite grasped it :-S

[Mozart]

Renaissance: Palestrina
Baroque: Vivaldi
Classical: Mozart(is there any others?)
Early Romantic: Beethoven
Late Romantic: Brahms

[aquablob]

Renaissance -- Palestrina, Monteverdi, or Gesualdo (the wife-murderer)
Baroque -- Bach
"Early" Classical -- Haydn or Mozart
"Late" Classical -- Beethoven
Early Romantic -- Schubert, Schumann, or Chopin
Late Romantic -- Debussy
20th Century -- Prokofiev or Shostakovich

This is silly!

[greg]

Baroque- Bach
Classical- Paganini
Early Romantic- Brahms
Late Romantic- Mahler
Early 20th Century- Prokofiev
Modern- Penderecki/Xenakis (hard to decide)

[johnshade]

I don't get this postmodernism malarky

I don't get it either. After reading about postmodernism online, I have changed the designation of Bartok.

JS

[Sergeant Rock]

Once again, sigh, I must point out that Beethoven's music is not Romantic but thoroughly Classical. His music is the culmination of the Classical Style. Mozart/Haydn/Beethoven...the Trinity of Classical Music.

Sarge

[George]

Once again, sigh, I must point out that Beethoven's music is not Romantic but thoroughly Classical. His music is the culmination of the Classical Style. Mozart/Haydn/Beethoven...the Trinity of Classical Music.

Sarge

I couldn't agree more, Sarge.