Impressionism
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Transcript of Impressionism
ImpressionismTurn of the 20th century
Musicians influenced by PaintersFrench and Russian composers take the leadA group of French painters known as the
impressionists. Instead of focusing on the objects, they focused on “light” and how it related to the object
Claude Monet
Pierre-Auguste Renoir
Musical Response-music was to focus on atmosphere instead of
the strong emotions of the Romantic period.-artists often used objects in nature to inspire
their piecesHaving said that, Impressionism is really a
subcategory of the Romantic. Nature, traditions, nationalism are still very influential
Claude DebussyFrench…and was good friends with the
paintersLoved the whole tone scale….Mr Duncan
don’t forget to play it.L’Apres Midi De La Faune
Modest MussorgskyRussian“Pictures at an Exhibition”As a tribute to his friend Victor
Hartmann, who suddenly died of an aneurism, Mussorgsky recreated an exhibition of his paintings to music.
The piece recreated several paintings and included and introduction, and a promenade between each painting
The Great Gate of Kiev
Igor StravinskyRussian“Le Sac du
Printempts” (en englais) “The Rite of Spring”
Inspired by archeologist and artist, Nikolai Roerich
Roerich was interested in the Pagans of Russia before Christianity came to Russia
So…Le Sacre du Printemps will be composed by Igor StravinskyInspired by Nikolai RoerichAnd choreographed by Vaslav Nijinski
What could go wrong?
The most famous of these scandals was the debut performance of Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring at the Théâtre des Champs Elysées in Paris on 29 May 1913. Nijinsky was choreographer. Once the curtain opened, revealing a dancer in peasant costume standing knock-kneed with her palsied fists under her chin, a wiseass in the audience yelled: “Call a doctor!” Someone retorted, “A dentist!” Outraged balletomanes demanded silence—which only enflamed the peanut gallery. But peevish sarcasm gave way to pure chaos once Stravinsky’s frenetic music cast its spell. People cheered wildly, or hissed, or simply beat their palms on the railings in time with the music. Fist-fights broke out in the aisles between the fans and detractors. Poor mad Nijinsky’s stomping, circling choreography was roundly mocked. (We can guess at how little the ballet was enjoyed by his fellow dancers—all of whom promptly “forgot” the choreography and didn’t pass it on to eager dance historians.) Stravinsky reportedly fled the theater in tears. Diaghilev rushed backstage to turn the house lights on and off—a futile effort to calm the audience--while Nijinsky stood on a chair in the wings, calling out the counts to his dancers. Afterwards, Diaghilev glided through the crowded theater lobby proclaiming, “It is exactly what I wanted to happen.”