Title:
A history of Western choral music / Chester L. Alwes.
Author:
Alwes, Chester Lee, 1947- author.
Publication Information:
New York, NY : Oxford University Press, [2015]-
Call Number:
ML1500 .A46 2015 V.1
Abstract:
A History of Western Choral Music explores the various genres, key composers, and influential works essential to the development of the western choral tradition. Author Chester L. Alwes divides this exploration into two volumes which move from Medieval music and the Renaissance era up to the 21st century. Volume I surveys the choral music of composers including Josquin, Palestrina, Purcell, Handel, and J.S. Bach while detailing the stylistic, textual, and extramusical considerations unique to the topics covered. Consideration of Renaissance music includes both sacred and secular works, specifically addressing the growth of sacred music, the rise of secular music, and the proliferation of sacred polyphony from Josquin to Palestrina. Discussion of the Baroque era is organized by geographic location, exploring the spread of Baroque style from Italy to German, France, and England. Volume I concludes by examining the aesthetic underpinnings of the early Classical and Romantic eras. Framing discussion within the political, religious, cultural, philosophical, aesthetic, and technological contexts of each era, A History of Western Choral Music offers readers specialized insight into major composers and works while providing a cohesive understanding of choral music's place in Western history. Volume II begins at the transition from the Classical era to the Romantic, with an examination of the major genres common to both periods. Exploring the oratorio, part song, and dramatic music, it also offers a thorough discussion of the choral symphony from Beethoven to Mahler, through to the present day. It then delves into the choral music of the twentieth century through discussions of the major compositional approaches and philosophies that proliferated over the course of the century, from impressionism to serialism, neo-classicism to modernism, minimalism, and the avant-garde. It also considers the emerging tendency towards nationalistic composition amongst composers such as Bartók and Stravinsky, and discusses in great detail the contemporary music of the United States, and Great Britain. Framing discussion within the political, religious, cultural, philosophical, aesthetic, and technological contexts of each era, A History of Western Choral Music offers readers specialized insight into major composers and works while providing a cohesive understanding of choral music's place in Western history [Publisher description].
Electronic Access:
Volume 2: Full text available from EBSCOhost: Rutgers restricted
ISBN:
9780195177428
9780199361939
9780199376995
9780199377008
Physical Description:
volumes : illustrations, music ; 26 cm
General Note:
Volume 1. From medieval foundations to the romantic age.
Volume 2. "Romanticism through the Avant-Garde."
Subject Term:
Contents:
Volume 1: Preface -- Acknowledgments -- Abbreviations -- Western choral music -- Medieval foundations -- Sacred choral music of the Renaissance, I (1425-1525) -- Secular choral music of the Renaissance (1140-1625) -- Sacred choral music of the Renaissance, II (1525-1600) -- Sacred choral music in England (1450-1650) -- Choral music of the Italian Baroque (1600-1725) -- Choral music in Germany from Hassler to Buxtehude -- French Baroque music -- Choral music in England from the Restoration to Handel -- The choral music of Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750) -- Aspects of classicism and romanticism in choral music -- The mass (1750-1900) -- Romanticism and the requiems of Mozart, Berlioz, Verdi, and Brahms -- Sacred choral music from Mozart to Liszt -- Notes -- Art credits -- Bibliography -- Index -- Volume 2: Romanticism through the avant-garde -- Preface -- Acknowledgments -- Abbreviations -- The Oratorio from Haydn to Elgar -- Part song in nineteenth-century Germany and England -- Choral music in nineteenth-century drama -- Choral symphony from Beethoven to Berio -- French choral music from Debussy to Messiaen -- Serialism and choral music of the twentieth century -- Nationalism, folk song, and identity -- Neoclassicism -- The avant-garde aesthetic -- European centrism -- The American experience -- The British Isles -- The new simplicities -- Notes -- Bibliography -- Permissions -- Index.
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