The classical modern period, 1900-1945, saw a great deal of cultural change, and many different composers helped shape the musical landscape of the early 20th century. Browse our sheet music and scores, take a look at our Classical Modern Sheet Music Downloads, and explore the wide world of classical modernism with Stretta Music today
The horrors of World War I brought about such a shift in perspective, that art would never be the same again. The cultural and social changes that had already begun at the end of the 19th century led to new prospects, which were mirrored and expressed through various innovative artistic movements, them sum of which is called Classic Modernism.
During the 20th century, the boundaries of tonality were stretched so far that one could no longer speak of tonal music. The most striking examples of this are polytonality, employed by composers like Igor Stravinsky, Béla Bartók, and Charles Ives, and to an even greater extent serialism, the twelve-tone music of Arnold Schönberg and his students.
The rise of nationalism in the late 19th century sparked a great interest in rediscovering folk music. New technical developments, such as the invention of the phonograph, also made it easier to document and collect folk music. Great folk Pioneers were the Romanian composer Béla Bartók, the Czech composer Leo Janáček, the Hungarian composer Zoltán Kodály, and the Australian-American composer Percy Grainger.
This development led to a new idiom within classical music, both melodically and rhythmically. Good examples of the integration of folklore into classical modern music are the melodies from Janáček’s Jenufa, which are based on the rhythm and intonation of the Czech language, and Bartók’s Second Violin Rhapsody.
Expressionists aimed to capture true emotions without glossing over them. Above all, they looked at the subjective inner world, in contrast to the outer world, and left all traditional ideals of beauty behind.
Expressionist music is characterised by dissonance, extreme dynamics and great contrasts in colour, pitch and effect. In music, expressionism is generally associated with the Second Viennese School, founded by Arnold Schönberg and his students Anton Webern and Alban Berg, and the dodecaphonic, twelve-tone technique they used, known as serialism.
Examples of expressionist music include Schönberg’s Erwartung, 1909, and Berg’s Wozzeck, 1922.
Another classical modern departure from the ideals of the Romantic Period was to draw on forms and tropes of the Baroque Period and the Classical Period. This was expressed in the use of traditional musical forms, as in Martinů’s Concerto da Camara, 1937, the use of traditional instrumentation, as in Manuel de Falla’s Concerto for Harpsichord, Flute, Oboe, Clarinet & Cello, 1926, and also in the use of thematic material from the 18th and 19th centuries, such as in Stravinsky’s Pulcinella, 1920.
for: Men's Choir [TTBB] and Piano
Choir score
Item no.: 977157
for: Voice, piano
Choir score
Item no.: 962312
for: Voice, piano
Music score
Item no.: 858279
for: Fanfare
Score, Parts
Item no.: 1000061
for: Piano
Music score
Item no.: 239338
for: 4 Mixed Voices and Piano
Book
Item no.: 820097
for: Medium Voices
Book
Item no.: 267189
for: Piano
Music score
Item no.: 158471
for: Piano
Music score
Item no.: 834734
for: Mixed choir (SATB), piano
Choir part Tenor
Item no.: 670859
for: Piano
Music score
Item no.: 197484
for: Voice, piano
Music score
Item no.: 871021
for: Children's Choir
Choir score
Item no.: 868745
for: Piano 4 hands
Ensemble score
Item no.: 892869
for: Piano
Music score
Item no.: 879361
for: Piano
Music score
Item no.: 877715
for: Piano
Music score
Item no.: 876660
for: Piano
Music score
Item no.: 873723
for: Piano 4 hands
Ensemble score
Item no.: 872426
for: Piano 4 hands
Ensemble score
Item no.: 872114
for: gemischter Chor (unisono, Volksgesang) mit Orgel oder kleinem Orchester
Harmony parts (complete winds)
Item no.: 173044
for: Orchester; Kinderchor (2 gleiche Stimmen) und Sprecher ad libitum
Stimmensatz
Item no.: 170657
for: Brass ensemble (11 parts); timpani ad lib.
Set of parts
Item no.: 165792
for: Concert band
Score, Parts
Item no.: 243078
for: Cello, orchestra
Item no.: 1610858
for: Voice, piano
Music score
Item no.: 1141203
for: für Soli: Sopran, Alt, Tenor, Bass, Chor SATB, Orgel und Orchester Bass
Choir part
Item no.: 1135571
for: Flute, orchestra
Viola (orchestral part)
Item no.: 1031524
for: Piano
Music score
Item no.: 1643711
for: Mixed choir (SATB), wind ensemble, percussion
Choir score
Item no.: 308209
for: Wind instruments
Set of parts
Item no.: 307890
for: Mixed choir a cappella
Choir score
Item no.: 306929
for: 5 brass winds
Score, Parts
Item no.: 207319
for: Voice, piano
Single edition
Item no.: 306718
for: 2 violins, viola, cello, piano (piano quintet)
Item no.: 306632
for: FL OB BASS-KLAR FAG 2 VL VA VC
Stimmen-Set
Item no.: 306597
for: Concert band
Einzelstimme
Item no.: 482821
for: String orchestra
Stimmensatz
Item no.: 296245
for: gemischter Chor (STBar) und Instrumente
Einzelstimme
Item no.: 293585
for: Organ
Item no.: 288954
for: 2 Holzbläser (Flöten, Alt-Blockflöten oder Flöte und Oboe) und Streichorchester
Stimmensatz
Item no.: 190752
for: 2 violins, viola, cello (string quartet)
Score, Parts
Item no.: 187729
for: Kinderchor (SMez) mit Instrumenten
Choir score
Item no.: 103253
for: Viola
Music score
Item no.: 101698
for: Mixed choir a cappella
Choir score
Item no.: 111441
Lyric book
Item no.: 199334
for: Soloists, mixed choir, orchestra
Lyric book
Item no.: 199247