Old Guard vs. Avant-Garde - Essay Example

?“Old Guard” vs. “Avant-Garde” Music Music is a huge part of culture today. This has been our way of expressing feelings, emotions, and celebrating special events. A lot of people regard music as a sound that is pleasing to the ear while those sounds that do not form a melody or a tune are said to irritate ears. Well, until today, there has been an increasing number of different versions of descriptions on what music is and what it is not. However, there has not been a single universally acknowledged definition of music as it is a wide realm of art that is hard to limit within a sentence to encapsulate everything that it is. Well, to be able to understand music in its entirety, it is best to revisit its history. First of all, to give you the most general definition of music, it is an artistic form of auditory communication that incorporates instrumental or vocal tones in a structured and continuous manner. Another great description of music would be that “it is any pleasing and harmonious sound created by singers or musical instruments” (Espie, n. d.). These descriptions came about during the Medieval Ages where musical notation, such as monophony and polyphony, were developed. Monophony is characterized by a music that only consists of one melodic line without accompaniment and where the beauty of the chant relied on its melody. On the other hand, polyphony is a type of music created by two or more melodic lines which are heard simultaneously ("History of Music", n. d). Music in the Medieval Ages was considered the “old-guard” music because at that time people were not open to welcoming other ideas and means of creating music outside of these standard definitions stated above. Avant-garde music on the other hand, is basically the merging of all the elements and genres of music, such as the Medieval, Classical, and Romantic etc. It strongly reflects the modernist style of art music where the irregularity of melody or consistent tune and the rejection of tonality are being embraced. John Cage is an artist and composer being well known for this. He promoted the use of almost anything that could produce sound as one of the instruments to create music and at the same time considered the sound of nature and the most random things as part of his music. Two of his popular works are the “Dream” and “Souvenir”. John Cage’s “Dream” for me is a bright illustration of an “avant-garde” work. This is because of the fact that there is no consistent melody that reflects monophony and polyphony. Another point worth of noting would be the pauses or silence, which is the element that is imminent in the “Dream” and would never be considered as music per se within the context of “Old guard” era. Aside from that, one would be able to notice the altering of tonality from high to low and from long stretches of pitches to a sudden halt. Medieval Age music is totally the opposite to that of modern or avant-garde era being distinct by its repetition of melody and tones, which is something you would not be able to hear in the “Dream”. Every deployed tone is a new phase of music that reflects randomness and an expression of real life (Eidt, n. d.). A lot of people regard John Cage’s “Dream” as something that is composed of merely an expression of random outcome of events, which is an element that is not recognized within the “old-guard” technique. Mainly the piano was used to create this music and what makes it special is that the notes being hit are not based on a certain standard of tonality instead they are based on the musician’s score. This allows this work of his to uncover a deeper mystery and beauty as it is not repetitious and predictability of the piece is not there. Thus, its element of silence which is distinct feature of the “Dream” contributes to something new in the music sphere and causes a lot of aspiring musicians to create the same mystery and at the same time producing a story that would reflect the reality of change in everyday life. Although the “Dream” was something that was avant-garde in nature in John Cage’s time as it veered away from establishing harmony yet being able to sustain resonance, today, it seems to be quite old-guard simply because it does not make use of modern technology of sound production, lacks variety of instruments used to create music and at the same time due to its ability to clearly express certain feeling, which musicians today are able to achieve through the merging of piano, guitar and drum sounds, the emotion of the music comes in stronger, alive and more direct to the point. Also, the fact that John Cage was mentored by the ultra-modernist and world music leader Henry Cowell greatly influenced his work “Dream”, which made it a bright illustration of avant-garde as this music was radically different from that of the time these musicians lived in (Eidt, n. d.). Another famous work of John Cage would be his notorious “Souvenir”. This is another “avant-garde” work because of the strong use of freely sustained high and low tones separated by pauses that is then revived. It is also highlighted by the utmost freedom of the composer to use high and low notes abruptly alternating both, which totally differs from the popular technique of maintaining harmony and tonality. Another strong avant-garde element used here is the scope of Dadaism, which is a post-World War I cultural movement in arts that was used mainly to protest against the barbarism of the war and to fight for intellectual rigidity of not only society but also the expression of art ("Dadaism - Styles & Movements", n. d.). Thus, you will be able to notice the deliberate irrationality of the use of notes in the “Souvenir”, which is an obvious rejection of the standards of the old-guard music. The use of the musical instruments in the “Souvenir” is also made in an avant-garde way as Cage combined the sounds of what seemed to be two different genres of instruments, such as the piano and the percussion that produced totally different pitch of sound. Also, the tempo of the transition from soft sound to loud was abrupt and ruined its potential for tonality, if not harmony. The “Souvenir” of John Cage, although it was totally avant-garde in his time, is again considered old-guard today because of the inability to musically involve people and connect to the kind of lifestyle people stick to these days. The continuous rapid change of tempo and tone depletes the ability of the music to convey certain scenes of real life that is what modern music is all about today, especially as this was made to reflect the post-World War era which people are far from being in today. However, although it did not really establish its music being attractive to listen to, the “Souvenir” has been able to contribute greatly in the evolving music world. As a matter of fact, it introduced the manner of removing the stress from both form and content of music by combining instruments, alternating loud and soft sounds, which altogether might symbolize total freedom and rebellion. John Cage’s “Souvenir” is a perfect example of Contemporary Classical piece, which a lot of composers wanted to duplicate, especially because this has mastered the use of free form in music that is able to express the deepest and yet unexplainable feelings of insurgency and riot being experienced by people in different ways, such as discrimination or injustice. The “Souvenir” was influenced greatly by Marcel Duchamp who revolutionized twentieth-century by proving that everyday happening and unadulterated objects are already considered art. This was the onset of the post-war where everything appeared to be ruined or damaged, however, Duchamp used this to pursue art and make something beautiful out of it. Thus, it was a product of John Cage’s experiment on creating sound through chance procedures in creating something relevant or meaningful, though not necessarily beautiful ("The History of Avant-garde Music", n. d.). Works Cited “John Cage: "Dream" - YouTube ." YouTube - Broadcast Yourself. . N.p., n.d. Web. 3 June 2012. . "John Cage "Souvenir, for organ" - YouTube ." YouTube - Broadcast Yourself. N.p., n.d. Web. 3 June 2012. . Espie, Estrella. "Music History 101." Music Education. N.p., n.d. Web. 3 June 2012. . "History of Music." ThinkQuest: Library. N.p., n.d. Web. 3 June 2012. . "The History of Avant-garde Music." Piero Scaruffi's knowledge base. N.p., n.d. Web. 3 June 2012. . Eidt, Jack. “John Cage: Dreaming in Sustained Resonance." wilderutopia.com . N.p., n.d. Web. 3 June 2012. . "Dadaism - Styles & Movements." Artinthepicture.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 3 June 2012. . Read More