# Modern composers composing tonal music?



## Gustav Mahler (Dec 3, 2014)

I have just heard some of Eric Whitacre's music, and the spirituality and beauty were great.
Now, I am wondering if there are some other popular 20th-21st century composers who compose tonally? 
I do enjoy modern atonality, but I am looking for tonal music too.
Thank you


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## Abraham Lincoln (Oct 3, 2015)

Michael Giacchino, John Williams, ZUN?


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## Gustav Mahler (Dec 3, 2014)

Is ZUN a composer?


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## Gustav Mahler (Dec 3, 2014)

I know John Williams, he is a great film composer. Is he a serious classical composer too?


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## Arsakes (Feb 20, 2012)

Gustav Mahler said:


> I know *John Williams*, he is a great film composer. Is he a serious classical composer too?


I don't think he's serious enough to be considered classical composer _*here*_...

*goes to listen to Star Wars music*


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## Art Rock (Nov 28, 2009)

Williams composed a fair number of classical works, including a string of concertos. Wiki link.


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## Gustav Mahler (Dec 3, 2014)

Yeah, he may be a little underrated here since he composes for movies, but there is no doubt he is a very talented composer with wonderful melodies. I really like the Jurassic Park and Indiana Jones themes.
Anyway, are there any other tonal modern composers you know of? 
It is just that there are way too many current composers who experiment only with sound and not with melodies.


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## Tomas (Aug 23, 2014)

I'd say:

Arvo Part: Cantus for Benjamin Britten, Fratres, Spiegel, choral works, etc

Rautavaara: Symphonies (7 and 8 especially) 




Elena Kats Chernin: Wild swans ballet 




Gorecki: Symphony of Sorrowful songs (my favourite) 




Golijov: 'Azul' 




Sculthorpe: Earth Cry 




Hidgon: Blue Cathedral 




If you like Eric Whitacre's choral music, you might like Ola Gjeilo and Morten Laurisden


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## Guest (Oct 30, 2015)

Gustav Mahler said:


> but there is no doubt he is a very talented composer with wonderful melodies. I really like the Jurassic Park and Indiana Jones themes.


Yeah, I'd say that he knocks spots off Tchaikovsky for melodies...and you get a movie thrown in for good measure!


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## Truckload (Feb 15, 2012)

Gustav Mahler said:


> I have just heard some of Eric Whitacre's music, and the spirituality and beauty were great.
> Now, I am wondering if there are some other popular 20th-21st century composers who compose tonally?
> I do enjoy modern atonality, but I am looking for tonal music too.
> Thank you


Thank you Mahler, I had never heard Whitacre's music and it is truly beautiful. I just listened to "Gold and Light" and "Leonardo Dreams of His Flying Machine". Both very enjoyable.


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## Truckload (Feb 15, 2012)

Abraham Lincoln said:


> Michael Giacchino, John Williams, ZUN?


Were you perhaps referring to the popular media composer Inon Zur? He has written music for several of the big hit video games right?


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## Gustav Mahler (Dec 3, 2014)

Interesting. It is the first time I hear about a known Israeli media composer.
I am from Israel, that's why I am glad to hear about Zur.
I also want to work in the film industry in the future.


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## Guest (Oct 30, 2015)

Truckload said:


> Were you perhaps referring to the popular media composer Inon Zur? He has written music for several of the big hit video games right?


Or this chap, also composer for video...

http://en.touhouwiki.net/wiki/ZUN


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## Truckload (Feb 15, 2012)

Gustav Mahler said:


> Interesting. It is the first time I hear about a known Israeli media composer.
> I am from Israel, that's why I am glad to hear about Zur.
> I also want to work in the film industry in the future.


I hope you find success either in film or media. Although I have no aspirations to compose anything successful myself, I love learning about art music, and in many ways film and media music is the art music of today. Not completely, and I am not saying all film and media music is art music, but a lot is. So I listen to and sometimes study some film and media music. Anyway, good luck. Have you posted any of your music?


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## Gustav Mahler (Dec 3, 2014)

Thank you.
I haven't posted anything here yet. The only serious composition I have so far is a one movement string quartet.
I am in the beginning of my professional way. Currently I am studying conducting (better than studying composition-this way I learn from Bach, Mozart and Beethoven themselves!)
There is indeed a lot of art in film music. I really like the combination of a picture and sound, the emotions of the film and the music mixing together, the atmosphere-it is fantastic!


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## arpeggio (Oct 4, 2012)

How many do you want? I can think of at least twenty including many who have passed away since 2000.

As far as Williams is concerned he has composed some heady concert stuff including his _Violin and Flute Concertos_ which are very atonal. There have been many posts concerning these works. One early interesting work is his early _Sinfonietta for Wind Ensemble_: 




The following is a You Tube of Williams rehearsing a work he composed for the United States Marine Corps Band. Note for note it is just as good as any symphonic tonal concert work I have ever heard:


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## Gustav Mahler (Dec 3, 2014)

Any composers you think are worth listening to


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## Manxfeeder (Oct 19, 2010)

Here's a link to a nice one by Conni Elisor.


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## arpeggio (Oct 4, 2012)

Gustav Mahler said:


> Any composers you think are worth listening to


They are all worthy (Of course that is no guarantee that you will like them). I will give you ten that have not yet been mentioned. That should keep you busy.

Gian Carlo Menotti (He passed away 2007. His last compositions I think were in the 1990's)
John Corigliano (He is a very eclectic composer. Some of his works are atonal, some tonal.)
David Maslanka
John Harbison
Michael Daugherty
Krzysztof Penderecki (His late works are very tonal.)
Aulis Sallinen
Ned Rorum
John Adams
Mark Camphouse

You can find many samples of their works on You Tube


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## tortkis (Jul 13, 2013)

I recently found the music of Sergey Akhunov (a Russian composer, born in 1967) and was deeply moved by its beauty. Maybe a little too sentimental, but I think it's very nice.

Big elegy to John Cage (new music for piano trio) 2011
Julia Igonina (violin), Rustam Komachkov (cello), Natalia Ardasheva (piano)
https://sergeyakhunov.bandcamp.com/album/big-elegy-to-john-cage-new-music-for-piano-trio-2011










Don't worry about "John Cage" in the title. The string quartets are also very good.


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## Nereffid (Feb 6, 2013)

Alec Roth.





Meredith Monk.


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## OboeKnight (Jan 25, 2013)

Jennifer Higdon has some really nice works. I also had the fortune to play some of her compositions a few years ago!


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## Guest (Oct 31, 2015)

Lera Auerbach. Her music is often highly chromatic, but I wouldn't call it atonal, and certainly not serial.


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## Gustav Mahler (Dec 3, 2014)

Thanks. It's interesting to see that today there are more and more well known female composers.


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## Mahlerian (Nov 27, 2012)

Kontrapunctus said:


> Lera Auerbach. Her music is often highly chromatic, but I wouldn't call it atonal, and certainly not serial.


I don't think most people could identify whether or not something is serial by listening to it.

As for atonal, it's a useless concept in general.


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## Guest (Oct 31, 2015)

Part, Gorecki, Rautavaara, Sallinen, Adams, later Penderecki, etc... I'm not sure I would describe any of those as "tonal", myself.

I guess there's always Alma.


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## ArtMusic (Jan 5, 2013)

Gustav Mahler said:


> I have just heard some of Eric Whitacre's music, and the spirituality and beauty were great.
> Now, I am wondering if there are some other popular 20th-21st century composers who compose tonally?
> I do enjoy modern atonality, but I am looking for tonal music too.
> Thank you


The young prodigy Alma Deutscher composes new music based on traditional forms.


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## arpeggio (Oct 4, 2012)

Some of our members have a fixation over the music of Ms. Deutscher. She is only ten years old. They carry on as if she is the first real child prodigy since Mozart. I have played the music of many ten year old child prodigies. Her music does not sound any different than there's. I would love it if like Hanna Montana she turns into another Miley Cyrus instead of the great savior of classical music that many of her proponents hope she becomes.

It is premature to consider her an accomplished composer. There have been many child prodigies just as talented as Ms. Deutscher. Some have developed into fine composers, some have not.

Frederick Magle, the owner of the site was a child prodigy who started composing when he was seven: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frederik_Magle


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## SimonNZ (Jul 12, 2012)

arpeggio said:


> Frederick Magle, the owner of the site was a child prodigy who started composing when he was seven: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frederik_Magle


Once again I think its a pity he doesn't contribute to the discussions. His perspective on young Alma's situation - and all the nonsense spoken about her - might well be quite interesting to hear.


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## arpeggio (Oct 4, 2012)

I can understand if Mr. Magle does not want to get involved because of his position.


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## Gustav Mahler (Dec 3, 2014)

I completely agree. It is way too early to tell if she will be a great composer.
There are many other very talented musicians, but if we would focus on all of them we wouldn't have the special "one and only" child prodigy effect.


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## Avey (Mar 5, 2013)

Philip Glass. Plenty to dig there.


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