# Whai your top 3 american classical composer of 20th century, here are mine and why!



## deprofundis (Apr 25, 2014)

George Crumbs first place : i guess he won me ,into deserving him the podium for gold medalist of modern classical spectrum, for his Madrigals Books I-IV & Makrokosmos III on Bis label and black angels on other llabel, whhat an amazing release by BIS & rendition too by musican and conductor.

Bronze would have to be Hovhaness, his double albums on delios classic is incredible for sure.

Paul Creston: arecommandation of Talk classical menber is fabuleous exeequo whit Varese as silver medalist in the great pantheon of americain composer

These are mmy 3 or 4 favorite american composers i cheerish there works


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## SONNET CLV (May 31, 2014)

Good selections, 'profundis.
Crumb proves exceptionally powerful. I've collected much of his music over the years and turn to it often. Hovhaness is American, but his music has an Eastern European sound rather than an "American sound" ala Copland or Piston or Roy Harris. I've collected quite a few Hovhaness discs as well, trying to acquire as many of his symphonies as possible. As for Creston, I remain a staunch fan of his Symphony No. 2, one of my favorite American symphonies. Strangely, though I have some of his other music on hand, I seldom turn to it, including the other two symphonies.

I would place Charles Ives on my own list of top American composers. In some sense Ives was the first composer to make a mark as a true iconoclastic American, hewing out his own path rather than following the model of Europeans, as did the American composers before him including his own composition instructors. Ives music is simply stunning and wholly "American" without a doubt.

Aaron Copland should probably top a list of great American composers for he seems to have created, more than anyone else (with the possible exception of Ives), a truly American sound. The "western" music one hears in things like _Rodeo_ and _Billy the Kid_ gave the American West its signature sound. So too does _Appalachian Spring_ define an American rustic sound unlike anything else before Copland, and like so much after him. And there can be little doubt that Copland's Third Symphony ranks high as a possible candidate for "great American symphony." Not to mention the _Fanfare for the Common Man_, which defines the American citizen in musical terms (and is scored into that remarkable Third Symphony).

And though I probably listen to the music of Roy Harris, William Schuman, Walter Piston, Henry Cowell, and John Cage much more than I do to that of George Gershwin, I must admit that Gershwin's influence on "the American sound" is nearly unparalleled. His jazz inflections in "serious music" and his impact on the American popular song remain legacies that no other composer can claim with as much authority. Sure, there are Eubie Blake and Duke Ellington. But where would Leonard Bernstein be without the trailblazing of George Gershwin.

So though I have a great fondness for American composers from the 18th century onward to our own 21st, and have collected a vast assortment of American classical music (including nearly every Louisville First Edition disc and dozens of CRI's), I must choose Ives, Copland, and Gershwin as the three most impactful American composers because of their contribution to "the American sound".


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## tortkis (Jul 13, 2013)

I love those composers mentioned above, but based on my preference, the impact and the uniqueness, I would choose John Cage for the prepared piano, chance music, the treatment of musical silence, and the time bracket compositions, Harry Partch, for his development of microtonal system and the original instruments (his music sounds very American to me), and Steve Reich, whose gradual process in composition had a great influence on American music.


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## Fredx2098 (Jun 24, 2018)

Well, Morton Feldman is at the top for me of course! His undeniably unique style is exactly what I want out of classical music: a constantly evolving, intuitive, confusing, subdued, slow, relaxed chromatic atmosphere with chamber ensembles (mostly). 

Next would be Charles Ives. He has such a creative style. It's so unique and modern, but he uses folk melodies to sort of bridge the gap and make the modernism more comprehendible. His music is nice and chromatic and dissonant, but still very emotional. 

After that I'm not totally sure. It could be Reich, Glass, or Partch. Minimalism isn't my favorite thing like the abstract styles of Feldman and Ives, but I do love it. And Partch's music is so beautiful and unique, but I haven't listened to so much of it, and maybe it's a bit too mysterious and spooky to be one of my top favorites.


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## Art Rock (Nov 28, 2009)

Barber is for me clearly number one. After him, there are many candidates: Adams (both), Beach, Cage, Chadwick, Corigliano, Creston, Copland, Gershwin, Glass, Griffes, Grofe, Hanson, Harris, Harbison, Harrison, Ives, Piston, Reich, Rouse, Schuman, and many others.....


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## David Phillips (Jun 26, 2017)

Jerome Kern
Cole Porter
George Gershwin


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## Andolink (Oct 29, 2012)

Elliott Carter is my favorite.

Morton Feldman and Earle Brown are tied for 2nd place. 

And I recently purchased a disc of two orchestral pieces by Christian Wolff that blew me away so he's right up there too.


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## CnC Bartok (Jun 5, 2017)

I am a long way off being an expert on this part of the world's repertoire, but I have listened to quite a lot of these chaps' orchestral music, as there are a lot of American Symphonies out there ready to be discovered! Some have really appealed more than I had expected (I'd mention Paul Creston and Ned Rorem here), while others have - despite my expecting to be enthralled - been less than I had hoped (Roy Harris and William Schuman). There are lots of Barber pieces I enjoy as well, more away from the two fine symphonies he composed. And I reckon an honorary mention for George Rochberg, who I have investigated, enjoyed and gone no further with - my bad - ought to be made here too.

The three that have grabbed me the most would have to be Aaron Copland, Walter Piston; and David Diamond. I am quite surprised I am the first to mention him.....I don't know them all, but his symphonies are very fine pieces indeed, they seem to have a real beating heart to them.

Oh, and check out the wonderful short orchestral piece Sun Treader by Carl Ruggles!!


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## Manxfeeder (Oct 19, 2010)

My personal favorites (and this is purely subjective) are Morton Feldman, David Diamond (I agree with Robert Pickett), and Ives.

Feldman because of its sense of transcendence/timelessness. 
Diamond because it just sounds good. 
Ives because his music is crazy, and you never know what's coming up next.

But it's hard to pick favorites from the Americans, because they are so diverse, from Gershwin and Still's jazz to Antheil's bad-boy noisemaking and Edgard Varese's sound constructs to Nick Flagello/Samuel Barber/ Howard Hanson's radical neoromanticism. And the woman composers, though not always recognized, have been up there with the big boys.


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## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

Aaron Copland, Charles Ives and William Schuman.

Copland for his accessible Appalachian Spring, Rodeo and Billy the Kid, Music for the Theater and Music for the Movies.

Ives for his Three Places in New England, Symphonies 2 and 3, and Concord Piano Sonata.

Schuman for his Symphonies 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10. Plus his thorny but wonderful violin concerto.

Honorable mention: Vincent Persichetti for his wonderful 12 piano sonatas.


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## Fredx2098 (Jun 24, 2018)

I think Ives is conclusively the 20th century American maestro, and I'm glad to see Feldman mentioned a plurality of times


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## Tallisman (May 7, 2017)

I'm slowly coming round to the opinion that Ives was one of the 20th century greats from any country. I think of him as doing for American music what Emerson did for the American intellectual spirit in general.


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## eugeneonagain (May 14, 2017)

tortkis said:


> I would choose John Cage for the prepared piano, chance music, the treatment of musical silence.


The prepared piano was Satie's idea almost 50 years previous, not Cage's. Silence-music is also not his original idea. So I don't think he deserves to be credited as having innovated them.


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## mbhaub (Dec 2, 2016)

Bernard Herrmann
Jerry Goldsmith
Leroy Anderson


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## Woodduck (Mar 17, 2014)

Favorite three, probably Barber, Copland and Schuman. Peter Mennin, Nicolas Flagello and George Frederick McKay also attract me. Too bad most of Roy Harris's music isn't as good as his third symphony.

An earlier generation of composers who spanned the 19th and 20th centuries wrote excellent music in the Romantic tradition: Edward MacDowell, Arthur Foote, Daniel Gregory Mason, Charles Martin Loeffler, George Whitefield Chadwick, Amy Beach, John Alden Carpenter.


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## starthrower (Dec 11, 2010)

I can't say I have three favorites. There isn't one I'm completely in love with. I pick and choose works by quite a few.

Schuman
Bernstein
Barber
Ives
Carter
Crumb
Hanson
Feldman
Babbitt
Copland
Nancarrow

Never warmed to Adams and Glass, or Piston for that matter. Haven't really listened to Harris or Persichetti.


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## eugeneonagain (May 14, 2017)

This thread tells me that I'm not very up on North American composers. Really the only ones I've listened to more in-depth are Piston and Copland, Gershwin, some Morton Feldman, Bernstein. I don't know if the more popular composers (I.e. those who produced a lot of great film music, are being counted?).


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## Steve Mc (Jun 14, 2018)

eugeneonagain said:


> This thread tells me that I'm not very up on North American composers. Really the only ones I've listened to more in-depth are Piston and Copland, Gershwin, some Morton Feldman, Bernstein. I don't know if the more popular composers (I.e. those who produced a lot of great film music, are being counted?).


Well, they should be! 
But, if I had to choose 3, they would be:
Aaron Copland (very good)
Charles Ives (though he's not one of my favorites)
John Williams (the impact, breadth and complexity of his work should not be discounted)

Then, I'd put Glass, Adams, Barber, Herrmann, Gershwin, and Horner on pretty even footing.


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## tortkis (Jul 13, 2013)

eugeneonagain said:


> The prepared piano was Satie's idea almost 50 years previous, not Cage's. Silence-music is also not his original idea. So I don't think he deserves to be credited as having innovated them.


I am not interested in crediting innovation to a composer. Preceding idea exists for almost anything. What music the composer created using idea, technique, method, instruments, etc., whether invented or preexisting, is important to me. I was saying that I like what he did with prepared piano and the usage of silence in his compositions.


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## eugeneonagain (May 14, 2017)

tortkis said:


> I am not interested in crediting innovation to a composer. Preceding idea exists for almost anything. What music the composer created using idea, technique, method, instruments, etc., whether invented or preexisting, is important to me. I was saying that I like what he did with prepared piano and the usage of silence in his compositions.


You should be interested because it's neither new nor novel.


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## Jacck (Dec 24, 2017)

I agree with mbhaub.
My favorite US composer is Jerry Goldsmith, then Herrman, then I do not know, maybe Price, Ives, Hanson, Gerschwin....


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## Simon Moon (Oct 10, 2013)

I'd have to go with:

Elliott Cater as number one for sure. Not only has he composed some of my favorite pieces, but his output is extensive and consistently good. 

Barber is also up there for me. 

Joan Tower is another favorite. Just for her "Concerto for orchestra" alone puts her in my top 3.

But ask me on a different day, and others (some already mentioned) would make my list. Joseph Schwantner, Feldman, Crumb, Feldman, Jennifer Hidgdon are also high on my list.


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## tortkis (Jul 13, 2013)

eugeneonagain said:


> You should be interested because it's neither new nor novel.


I have no idea what your point is, but never mind...


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## Bulldog (Nov 21, 2013)

My favorites:

Barber
Hovhaness
Piston 
Schuman


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## Fredx2098 (Jun 24, 2018)

Simon Moon said:


> But ask me on a different day, and others (some already mentioned) would make my list. Joseph Schwantner, Feldman, Crumb, Feldman, Jennifer Hidgdon are also high on my list.


Double Feldman, I like your style


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## isorhythm (Jan 2, 2015)

Ives, Reich, Riley

I like Wuorinen too, and to some extent Carter, but have to go with more distinctively American voices for my favorites.

For whatever reason, I've never warmed to Feldman's music at all, even though on paper it's the kind of thing I should like.


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## Highwayman (Jul 16, 2018)

1- Hovhaness
2- Copland
3- Diamond 

Hanson, Schuman, Piston, Bernstein and Barber are close pursuers.


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## Tallisman (May 7, 2017)

eugeneonagain said:


> This thread tells me that I'm not very up on North American composers. Really the only ones I've listened to more in-depth are Piston and Copland, Gershwin, some Morton Feldman, Bernstein. I don't know if the more popular composers (I.e. those who produced a lot of great film music, are being counted?).


Seriously try Ives' 2nd


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## eugeneonagain (May 14, 2017)

His second what?


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## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

eugeneonagain said:


> His second what?


 Ives Second Symphony.

Very accessible, almost Romantic, sounds like Brahms was a big influence.


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## Tallisman (May 7, 2017)

eugeneonagain said:


> His second what?


Serenade for timpani and pan flute.

Symphony, of course.


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## derin684 (Feb 14, 2018)

eugeneonagain said:


> His second what?


The string quartet also.


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## Sid James (Feb 7, 2009)

deprofundis said:


> George Crumbs first place : i guess he won me ,into deserving him the podium for gold medalist of modern classical spectrum, for his Madrigals Books I-IV & Makrokosmos III on Bis label and black angels on other llabel, whhat an amazing release by BIS & rendition too by musican and conductor.
> 
> Bronze would have to be Hovhaness, his double albums on delios classic is incredible for sure.
> 
> ...


Easiest way to answer that is which composers do I like more music from, and it boils down to Copland, Bernstein, Hovhaness, Gershwin and Barber. There are others who I like too, but only for say one or two of their pieces, eg. Carter, Glass, Ives, Cage, Grofe, Partch, MacDowell, Cowell, Hanson. In terms of film composers, I like Herrmann, Williams, Goldsmith. Some I've tried but don't find too interesting: eg. Sessions, Reich, Adams, Feldman, Higdon. I think Corigliano and Crumb are good but too dark for my tastes.


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