Twentieth-century music: trends and the voice
MUSIC HISTORY
Atonality, The Rite of Spring, Group of Six: landmarks for approaching modern repertoire without losing a healthy vocal gesture.
Source Adeline Toniutti · Vocal coach, founder of CALYP
What is twentieth-century music?
Twentieth-century music is no longer one shared tonal system but a plurality of languages. After equal temperament and Romantic chromaticism ran out of steam, composers renewed writing through modes, folklore, polytonality, atonality, twelve-tone technique, then electro-acoustic music. For the singer, the task is to approach this modern repertoire while keeping a healthy vocal gesture, from Pierrot lunaire to The Rite of Spring and the oratorios of the Group of Six.
End of the tonal system and paths of renewal
Until the eighteenth century, unequal temperament limited modulation. Equal temperament (theorized by Werckmeister in 1691, illustrated by Bach in The Well-Tempered Clavier) opened every key. In the nineteenth century, chromaticism (diminished sevenths, remote modulations, unresolved tones) made tonality unstable: Liszt wrote a Bagatelle without Tonality.
Early in the twentieth century, the tempered system seemed exhausted. Composers chose several paths: return to old modes (Niedermeyer school, French composers); folklore and exotic modes (Bartók); whole-tone scale (Debussy); modes of limited transposition (Messiaen); polytonality (Milhaud, Honegger, Roussel, Stravinsky); neoclassicism; generalized chromaticism leading to atonality (Schoenberg, Berg, Webern). Atonality refuses a tonal pole: a radical break, even if it continues historical evolution.
Second Viennese School: atonality and twelve-tone technique
After a Wagnerian first period, Arnold Schoenberg (1874-1951) took the path of atonality from 1908 in the Second String Quartet with voice (last two movements). In 1912, Pierrot lunaire is a landmark: he experiments with Sprechgesang (speech-song) and adapts atonal writing to older forms (lied, waltz, barcarolle, fugue, passacaglia).
Until 1923 he composed little while elaborating a new technique. In the Waltz of the Five Piano Pieces op. 23 he applies the twelve-tone method. Pupils Webern (tone-colour melody, traditional forms despite atonality) and Berg (linked to post-Romanticism; opera Wozzeck) form with him the Second Viennese School. For singers, Sprechgesang and non-tonal pitches need pitch precision, diction and laryngeal ease, without forcing a « modern » sound.
Stravinsky, The Rite and three periods
Igor Stravinsky (1882-1971), taught by Rimsky-Korsakov, was launched by Diaghilev: The Firebird (1909), Petrushka (1910-11), then the scandal of The Rite of Spring (1913). The Russian period (1910-1919) favours abrupt rhythm, displaced accents, polytonality (Petrushka theme in C major and F-sharp major), modal or folk-like melodies.
The neoclassical period (1919-1951) begins with Pulcinella (Pergolesi): clearer music after the war, in dialogue with Cocteau and the Group of Six. Then Oedipus Rex, Apollo, Symphony of Psalms (1930), The Rake's Progress. Finally the serial period (1951-1971) draws more on Webern than Schoenberg. Stravinsky appears as « the mirror of his age ». Vocally, The Rite and Les Noces demand rhythm, stamina and stable placement: work for the voice clinic and singing lessons.
Debussy, Ravel and the Group of Six
Debussy (1862-1918) reacts against German Romanticism with juxtaposed colours, exotic scales and Pelléas et Mélisande. Ravel (1875-1937) builds on that freedom with neoclassical finesse and Spanish influence.
After 1918, under Satie (Parade, 1917) and Cocteau (Le Coq et l'Arlequin), the Group of Six (label by Henri Collet, January 1920 in Comœdia) unites Milhaud, Auric, Poulenc, Honegger, Tailleferre and Durey. Reaction against Wagner and impressionism; taste for music-hall, circus and fairground. Landmark works: Le Bœuf sur le toit (Milhaud, 1920), Les Mariés de la Tour Eiffel (1921). Honegger writes Le Roi David (1921). Milhaud (1892-1974) places polytonality at the centre, with Brazil and jazz (La Création du monde, 1923).
After 1950 and today's singer
From 1950, each creator builds a personal language: musique concrète (Pierre Schaeffer, 1948) and electronics (Cologne, Stockhausen); total serialism (Messiaen, Boulez, Le Marteau sans maître, Domaine musical 1954); open forms (John Cage); stochastic music (Xenakis). Institutions: Darmstadt, IRCAM, GRM.
For the singer, the twentieth century asks for fine intonation, rhythm, timbre and sometimes Sprechgesang or noise, without sacrificing support or laryngeal health. The method of Adeline Toniutti at CALYP links these repertoires to the anatomy of singing, masterclasses and the voice clinic. See the music history hub.
Timeline landmarks
- 1908-1912: Schoenbergian atonality; Pierrot lunaire.
- 1909-1913: Stravinsky's Diaghilev trilogy; scandal of The Rite.
- 1920-1923: Group of Six; twelve-tone method (op. 23).
- 1948-1954: musique concrète; Domaine musical; total serialism.
- 1951-1971: serial Stravinsky; plural paths after 1950.
CALYP expertise and Adeline Toniutti
These music history pages grow from the work of Adeline Toniutti, singer, teacher and author of Anatomy of Singing (Marabout / Hachette, 2024). At CALYP (Paris Lyric Art Centre), the twentieth century is not only a historical curiosity: it is where singers learn to perform modern repertoire with a durable vocal gesture, from Debussy to Berg and Stravinsky.
FAQ
Frequent questions on twentieth-century music
What are the main trends in twentieth-century music?
Modes, folklore, polytonality, atonality and twelve-tone technique, neoclassicism, then electro-acoustics, total serialism and open forms. We speak of musics, not one unified style.
What are atonality and twelve-tone technique?
Atonality refuses a tonal pole (Schoenberg from 1908). Twelve-tone technique (from 1923) organizes all twelve pitches in a series to avoid tonal hierarchy.
Why is The Rite of Spring central?
Premiered in 1913 for the Ballets Russes, The Rite imposes savage rhythm, displaced accents and polytonality that shocked audiences and marked the century.
Who formed the Group of Six?
Milhaud, Auric, Poulenc, Honegger, Tailleferre and Durey, labelled in 1920 by Collet, around Satie and Cocteau, against Wagnerian Romanticism and impressionism.
How can singers approach twentieth-century repertoire safely?
By uniting intonation, rhythm, diction and costal support, without forcing the larynx to imitate a « modern » sound. That is the core of Adeline Toniutti's CALYP work.
GO FURTHER
In the music history cluster
PUT IT INTO PRACTICE
Sing the twentieth century with a healthy gesture
Atonality, Stravinsky rhythm, modern French mélodie: connect history to technique and vocal health.