Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site pyuxn.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!gamma!pyuxww!pyuxn!rlr From: rlr@pyuxn.UUCP (Rich Rosen) Newsgroups: net.music,net.music.classical Subject: Re: Question for jazz history buffs (influence on Impressionists) Message-ID: <724@pyuxn.UUCP> Date: Wed, 6-Jun-84 14:07:08 EDT Article-I.D.: pyuxn.724 Posted: Wed Jun 6 14:07:08 1984 Date-Received: Thu, 7-Jun-84 08:05:18 EDT References: <3822@tekecs.UUCP> Organization: Bell Communications Research, Piscataway N.J. Lines: 19 The Impressionists were influenced by as much as possible in the spectrum of world musics. Debussy was certainly exposed to jazz, but he was also influenced by Javanese music as well. Satie's eclecticism and avant-garde ideas (later leading to dada) were a strong influence on Debussy also. This whole idea of acquiring influences from a wide variety of musics was an attempt (by Debussy especially) to counter the Wagnerian school, and (at least in my opinion) to prove that just because Wagnerian chromatic harmonic ideas were reaching the point of no return (where some would say there was no more tonal music to be written), there were other tonal possibilities outside of the Western school of music. This, of course, was shocking and unthinkable to musical bigots (like Saint-Saens, who called Debussy's work "the end of music as we know it", and like those who look with disdain on any filtering of "popular" or "folk" musics into the ivory tower in which they feel REAL music must be written). Something to think about... -- "So, it was all a dream!" --Mr. Pither "No, dear, this is the dream; you're still in the cell." --his mother Rich Rosen pyuxn!rlr