CHAPTER 67
Neo-Romantic Evocations: Higdon and
Program Music into the Twenty-First Century
MULTIPLE CHOICE
1. The postmodern approach that mixes styles from the nineteenth century with contemporary ones is called
a. minimalism. c. post-Romanticism.
b. post-minimalism. d. neo-Romanticism.
2. What are Jennifer Higdon’s musical goals?
a. exploring new ways to expand and renew concert music for the twenty-first century
b. modernizing the nineteenth-century orchestral tradition
c. continuing to incorporate influences of non-Western cultures
d. All answers shown here.
3. Which American composer is associated with neo-Romanticism?
a. Aaron Copland c. Samuel Barber
b. George Crumb d. John Cage
4. Which of the following characterizes neo-Romanticism?
a. It incorporates the complexities of postmodernism.
b. It reclaims the language of nineteenth-century music.
c. It looks to the past with respect and nostalgia.
d. All answers shown here.
5. Where was Jennifer Higdon born?
a. Brooklyn, New York c. Bowling Green, Ohio
b. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania d. Los Angeles, California
6. Which of the following best describes Higdon’s treatment of harmony?
a. She avoids triads. c. Her music is rooted in tonality.
b. Her music is highly dissonant. d. Her music lacks tonal centers.
7. Who is one of the MOST widely performed of living American composers?
a. Jennifer Higdon c. Aaron Copland
b. John Adams d. Hilary Hahn
8. Higdon chose the title blue cathedral as a tribute to
a. gospel singers. c. a minimalist church in New York.
b. the French painter Matisse. d. her brother.
9. Higdon’s blue cathedral is a
a. tone poem. c. concerto.
b. song cycle. d. film score.
10. Higdon’s blue cathedral was written for a performance by a(n)
a. gospel choir. c. full symphony orchestra.
b. a cappella choir. d. small chamber orchestra.
11. Post-Romanticism mixes contemporary styles with ones from the
a. nineteenth century. c. twentieth century.
b. eighteenth century. d. Renaissance.
12. Adagio for Strings, an elegiac and well-loved work, was written by
a. Aaron Copland. c. Samuel Barber.
b. Jennifer Higdon. d. John Adams.
13. With whom did Jennifer Higdon study composition at the University of Pennsylvania?
a. Aaron Copland c. Hilary Hahn
b. George Crumb d. Nadia Boulanger
14. Listening to which group helped Jennifer Higdon realize music’s ability to communicate?
a. Chuck Berry c. the Supremes
b. the Rolling Stones d. the Beatles
15. Jennifer Higdon was awarded the ________ in 2010 for her Violin Concerto.
a. Nobel Prize c. Pulitzer Prize
b. Gershwin Prize d. Grammy for Best New Album
16. Jennifer Higdon composed her Violin Concerto for
a. Yo-Yo Ma. c. Mark O’Connor.
b. Hilary Hahn. d. Itzhak Perlman.
17. Jennifer Higdon currently teaches composition at
a. the University of Pennsylvania. c. the Curtis Institute of Music.
b. Bowling Green State University. d. the Julliard School of Music.
18. Blue cathedral opens with bell-like timbres, known as
a. tintinnabulation. c. flutter tonguing.
b. shimmers. d. slurs.
19. What does tintinnabulation mean?
a. a tinny sound c. a thin, wild mercury sound
b. bell-like timbres d. flute-like timbres
20. What instrument does Higdon borrow from Asian soundscapes and use in blue cathedral?
a. pitched crystal glasses c. pipa
b. Chinese reflex balls d. shakuhaci
21. In blue cathedral Higdon creates an intimate dialogue using which two instruments?
a. flute and pitched crystal glasses c. flute and clarinet
b. clarinet and Chinese reflex balls d. flute and oboe
22. In blue cathedral, what instrument represents Higdon’s brother?
a. flute c. pitched crystal glasses
b. clarinet d. Chinese reflex balls
23. In blue cathedral, what instrument represents the composer?
a. flute c. pitched crystal glasses
b. clarinet d. Chinese reflex balls
24. Who composed the orchestral tone poem blue cathedral?
a. Jennifer Higdon c. Aaron Copland
b. Andrew Blue Higdon d. George Crumb
25. Which work by Jennifer Higdon includes a subtext of personal grief over the untimely death of the composer’s brother?
a. blue cathedral c. Fanfare Ritmico
b. Amazing Grace d. Southern Grace
1. Program music has continued to be prominent in recent music composition.
2. Neo-Romanticism rejects non-Western influences.
3. The nineteenth-century musical styles disappeared from concert halls during the twentieth century.
4. Samuel Barber’s most celebrated composition is Adagio for Strings.
5. Neo-Romanticism absorbed some of the complexities of modernism.
6. Postmodernism emphasized the new and rejected the past.
7. Jennifer Higdon’s performance background is as a flutist.
8. Jennifer Higdon’s blue cathedral contains major triads but no strong sense of a key center.
9. There are no non-Western influences in Jennifer Higdon’s blue cathedral.
10. Higdon’s blue cathedral has a rondo-like structure.
11. Higdon’s blue cathedral was written in response to the untimely death of the composer’s mother.
12. Higdon’s blue cathedral includes the use of pitched crystal glasses.
13. Jennifer Higdon’s music is rarely performed in concert.
14. Jennifer Higdon studied composition with George Crumb at Bowling Green State University.
15. Jennifer Higdon is an American-born composer.
1. Describe the musical characteristics of neo-Romanticism.
2. Discuss how Jennifer Higdon creates a Romantic character within a modern musical style. Include examples from the textbook in your
answer.
3. Discuss the programmatic elements of Higdon’s blue cathedral.
4. Discuss Higdon’s blending of Western and non-Western elements in blue cathedral.