Kurt Atterberg’s Symphony No. 8

Swedish composer Kurt Atterberg’s work is nationalist, late-Romantic expression. Though his primary career was in the field of civil government, he spent as much time with music as he could. One might correlate Atterberg’s life with that of the famous Russian nationalist composer Alexander Borodin, who was a chemist by trade. Atterberg was a native

María Teresa Prieto’s Symphony No. 1 “Asturiana”

20th centurySpanish composer María Teresa Prieto’s music is hardly known anywhere. She was displaced from her native Spain to Mexico due to The Spanish Civil War. Her first symphony refers to her home region of Spain, Asturias, and contains folk music from there. The first movement begins somberly, evoking thoughts of distant beauty. This mood

Arturo Márquez’ Danzón No. 4

Mexican composer Arturo Márquez explained his early influences this way: “My adolescence was spent listening to Javier Solis, sounds of mariachi, the Beatles, Doors, Carlos Santana and Chopin.” About 1988, Márquez began developing his musical style to reflect particularly the folk music he had heard. The genre of dance music called the Danzón drew his

“Sinfonia India” (Symphony No. 2) by Carlos Chávez

20th century Mexican composer Carlos Chávez composed six symphonies. In No. 2, “Sinfonia India,” Chávez used pre-Cortesian melodies from three native people groups: the Huichol of the state of Nayarit, the Yaqui of the state of Sonora, and the Seri of Sonora. The piece is a delight. First, one may want to get up and

Zoltán Kodály’s Symphony in C Major

Hungarian composer, Zoltán Kodály,wrote several wonderful folk song-inspired works. Kodály and his friend, Béla Bartók, published a comprehensive critical edition of Hungarian folk songs in 1951. Kodály is also known for his contributions to music education. He wrote books on the topic, composed educational music, and constructed a list of principles for music education referred

Aram Khachaturian’s Symphony No. 1

Aram Khachaturian is a famous Armenian composer from the 20th century. His most popular work is likely “Sabre Dance” from his ballet, “Gayane.” All of Khachaturian’s mature works reveal the composer’s appreciation for folk music: not only the folk traditions of his native Armenia, but also from Georgia, Russia, Turkey and Azerbaijan. Khachaturian’s first symphony

Florence Price’s Symphony No. 4

Florence Price was the first African American woman to have a work performed by a major American orchestra (Symphony No. 1 in E minor, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, 1933). Price’s music is full of lyricism and syncopation, influenced by Negro spirituals and vernacular dances. Along with all the composers sharing her heritage, she is hardly well-known

“The Homing Fish” by Yew Tien Phoon

Phoon Yew Tien is a well-known composer in his home country of Singapore. His music draws on traditional Chinese and Western classical sources. Phoon has also enjoyed popular music, considering that the only characteristic of a piece of music to be judged is whether it is good or bad, not assuming classical is higher level

“Ollantay” by Alberto Ginastera

Alberto Ginastera is a famous Argentinian composer from the 20th century. His music is full of excitement! He uses the orchestra to its full potential of power. Rhythmic emphasis, dissonant harmony, and influence of Argentinian folk music also characterize his style. His output contained little purely symphonic music but “Ollantay” is one example. The music

Daniel Crozier’s Symphony No. 1 “Triptych for Orchestra”

Contemporary American composer Daniel Crozier lives in Winter Park, Florida, where he teaches at Rollins College as Professor of Theory and Composition. According to New Music USA’s online bio of the composer, the New York Times and Wall Street Journal have described Crozier’s music as “harmonically lush and lyrically soaring,” and “abstract elegance, structural coherence,