After the Second World War, there emerged a new generation of composers, who sought to stretch the boundaries of music history, and find new and exciting styles and forms. Browse our sheet music and scores, take a look at our Modern Classical Music, and explore the wide world of contemporary music with Stretta Music today!
Dodecaphony or Serialism is the use of the twelve semi-tones as the harmonic and structural basis, rather than the traditional harmonic key structure which governed classical music until the turn of the twentieth century. Arnold Schoenberg was the father of twelve-tone composition in the 1930s. Moving into the post-war era, all dodecaphonic or serial musical parameters, including note lengths, dynamics and even timbres were set in rows. After 1948, the Darmstadt “holiday courses” became the centre of Dodecaphony or Serialism for almost a decade. Despite the mathematical and logical basis, twelve-tone composition still produced many highly emotional works such as Luigi Nono’s Il Canto sospeso.
As the technical and electronic possibilities continued to grow and thrive after the war, the first studio solely dedicated to electronic music was founded in Cologne in 1951 by Herbert Eimert. Important electronic music composers were Edgar Varese, Karlheinz Stockhausen, Ernst Krenek, Maurice Kagel, Luciano Berio and Iannis Xenakis, who was also an assistant to the architect Le Corbusier.
Aleatoric comes from the Latin “alea”, meaning dice. Aleatoric composition leaves elements of the music to chance. The American composer John Cage was the first to experiment with aleatoric music, and many others followed, in particular K. Stockhausen, P. Boulez, W. Lutosławski.
Soundscape composition plays with sense and emotion, it uses long drawn musical landscapes to give the listener time to recognise and experience the music in a whole new way. The most important compositions include Atmosphères and Lontano by György Ligeti. Other works of this type were created by Luigi Nono, Krzysztof Penderecki, Iannis Xenakis.
Minimalism also came to Europe from the USA. Minimalism uses repetitive, wide blocks of sound, without strong contrasts or dramatic changes. It is in the repetition, with gradual, small changes, that the minimalist effect is achieved. The pioneers of minimalism in the 1960s were American composers Philip Glass, John Adams, Le Monte Young, Terry Riley and Steve Reich. They were followed in Europe by Henryk Górecki and Arvo Pärt.
for: Chamber ensemble
Study score
Item no.: 1346484
for: INST (1-8)
Item no.: 381867
for: Symphonic orchestra
Study score
Item no.: 374232
for: Voice (soprano), chamber ensemble
Study score
Item no.: 372108
for: 2 violins, viola, cello (string quartet)
Score, Set of parts
Item no.: 243599
for: Accordion orchestra
Set of parts
Item no.: 220255
for: Accordion orchestra
Set of parts
Item no.: 219426
for: Voice (bass), piano
Piano score
Item no.: 294977
for: STR KLAV E-BASS VA
Study score
Item no.: 271721
for: Guitar
Item no.: 269293
(Fortuna Imperatrix Mundi)
for: Concert band
Partitur und Stimmen 1 Piccolo, 8 Flöten, 2 Oboen, 2 Fagotte, 4 Bb Klarinette 1, 4 Bb Klarinette 2, 4 Bb Klarinette 3, 2 Bb Bass-Klarinette, 2 Eb Alt-Saxophon 1, 2 Eb Alt-Saxophon 2, 2 Bb Tenor-Saxophon, 1 Eb Bar
Item no.: 750483
for soprano and piano
for: Voice (soprano), piano
Music score
Item no.: 750475
for solo percussion and strings
for: String orchestra, percussion
Piano reduction, solo part
Item no.: 750427
Supplement 2019
for: Piano
Music score
Item no.: 750340
Edition Schott
for: Violin, cello, piano (piano trio)
Score, Parts
Item no.: 750166
Edition Schott
for: Viola, chamber orchestra
Piano reduction, solo part
Item no.: 750067
arranged for oboe and piano
for: Oboe, piano
Music score
Item no.: 754256
An arrangement of Hermes' Aria 'O Divine Music' from King Priam
for: Flöte, Oboe und Cembalo oder Klavier
Score, Parts
Item no.: 736174
Edition Schott
for: Horn (F), piano
Music score
Item no.: 743419
aus dem Märchen für Musik "Pollicino"
for: Violin, piano
Music score
Item no.: 748535
Edition Schott
for: Voice (baritone/alto), piano
Music score
Item no.: 748366
Edition Schott
for: Organ
Music score
Item no.: 748322
Edition Schott
for: Piano, orchestra
Piano reduction
Item no.: 748296
Edition Schott
for: 2 pianos
Music score
Item no.: 748174
for: Mixed choir (SATB), organ
Choir score
Item no.: 688410
for: Voice (soprano), harp
Ensemble score
Item no.: 685525
for: 2 Soli, gemischter Chor und Orchester
Study score
Item no.: 586222
Study score
Item no.: 586218
for horn in F and piano
for: Horn, piano
Music score
Item no.: 758567
Museumsstücke II
for: bewegliche Stimmen und Instrumente
Ensemble score
Item no.: 758443
for: Piano
Music score
Item no.: 758297
Comic opera in 2 acts after the parable from "The Sheik of Alexandria and his Slaves" by Wilhelm Hauff
Study score
Item no.: 758172
for: Orchestra
Study score (facsimile)
Item no.: 1544579
for: Gesang, Flöte und Orgel
Score, Parts
Item no.: 1544546
for: Sopran-, Alt- und Tenor-Solo, gemischter Chor und Orchester
Item no.: 1544295
Oper in einem Akt
Piano reduction
Item no.: 733977
from the children's opera "Pollicino"
for: 2 guitars
Ensemble score
Item no.: 737129
Suite for cello and piano
for: Cello, piano
Music score
Item no.: 736988
1. Early one morning
for: Mixed choir (SATB) a cappella
Choir score
Item no.: 740078
"Wenn eines Jahres Wirken abgeschlossen"
for: Mixed choir (SATB) a cappella
Choir score
Item no.: 741476
Choreographisches Drama in 4 Aufzügen
for: Solo, Sprecher, Chor und Orchester
Piano reduction
Item no.: 741184
Edition Schott
for: Violin, organ
Music score
Item no.: 739925
for horn and cello
for: Horn und Violoncello
Ensemble score
Item no.: 738958
for: Clarinet, 2 violins, viola, cello
Score, Parts
Item no.: 769407
for: Double bass, string orchestra
Piano Reduction, 3 Parts
Item no.: 781231
for violin solo
for: Violin
Single edition
Item no.: 794328
Edition Schott
for: Voice (soprano), piano
Music score
Item no.: 747989