#24: Red River Valley and folk-modern classical

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Modern classical music has a reputation for atonality, that is, that it lacks the harmonic and melodic core that has shaped Western music for hundreds of years. In this episode we hear three of my very non-atonal piano pieces. They are rooted in a traditional harmonic and motivic system and draw on another tradition of classical music, borrowing from existing folk tunes. Can you figure out what the other two tunes are before I reveal? Listen in and see!

Some links from the episode:

Gene Autry: Red River Valley (youtube)
Pete Seeger: Red River Valley (Spotify)
And my proudest discovery, Papa Bue's Viking Jazz Band on Spotify