J. Peter Burkholder

Stylistic Heterogeneity and Topics in the Music of Charles Ives

Juxtaposing disparate styles is a defining characteristic of Ivess music. Analyzing “The Alcotts” from the Concord Sonata, Larry Starr showed how styles ranging from diatonic tonality to three distinct post-tonal styles delineate the form, and argued that Ives was exceptional in embracing “stylistic heterogeneity” as a basic principle. Yet Ivess practice fits well in the tradition of musical topics described by Leonard Ratner and others, especially the coordination of contrasting styles to provide variety and articulate the form. A topical approach also reveals how using styles that carry particular associations creates expressivity and meaning. Ives uses as topics numerous traditional styles, beginning in his early tonal music, as well as modernist stylizations of familiar styles. Understanding Ivess stylistic heterogeneity as the use of topics allows a deeper and more comprehensive analysis of “The Alcotts” and other works and links his practice to that of past composers such as Mozart.

All Made of Tunes: Charles Ives and the Uses of Musical Borrowing@@@Charles Ives and the Classical Tradition

Ives uses of existing music emulating models and learning musical styles the art of paraphrase modeling and paraphrase in the First and Second Symphonies cumulative settings the development and significance of cumulative settings modelling and stylistic allusion to evoke a style orgenre patchwork and extended paraphrase programmatic quotation quodlibet and collage the significance of Ives uses of existing music.