Introduction to 20th Century Music

Many late 19^th and 20^th century composers looked for alternatives to the chromaticism of late Romantic music. Some classical composers began incorporating pentatonic, modal, and non-traditional scales, while others focused on extreme dissonance. The rise of jazz provided additional possibilities for the classical composer.

In general, classical music of the 20^th century is characterized by an exploration of new sonorities, scales, textures, colors, and rhythms.