Charles Ives, A Uniqe Voice In American Music
“Music is life!”
These were the inspiring words of Charles Ives, one of America’s most prominent composers. For Ives, music was not merely a matter of sound, but the underlying spirit that the sounds conveyed. He believed that even if the performance and vocals were lacking in expertise, the true essence of the music would still be present.
Ives was a complex and paradoxical figure, embodying a unique blend of realism, humor, transcendence, simplicity, complexity, Americanism, and Europeanism all at once. His music, although seemingly overwhelming and crowded at times, was a true representation of his perspective on life, democracy in action, and all-encompassing consciousness.
Many classical musicians tend to assume that great composers like Beethoven, Brahms, and Ives always create music in their own distinct style. However, the truth is that every artist has to commence on a journey of self-discovery to find their unique voice and characterize themselves from their influences. Discovering your identity as an artist involves understanding who you are, what you want to say, and why you create art in the first place. So, next time you listen to a classical masterpiece, remember that the composer went on an artistic journey to create something extraordinary.
His career and dedication to music began in the small town of Danbury, Connecticut, on October, 1874. First he started playing drums in his father’s band at young age. Ives was heavily influenced by his father’s deviation from musical norms, which is reflected in his own historical style. He studied with Horatio Parker at Yale from 1894 to 1898 and his First Symphony (1989) truly showcased his talent for composing, revealing hints of a promising future as a traditional composer.
- “Ives’s life is as diverse and colorful as the often mosaic-like character of his music”
Ives had an exceptional musical memory. He remembered everything he heard, from church hymns to Brahms, Beethoven, and even the sounds of nature. He also absorbed the music he heard at revival meetings, military marches, ragtime, and anything else that could be called music. Later, Ives transformed these various musical influences into the thematic material he used for his complex and original compositions.
Later, however, he worked in the insurance business, and composition became a weekend activity. After completing his studies at Yale, he went on to compose three additional symphonies, numerous other orchestral works, violin sonatas, and two remarkable piano sonatas over the next two decades. Ironically, his compositions remained unheard until his retirement from both music and business in 1930, due to his health issues.
Ives was pictured American life that captured the spiritual essence of it all. He loved to celebrate worship, laughter, and the music of the ages that could be found in the smallest things, places, and people. He mixed his experimental side with larger forms. This is when he created his most significant works, like Piano Sonata No. 2, Concord, and Symphony No. 4. But, he also went back to the old European genres and did it his own way because he needed them to fulfill his biggest dreams.
- The Symphony No. 4 is considered to be Ives’s greatest completed work. It is a bold piece of music with a universal theme and grand execution. The symphony takes the listener through a journey from the worldly to the sublime. The piece begins with a heroic bass proclamation, followed by a gentle distant choir of strings and harp intoning the hymn. It serves as both the symbolic foundation and destination of the symphony.
In 1947, he won the Pulitzer Prize for Symphony No.3, which gained international recognition. Soon after, prominent conductors like Leonard Bernstein championed his works. Although Ives’s music was met with indifference and even hostility from audiences, critics, and fellow composers, his reputation continued to soar steadily and gradually throughout his lifetime. At the time of his death in 1954, he had risen from obscurity to become one of the most eminent performers and musical institutions in the world. Through his music, Ives followed the breadth of his vision of the human experience and created something genuinely original and innovative.
