ModernismCharles Ives
Charles Ives was born in the United States.
Charles Ives’s life
The big moments of this life, and what was happening in the world at the same time.
A life at a glance
- 1874👶 Birth
Born in Danbury on 20 October; his father leads the town band
- 1875🌍 Meanwhile
The Palais Garnier opera house opens in Paris
- 1888🎩 Careerage 14
Church organist at 14
- 1894📚 Trainingage 20
Studies at Yale University
- 1895🌍 Meanwhile
The Lumière brothers’ first cinema show
- 1899🎩 Careerage 25
Enters the insurance business in New York
- 1906🎼 Workage 32
The Unanswered Question; Central Park in the Dark
- 1908❤️ Private lifeage 34
Marries Harmony Twichell
- 1915🎼 Workage 41
Completes the ‘Concord’ Sonata
- 1922🎼 Workage 48
Publishes 114 Songs at his own expense
- 1927🌍 Meanwhile
First talking picture (The Jazz Singer)
- 1948🌍 Meanwhile
The long-playing record (LP) goes on sale
- 1954🕯️ Deathage 80
Dies in New York on 19 May
Listen to the music
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How does this music feel to you?
Excerpts of up to 90 seconds, freely licensed recordings from Wikimedia Commons.
Once upon a time…
Charles Ives was born in the United States. His dad led the town band and loved experiments: he had two bands come from different directions to hear the music mix!
At fourteen Charles was already a church organist. Then he became… an insurance salesman! His company made him rich, and he composed in the evenings and at weekends, just as he pleased.
His music mixes everything: songs, hymns, bands, different rhythms at the same time, like in real life. In one of his sonatas the pianist has to press the keys with a wooden board!
For a long time nobody played his music. But at the end of his life he won a big prize… and gave the money away!
Charles Ives’s instruments
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