1. Define and briefly explain total serialism and minimalism. When and where did they arise? What were the aims and motivations of composers in both styles?
2. Take Stockhausen's Klavierstuck IX and Steve Reich's Piano Phase as representatives of these styles and briefly discuss how they exemplify these widely differing aesthetics. What makes Klavierstuck IX a serialist work? What makes Piano Phase minimalist?
3. Present your own take on this issue. Do you side with one camp or the other? Should music strive for radical levels of complexity or simplicity, or have both sides gone too far in opposite directions?