20th-century classical music

Imagine you are in a big room with lots of people. Some people start talking at the same time and it sounds chaotic, right? That's what music was like before the 20th century - lots of people playing different notes at the same time without much thought about how it sounded overall.

Then, in the 20th century, some musicians decided to try something different. They wanted to make music that was more organized and had a specific message or feeling. They started using new instruments, like the piano and the saxophone, and new techniques like using silence and dissonance (which means playing notes that don't usually sound good together).

These musicians also tried to use their music to say something about the world around them. Some wrote music about war and political unrest, while others wrote music that was more abstract and meant to make people think and feel deeply.

This kind of music was a big change from what had come before, and not everyone liked it at first. But over time, people began to appreciate the creativity and emotion that went into this kind of music. And today, we still hear echoes of 20th-century classical music in the popular music we listen to, like jazz and rock.