"Art" Music

[Scarlett]

I want to play my students some extreme examples of music that they won't have heard before- music that was written at the same time as Dada/Surrealism/Expressionism was popular in the Art world. (ie- not pop music). Does anyone have any ideas who I should look at?

[mushroom25]

not knowing a great deal about the "isms" you list other than they centre on the earlier part of the last century, perhaps you could look at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_%27years_in_music%27 and see what was published, premiered or recorded during the years in question.

[gary baldy]

Start with Stockhausen. He was the daddy of avant garde music and he was to later influence people like John Cage and the 'minimalists' like Steve Reich, Terry Reilly and Phillip Glass.
All these composers worked in the second half of the 20th century though so may not fall into time frame.
I can assure you though it will freak your students out no matter what - especially if they are only used to being spoon fed x-factor nonsense and derivative guitar bands.