Short Written Assignment: Critical Listening
Guest6666
Lec819thCRomanticism-1.pptxThe 19th Century & Romanticism
1820-1900
The Romantic Period
Romanticism might be defined as a cultural movement stressing emotion, imagination, and individuality. It started in literature around 1800 and then spread to art and music.
Music was diverse and pervasive. Music was a part of everyday life, as middle class children received music education and as concerts became important social events across social strata.
Paris played a prominent role in the period
General Trends in Music
Lyrical melodies, often with wider leaps
Homophonic style still prevalent, but with variation
Larger performing forces using more diverse registers, dynamic ranges, and timbres
More rubato and tempo fluctuation within a composition
More chromatic and dissonant harmonies with increasingly delayed resolutions
Symphonies, string quartets, concertos, operas, and sonata form movements continue to be written
Newly important miniature genres and forms such as the Lied and short piano composition
Program music increasingly prominent
Further development in performers’ virtuosity
No more patronage system.
Franz Schubert (1797-1828)
Along with Beethoven, Schubert is considered one of the first Romantic composers.
Key aspects of Schubert’s style:
Original use of form
Harmonic language
Emotion in his music
Lieder or art-songs
Schubert is best known for his art songs.
music.
“Erlkonig” (King of the Elves)
Composed in 1815 and based upon a poem by Goethe from 1782, the story maintains the legend that the King of the Elves represents death and that anyone who is touched by the Elf King will die. Let’s Listen!
“Erlkonig” (King of the Elves) by Franz Schubert
In his short 31 years, he managed to compose nine symphonies, more than 600 songs, 22 piano sonatas, more than 20 string quartets, several trios for various combinations of instruments, three piano trios, and a few quintets.
Frederic Chopin (1810-1849)
Born in a small Polish town, Chopin was considered a child prodigy and began composing at a young age.
He wrote almost exclusively for the piano and by age 18 had established his own unique style.
It was in the Parisian salons that Chopin's music founds its home, and he became an instant celebrity being nick-named the “poet of the piano.”
Mazurka in F Minor, Op 7 by Frederic Chopin
(the title indicates a stylized dance based on the Polish mazurka)
Programmatic Music
The romantic era gave rise to the establishment of a fascinating genre of music known as programmatic or program music. We heard one piece in the baroque period, Vivaldi’s The Four Season, in which sounds of spring were represented.
Programmatic music depicts or portrays music associated with a story, poem, scene or incident.
Hector Berlioz (1803-1869)
He was considered to be one of the leading conductors and composers of programmatic music of the period.
He was also a well-known and respected music journalist and wrote a famous book, The Treatise on Modern Instrumentation and Orchestration, on the rules and conventions of orchestration.
He is particularly known for his programmatic music.
Symphonie Fantastique
Symphonie Fantastique (Fantastic Symphony) is the ultimate romantic autobiographical program piece. It represents five episodes in the life of a lovesick, obsessed musician who, to top things off, is high on opium throughout the piece. In true Romantic fashion, his love is unrequited; therefore, in a raging fit of jealousy, he kills his beloved.
Video: Symphonie Fantastique Keeping Score
Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893)
Russian composer who was not a true nationalist and at times seemed more intent upon paying homage to the music of the German Classicists than incorporating Russian folk music into his works.
On the whole, his music was full of joy and color. He felt a special affinity for ballet, a dance form that had been popular in Paris since the 18th century.
The Nutcracker Suite (1892)
The ballet is based on the story "The Nutcracker and the King of Mice" written by E.T.A. Hoffman. Although what is seen on the stage today is different in detail from the original story, the basic plot remains the same; The story of a young German girl who dreams of a Nutcracker Prince and a fierce battle against a Mouse King with seven heads.
“Waltz of the Flowers” from The Nutcracker
Video: Discovering Tchaikovsky by the BBC
This Bohemian/Czech composer incorporated nationalist themes, plots, and dances in his opera and symphonic works .
Nationalism is defined as pride is one’s nation or cultural identity, often expressed in art, literature, and music
His best known works are his opera The Bartered Bride and the symphonic tone poem Vltava (The Moldau).
Bedrich Smetana (1824-1884)
Giacomo Puccini (1859-1924)
Italian composer who is considered by many to be one of, if not the, greatest opera composer of all-time
Towards the end of the nineteenth century, a movement towards naturalism and realism took place in Italian literature. Called verismo (realism), it quickly made its way into Italian opera.
His famous opera’s include Madama Butterfly, La Boheme & Tosca
Giuseppe Verdi (1819-1901)
Italian composer who along with Rossini and Puccini were considered the most important opera composers of their day
Living during a time of national revolution, Verdi’s music and name become associated with those fighting for an Italy that would be united under King Emmanuel.
Verdi would prove to be a prolific composer, writing 26 operas in addition to other large-scale choral works
La Traviata (The Fallen Women)
Written in 1853, this opera was based on a play by Alexandre Dumas. Verdi wanted it to be set in the present, but the censors at La Fenice, the opera house in Venice that would premiere the opera, insisted on setting it in the 1700s instead.
What you should know about this composition:
The virtuoso nature of Violetta’s singing
The subtle shifts between recitative and aria, now less pronounced than in earlier opera
Viva, Verdi: BBC Documentary
Antonio Dvorak (1792-1895)
A Bohemian composer who grew up listening to folk music of his native land and moved to Prague at age sixteen to study music in the German classical tradition.
His career ultimately brought him to America, were he served from 1892-1895 as artistic director of the National Conservatory of Music in New York.
Symphony No. 9 in E minor
Dvorak wrote his New World Symphony, Symphony No. 9 in E Minor, during his first year in the United States. One of the best-known of all symphonies, it embodies the American and Bohemian folk spirit. In a letter written while he was composing the symphony, he declared, “I should never have written the symphony like I have, if I hadn’t seen America.”
New World Symphony , Symphony No. 9 (Mvt. 4)
Richard Wagner (1813-1883)
Perhaps no figure in the history of music has demonstrated such a strong sense of nationalism than the German composer Richard Wagner
At age fifteen, he was so moved by Beethoven’s music, he decided to be a composer. In 1839 he moved to Paris to become immersed into the grand opera scene. Unable to catch a break, he moved back to Germany in 1842 and shortly after was appointed the conductor of the Dresden Opera. This post launched Wagner’s career into stardom both a composer and conductor.
Gesamtkunstwerk (total art work)
For Wagner, an opera house was a temple in which the spectator was to be over-whelmed by music and drama. Wagner revolutionized opera by shifting the focus from the singer to the orchestra. He used leitmotifs as short musical ideas associated with a person, object or a thought in his operas. Through these techniques, he established a new compositional concept called music drama, which changed the course of opera in the nineteenth century.
Wagner's vision of the music drama was that of a total art work or Gesamtkunstwerk that would encompass a perfect blend of music, literature, acting, poetry, set design, and architecture.
Wagner’s Music
Let’s listen to two of Wagner most famous operas; the famous “Bridal Chorus” from Lohengrin and “The ride of the Valkyries” from Die Walküre.
“Bridal Chorus” from Lohengrin by Richard Wagner
“The ride of the Valkyries” from The Ring Cycle
Video: Great Composers “Wagner” by the BBC
Video: Wagner
