Transcript Music in the Romantic Era

Music in the Romantic
Era
1825-1900
***adapted from Raleigh Charter High School
Ludwig Von Beethoven
1770-1827
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Crucial figure in the transition from Classical to Romantic
Romantic period began around 1815. Works from this period are
characterized by their intellectual depth, their formal
innovations, and their intense, highly personal expression. For
example, the String Quartet, Opus 131 has seven linked
movements, and the Ninth Symphony adds choral forces to the
orchestra in the last movement.
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French Revolution Ideals: Liberté, Egalité,
Fraternité
Romantic times stressed: Individuality,
Emotion, Imagination
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Importance of nature. Romantics
idealized nature in both visual art and
music for its power, beauty and
unpredictability
Social and Political Influences
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Industrialism
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Occurred first in Britain
Power shifted from aristocratic landowners to middle class
city dwellers.
Populations moved from an agrarian center to an urban
center.
Inventions
Nationalism and the Spread of
Democracy
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One of the most meaningful and definitive forces in the
19th century
Throughout Europe people began to promote their
own national identities and resist outside authority.
This push for national identity created new countries
(unification of Italy, formation of German empire,
United States).
The principles and practices of democracy were on the
rise.
Napoleon Bonaparte
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After the defeat of Napoleon in 1815, the monarchy was
restored in France and the old aristocratic order returned.
Revolutionary fervor and optimism gave way to disbelief and
dissatisfaction and romanticism to a more realistic view of the
world.
People yearned for reform and a new society.
The Arts in the Romantic
Period
– Stressed Individualism and Emotion
– Breaking away from rules and
convention
– Glorification of Nature
– Nostalgia
– The Macabre and the supernatural
– Exotic Influences
– Realism
Literature and Writing
Friedrich von Schiller (1759-1805)
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832)
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Romanticism was born towards the end of the 18th century with the works of these two great
German writers. Goethe wrote poetry, novels and plays; Schiller was a playwright. Both of their
writings were used to express romantic fascination with emotion, life and death, sin and
redemption, guilt and selflessness.
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Victor Hugo (1802-1885)
French poet, playwright, novelist, essayist, visual
artist, statesman, human rights activist
 Explored the Romantic theme of conflict between
the individual and society
 Les Miserables, 1862
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Charles Dickens (1812-1870)
English novelist and social campaigner
 Novels are works of social commentary
 Fierce critic of poverty and social stratification
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Karl Marx (1818-1883)
German philosopher and economist
 The ideas of Marx, while most influential in the 20th century , said that the
history of society is one of struggle between the ruling class (capitalists) and
the working class (proletariat) who are being exploited.
 He predicted a revolution.
He believed in a society in which all people give according to their means and
take according to their needs.”
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 Charles Darwin (1809-1882)
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In On the Origin of Species, Darwin argued that all species of life on
earth, whether human, animal or plant, were the result of what he called
“natural selection”.
He coined the phrase “survival of the fittest” to explain why some species
continue to exist while others die out. He believed that man was simply
the end of a long chain of organisms that stretched back to the first forms
of life.
This theory challenged not only religion but also had social repercussions.
Visual Art
Architecture
Sculpture
Painting
Architecture
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The Romantic period did not produce its own distinguishing architectural
style. Instead architects chose from the building styles of the previous eras
resulting in an eclectic style
House of Parliament, London, Gothic Revival
Royal Pavilion, Brighton, England, Eastern culture
The British Museum, Greek Revival
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Opera Garnier, Paris, Neo-Baroque
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A few buildings erected during the period
showed how the Industrial Revolution had
affected architecture.
Crystal Palace, London, made for World’s Fair 1851
Tour Eiffel, Paris
Sculpture
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Francois Rude (1784-1855)
Arc de Triomphe
“Departure of the Volunteers”
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Auguste Rodin (1840-1917)
The Burghers of Calais
The Thinker
Painting
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Eugene Delacroix (1798-1863)
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Leader of the Romantic movement, represented
social concerns
Liberty Leading the People, 1831
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Camille Corot (1796-1875)
View Near Volerra, 1838
Art Song and Song Cycle
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Lieder, chansons, art songs
Compositions for solo voice and piano
Poetry and music are intimately fused
Typical forms used: strophic and throughcomposed
Franz Schubert (1787-1828)
Austrian composer
Prolific and gifted composer who wrote
600 lieder, piano sonatas, character
pieces, 15 string quartets,
9 symphonies
Erlkönig (1815)
poem by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Through-composed form
Clara Wieck Schumann (1819-1896)
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German composer and pianist
Married Robert Schumann and
premiered many of his piano
compositions
Composed a piano concerto, piano trio,
solo piano pieces and songs
Romance
Robert Schumann (1810-1856)
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German Composer
Married to Clara Weick Schumann
Music Critic & Co-Founder of “New
Journal for Music”
Suffered from Mental Illness
Album for the Young
Scenes from Childhood
Carnaval
Fantasiestuck
Music
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Musical Milieu
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Public and Subscription Concerts
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Founding of Conservatories
Composer
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Composers gradually left the patronage system and became free
agents of their own works.
This meant that the composer, their music and their livelihood
depended on the public’s approval.
For the first time, a composer’s work might not be publicly
performed during his or her lifetime.
Romantics saw themselves as outsiders, isolated from
mainstream society, struggling to express their creative ideas.
In general, composers held higher social status than in the
Classical period.
Performer
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Rise of virtuosic performers
the public was captured by virtuosity and
showmanship
Niccolo Paganini
Franz Liszt
Franz Liszt (1811-1886)
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Hungarian composer and virtuosic pianist
Showman
Daughter married Wagner
Innovative composer both harmonically and
formally.
Used complex and unusual chords
Created the symphonic poem and utilized
thematic transformation (influenced Wagner)
Composed two symphonies, symphonic poems,
piano music, orchestral and operatic
transcriptions
Transcendental Etude No. 10 in F Minor, 1851
Frédéric Chopin (1810-1849)
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Polish composer and pianist
Lived in Paris for most of his life
Associated with George Sand (Aurore
Dudevant)
The only major composer to have completely
oriented his creative life around the piano.
Piano compositions are generally dances or
free-form works (preludes, etudes, nocturnes
and impromptus).
Nocturne in E-Flat Major, Op. 9, No. 2, 18301831
Night piece
Conductor
Resulted from the orchestras growth in numbers and complexity
Became necessary to have one person to lead and control the orchestra
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Musical Elements
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Melody
Age of lyricism – unending melody
 Melodies appealed to the emotions
 Phrases tended to be longer and irregular in length
 Themes were more complex and utilized
chromaticism
 Advent of theme transformation (Berlioz, Wagner)
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Harmony
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Basically tonal
By end of the 19th century chromaticism
(movement by half steps) stretched tonality to
the breaking point
Chromaticism imbued greater dissonance and
tension into the sound
Rhythm
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Metric
Rhythmic effects were used for “color” – rubato
Articulations in the instruments tended to be heavy and
intense
A new vocabulary of music terms arose that indicated
how to achieve the composer’s desired sound –
cantabile, dolce, con amore, allegro agitato. These
designations produced a more emotional sound and
response.
Texture
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Essentially homophonic
The sonority tended to be thick, heavy and lush
Timbre/Instrumentation
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This period saw a full exploration of the instrumental families.
Instruments were used for both their individual and collective
color potential.
Instrumental timbre was used to convey mood and atmosphere.
The orchestra became much larger – from 70 players to more
than 100 (resulting in the necessity of a conductor).
Instruments could play louder and carry farther.
Instruments were capable of major changes in dynamics.
Strings
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String sections increased in size and
were given more difficult
accompaniment parts (scales,
arpeggios)
Woodwinds
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Development of new instruments
saxophone (baritone and tuba) were invented by
Adolf Sax
 piccolo, bass clarinet and English horn were added.
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Important improvements in wind instruments
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“Boehm system” of fingering for flutes and clarinets
achieved better facility and intonation for the
performer and greater musical range
English Horn
Piccolo
Saxophone
Bass Clarinet
Brass
•Addition of valves and improvement to valves on brass instruments allowed
the playing of a full chromatic compass for the first time and to more easily
play quick runs of notes
•Tubas and Trombones were added
Percussion
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Expanded to include bass drum, snare drum,
cymbals and other exotic percussion instruments
(gong, castanets)
Instrumental Music
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Absolute music tended to reflect the Classical heritage of Mozart and Haydn; it tended
to be more traditional in compositional style and instrumentation
Symphony, concerto, sonata, string quartet
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Program music was compositionally guided by a story, poem, idea or scene; it tended
to be more progressive in compositional style and instrumentation
Program symphony, Tone poem, Symphonic poem
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Character Pieces
In contrast to the large instrumental genres, these were smaller pieces typically
for piano called character pieces
Dynamics
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Gradual
Much wider range – extremes of dynamic
variation
Used extensively throughout the compositions
Form
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Stretching of the classical forms:
sonata-allegro
rondo
theme and variation
minuet and trio
Composers
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Traditionalists
Tended to compose in the style of their teachers
(classical era). While extending the elements of
music, they rarely went outside of the norms.
 Composer Examples: Brahms, Tchaikovsky
Schumann, Mendelssohn, Franck, Schubert, Chopin,
Mussorgsky, Rimsky-Korsakov, Puccini, Fanny
Mendelssohn Hensel, Clara Schumann
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Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)
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German composer – 4 symphonies, violin
concerto, string quartets, 200 lieder, German
Requiem
Befriended by the Schumann family
Classicist in the Romantic period – often
criticized for being “out of step” with the music
of his time.
Avoided newly invented forms (program
symphony, tone poem)
Preferred to say new things within traditional
forms
Symphony No. 4 in E minor, 1885
4th movement
Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847)
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German composer of symphonies, concerti,
oratorios, piano music, and chamber music
Also known as a pianist and conductor
Revived interest in the works of J.S. Bach with his
production of the St. Matthew’s Passion
Founder of Leipzig Conservatory
Conservative musical tastes
Critical of contemporaries said of Liszt that his
works were "inferior to his playing, and [..] only
calculated for virtuosos"
A Mid-Summer Night’s Dream
Elijah
Fanny Mendelssohn Hensel
(1805-1847)
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German pianist and composer
Sister of Felix Mendelssohn
Career limited by prevailing attitudes of the time
towards women
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Her father wrote to her in 1820 "Music will
perhaps become his [i.e. Felix's] profession, while
for you it can and must be only an ornament“
460 compositions including piano trios,
songs, & solo piano pieces
A number of her works were published under
Felix’s name
Songs Without Words
Das Jahr (“The Year”)
Johann Strauss II
(1825-1899)
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Austrian composer of light dance music and
operettas
Over 500 waltzes, polkas, & other dances
“The Waltz King”
Son of famed Johann Strauss I
Toured the US in 1870s
The Blue Danube Waltz
Die Fledermaus (The Bat)
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Progressives
Tended to extend the boundaries of traditional
sound and scope in their compositions. They
utilized new instrumental techniques and color.
They used increasingly more chromaticism.
 Composer Examples: Wagner, Liszt, Berlioz and
Verdi
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Hector Berlioz (1803-1869)
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French composer of programmatic works.
Most of his works call for huge instrumental
and vocal forces
Very influential in his techniques and writing
about orchestration
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Symphonie fantastique, 1830
Program symphony in five movements
Uses idée fixe – thematic transformation
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Fourth Movement: March to the Scaffold
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Symphonie Fantastique
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Program music – tells the story of an artist who has poisoned
himself with opium
5 Movements
 Reveries -Passions – Falls in love w/the girl, introduces Idee
Fixe
 A Ball – Festive party in the countryside – haunted by girl
 Scene in the Fields – reflections - mingling of hope & fear
 March to the Scaffold – in an opium-induced sleep, dreams
that he killed his lover & is beheaded
 Dream of the Night of the Sabbath – witches’ Sabbath – his
lover participates and celebrates his death
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Nationalists
Following the many wars and conflicts of the 19th
century country boundaries in Europe became more
defined. Nationalistic music (music that highlighted
folksongs, dances, folklore) abounded. Most
nationalistic music followed a more traditional
pattern of composition and sound. Many
composers utilized nationalistic melodies, dances
and stories.
 Composer Examples: Smetana, Mussorgsky,
Rimsky-Korsakov, Wagner, Chopin, Verdi, Puccini,
Liszt
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Modest Mussorgsky (1839-1881)
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Russian composer
One of the Russian Five: Mily Balakirev, Cesar Cui,
Alexander Borodin, Nikolai Rimsky-Karsaov
Modest Mussorgsky
Utilized Russian folksongs – often based on church
modes, irregular in meter
Pictures at an Exhibition, 1874
Originally a cycle of piano pieces inspired by
pictures in a memorial exhibition honoring
Mussorgsky’s recently deceased friend, the Russian
architect and artist Victor Hartmann.
10 pieces with descriptive titles
This work is best known in its orchestrated version
by Maurice Ravel (1922)
Great Gate of Kiev
Pyotr Illyich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893)
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Russian composer & music critic
Originally trained as a Civil Servant & later educated
at the Russian Musical Society (RMS) – a precursor
to the St. Petersburg Conservatory
Composed symphonies, operas, concerti, ballets,
and other orchestral and piano pieces
Utilized repetition of themes/rhythmic patters &
unusual meters
The Nutcracker Suite
Swan Lake
Sleeping Beauty
1812 Overture
1812 Overture
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Written in 1880 to commemorate the Russian defense of their
homeland against Napoleon in 1812
Used today for many patriotic celebrations
Score calls for 5 cannons
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Listening Guide:
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O Lord, Save Thy People – somber prayers
At the Gate, at my Gate – Russian Folk Dance
La Marseillaise (French National Anthem) coupled with God Save the Tsar!
(Russian National Anthem) = battle scene
Cannon shots & church bells signal Russian victory
Bedřich Smetana (1824-1884)
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Bohemian (Czech Republic) composer of
opera and symphonic poems, pianist and
conductor
Founder of the Czech national music
Music steeped in folk songs dances and
legends of Bohemia
The Moldau, 1874
Part of Ma Vlast, a cycle of symphonic
poems
Vocal Genres
Opera
 Music Drama
 Mass and Requiem
 Art Song
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Giuseppe Verdi (1813-1901)
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Italian composer of 15 operas, a
Requiem, a string quartet
His music became a symbol of the
Italian liberation movement
(struggle against Austrian
domination)
Rigoletto, 1851
Act III – La donna è mobile
Giacomo Puccini (1858-1924)
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Italian opera composer
Unlike Verdi and Wagner – did not
involve himself in politics
Known for his beautiful lyricism
(critics often cite a “popular” lesscrafted style of composition)
La Bohème 1896
Act I: Rodolfo and Mimi arias
Richard Wagner (1813-1883)
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German composer for the stage – music dramas
Rejecting Italian opera, Wagner worked out a theory about
combining poetry, music, philosophy and drama into one
“complete art work” – music drama.
He had complete control of every aspect of these music
dramas – music, libretto, staging, costumes
Incorporated German folktales and legends
Used “leitmotifs” – thematic transformation
Extreme use of chromaticism
Die Walküre (The Valkyrie), 1856
The second of the four music dramas in Der Ring des Nibelungen
Wagner uses Nordic mythology to warn that society destroys
itself through lust for money and power.
Act I, Love Scene