Music Appreciation Exam 5 -- Romantic Era

Lied

A German-texted solo song with piano accompaniment.

Song cycle

A group of Lieder unified by a narrative thread of common theme.

Through-composed

A song form where the music changes throughout instead of repeating sections.

Program music

Instrumental music with literary or pictorial associations

Character piece

A short piano work that projects a mood or atmosphere

Rubato

A technique of flexible tempo in which performers speed up and slow down for expressive purposes.

Popular music

Music that is widely accessible and commercially successful.

Idée fixe

A recurring theme representing a specific idea or person, used in Berlioz’s Symphonie fantastique.

Dies irae

A famous medieval chant used in many works to symbolize death or judgment.

Orchestration

The technique of assigning instruments to different parts of a composition.

Cultivated music traditon

Classical or “high art” music brought to America by European immigrants.

Bel canto

A style of Italian opera emphasizing beautiful, lyrical vocal lines.

Singspiel

A German opera with spoken dialogue and comedic elements.

Leitmotif

A recurring musical theme associated with a character, idea, or emotion, used in Wagner’s operas.

Gesamtkunstwek

Wagner’s concept of a “total artwork,” blending music, drama, and visual elements.

Beginning and ending years of the Romantic period

1820-1900

What helped shape the new social order of the 19th century?

The Industrial Revolution and the French Revolution, which transferred power to the middle class.

Where was concert life centered in the 19th century?

Public concert halls

How did the orchestras of the 19th century change?

They became larger, more instruments were added, and dymanics were expanded.

Characteristics of Romantic style music

Expressive melodies, expanded forms, chromatic harmony, increased dynamics, and more programmatic elements.

Pianist who developed the modern style of piano playing

Frédéric Chopin

Who was Frederic Chopin and why is he important?

A Polish composer and virtuoso pianist who originated the modern piano style and wrote expressive works like nocturnes, polonaises, and mazurkas.

Did nationalism create an interest in folklore and folk music?

Yes, composers incorporated folk melodies and themes into their music.

Two composers of the 19th-century Lieder

Franz Schubert and Robert Schumann

Was the piano recital created in the Romantic era?

Yes, performers like Liszt helped popularize the solo piano recital.

How did the instrumentation of the orchestra change from Classical to Romantic?

More instruments were added, including expanded brass and woodwinds, and the string section grew in size.

Which instrument’s popularity assisted sheet music publication and provided a socially acceptable performance outlet for women?

The piano

Who was Fanny Mendelssohn Hensel? Clara Wieck Schumann?

Fanny Mendelssohn Hensel was a composer and pianist who wrote The Year, a piano cycle. Clara Wieck Schumann was a virtuoso pianist, composer, and the wife of Robert Schumann.

Early 19th-century American musical culture

European immigrants brought classical traditions, but American music also had a strong vernacular tradition with popular songs, dances, and parlor music.

Types of tunes Stephen Foster was known for

Minstrel songs and parlor songs like Oh! Susanna and Camptown Races.

Parlor songs are a blend of what two traditions?

European art music and America folk/popular music.

Types of musicians who could play parlor songs

Amateurs, particularly middle-class women in their homes.

How many number of movements does Symphonie Fantastique have?

Five distinct movements.

What story does Symphonie Fantastique tell and who is it connected to?

It tells the story of Berlioz’s obsession with an actress, Harriet Smithson, and follows a dream-like journey from passion to a nightmarish finale. (Shakespeare)

What instruments were used in Symphonie Fantastique for the first time?

Piccolo, 2 ophicleides, and 2 harps

Influences on the artistic world

Nationalism, exoticism, and new artistic movements like Impressionism and Symbolism.

Most important figure in the artistic world in the later 19th century

Richard Wagner

Characteristics of serious opera

Intense emotions, elaborate orchestration, and grand productions.

Names and characteristics of comic opera

Singspiel (German, with spoken dialogue), Opera comique (French, with spoken dialogue), and Operetta (lighter, humorous operas)

Reception of The Ring Cycle

Controversial but ultimately influential, seen as a powerful work of German nationalism

Elements found in Wagner’s operas

Leitmotifs, Gasmtkunstwerk, expanded orchestration, and mythological themes.

Why were Wagner’s operas considered nationalistic?

They were based on Germanic myths and had themes of German idendity.

Term describing Wagner’s harmonic language?

Chromaticism

Who is Rossini and why are his operas important?

An Italian opera composer known for The Barber of Seville and William Tell, which helped establish bel canto opera.

Instrumentation of Brahms’ Symphony No. 3

The symphony is scored for two flutes, two oboes, two clarinets in Bb and A, two bassoons, a contrabassoon, two horns in C, two horns in F, two trumpets in F, three trombones, timpani, and strings.

Woodwind instruments invented in the 1840s that never found a permanent place in the orchestra?

The saxophone.

Franz Schubert Elfking

Lied

Frederic Chopin Etude, Op. 10, No. 12 (“Revolutionary”)

Solo Piano Music (Etude)

Fanny Hensel September: At the River from The Year

Character Piece (Solo Piano)

Hector Berloiz Symphonie fantastique, IV & V

Program Symphony

Stephen Foster Jeanie with the Light Brown Hair

Parlor Song

Joannes Brahms Symphony No. 3 in F Major, III

Symphony

Giuseppe Verdi Rigoletto, Act III excerpts

Opera

Richard Wagner Die Walkure, Act III Opening and Finale

Music Drama