MUS100 Exam Content: Romantic (nineteenth century)

Ludwig Van Beethoven

• formation of the 19th century ideology

• had 3 periods in his life:

  • First period: adopting stylistic elements, relying on the classical style

  • Second ‘heroic’ period: deeply dramatic, rich, heroic narratives

  • Third ‘last’ period: music becomes very introspective

Heiligenstadt Testament 

• Written by Beethoven

• intended for his brothers

• describes his struggles with losing his hearing

• wanting to kill himself

• only published after he died

Romanticism

• a reaction to the Enlightenment and classicism

• more expressive and colourful style

  • less restrained than the classical style

• increased interest in:

  • supernatural

  • spiritualism

  • mysticism

  • fantasy

• concert culture immerges

Aesthetics

• the philosophical study of beauty

• divided into 2 categories

  • the sublime: opposite of beauty, formless, vast, infinite (beethoven’s music)

  • the beautiful: well formed, aesthetically pleasing, symmetrical, delicate, small

Features of romantic music: Melody

• focus on more beautiful and lyrical melodies (bel canto)

• more emotional and expressive

Features of romantic music: Harmony

• pushing formal tonal conventions

• frequent use of chromaticism

• increased use of dissonance (to make more emotional)

Features of romantic music: Rhythm

• more flexible, less rigid

The 1830 Generation

• Refers to a specific group of composers, many of whom knew of each other, usually by way of familial ties or as acquaintances

  • Schubert

  • Schumann

  • Wiech

  • Chopin

  • Liszt

Lieder (German Art Song)

• solo song for voice with piano accompaniment

• usually set to pre-existing poems

• associated with early German nationalism

• 3 forms:

  • Strophic

  • Through composed

  • Modified strophic

Strophic 

• repeated patterns

• same melody repeated with each stanza of text

Through Composed

• each stanza is set to new music entirely

• no repeats

Modified Strophic

• some verses keep the same music, others feature different music

Franz Schubert 

• early romantic era composer - known for his lieder

Clara Wieck Schumann

• Robert Schumann’s wife

• one of the first pianists to perform entire solo recitals

Fanny Hensel Mendelssohn

• Mendelssohn’s sister

• couldn’t become a professional bc family

• some of her music was published by her brother

• would organize musical eventings (Sunday Musicale)

Character Piece 

short works for piano which seek to musically convey or expressive a mood, atmosphere or scene; sometimes even a specific person, usually accompanied by a short inscription which evokes this association.

Nationalism

• important source of musical inspiration in Russia, but also Germany, France and Italy

• Composers sought to musically capture the essence of a specific nation

• folk music - important source of inspiration in 19th century nationalism

Bel Canto

• elegant Italian vocal style marked by lyrical and embellished melodies

• shows off the beauty, agility, and fluency of the singer’s voice

Vincenzo Bellini 

• good example of Bel Canto in “Casta Diva” Norma

Risorgimento

• political movement

• period of unification which liberated Italy from forgein rule

• italian art became affected by Risorgimento ideals

Giuseppe Verdi

• italian composer known for his bel canto and orchestration skills

• Operas were usually about the real world

• known for his political beliefs and role in risorgimento movement

Richard Wagner

• one of the most influential composers of the 19th century

• developed the concept of the music drama

  • used the term Gesamkuntstwerk

    • total artwork to describe oneness

Music Drama

genre in which drama and music become so independent as to express a kind of absolute oneness

Letimotive

a musical theme whose purpose is to represent or symbolize a person, object, place, idea, state of mind, supernatural force, and has a clear symbolic representation within musical works

• accumulate meaning as they reoccur

Tristan Chords

• example of the Wagnerian leitmotive - half diminished 7th

• symbolizes the unfulfilled longing of the 2 lovers in Tristan und Isolde

Programmatic Music

• instrumental music that tells a story

• story is spelled out in an accompanying text called a program

  • common in the New German School: “progressive” composers from the mid-19th century

    • Wagner

    • Liszt

    • Berlioz

Absolute Music

• music that is independent of words, drama, visual, images, or any kind of representation

  • nothing beyond the music intself

  • term coined by Wagner (used it describe Beethoven’s music)

Johannes Brahms

• emblematic of musical absolutism

Hector Berlioz

• emblematic of programmatic music

• symphony fantastique about Smithson

Programmatic Symphony 

• 5 parts

  • all parts united by a single “idèe fixe”