History 2 Exam 2

How would you characterize Beethoven’s three compositional periods? Name a work from each one.

1770 - 1802: Mastering the language and genres of his time; finding his personal voice

Composition: Pathetique

1803 - 1814: new level of drama and expression

Composition:

1815 - 1827: More introspective. His music becomes more difficult to play, and more difficult to comprehend

Composition: 9th Symphony

• Economic Difficulties and death of patrons

• profound deafness

How did Beethoven change the string quartet?

• They were written to be both studied and played

• published both in score form and in separate parts

• Expanded the quartets beyond four movements (usually five movements)

• All five movements create a harmonic cycle

Ludwig Van Beethoven (late 18th - early 19th c)

• German Composer

• Organist and Pianist

• Genres: Sonatas, Symphonies, String Quartets

• Significant composition: Pathetique Sonata

Heiligenstadt Testament

• Beethoven’s letter to his brothers describing his deafness and isolation. He admits his sorrow and embarrassment about not being able to hear, and he admits that art is the only reason he did not commit suicide.

• Left behind to describe to later people why he suffered

Lied (singular), Lierder (plural)

• Works for voice and piano, with the setting ranging from simple strophic to through-composed dramas

• Expression of individual feelings

• descriptive musical imagery

• nature, longing, life and death, love and the divine

Franz Shubert (late 18th - early 19th)

• Austrian Composer

• Sacred Music, Operas, Lieders

• Significant Work: String Quartet in C Major

Robert Schumann (1810-1856)

• Composer and Pianist

• Took lessons from Clara’s Father at 18 years

• Nationality: German

• Genres: Lieder, Symphonies, Oratorios, Opera

• Prominent Works: Song Cycles Dichterliebe (A Poet’s Love)

Clara Schumann

Song Cycle

all the songs were to be performed in order, as movements of a multimovement vocal work.

• Composers could tell a story through a succession of songs, combining the narrative emphasis of ballads with the focused expressivity of the lyric poem

• Examples and Composers

  • Schumann’s Dichterliebe

    • Beethoven’s An die ferne Geliebte

Character music

• Portrtays a mood, personality, or scene, suggested in title or music

  • Examples - Fanny Mendelssohn’s Das Jahr, “No.12, December”

Fryderyk Chopin (Early - Mid 19th c)

• Composer, teacher and Pianist

• Polish

• Genres: Nocturnes, mostly piano pieces, etudes, sonatas

• Performed at Salons

Nocturn

Type of short piano piece popular during the Romantic period, marked by highly embellished melody, sonorous accompaniments, and a contemplative mood evocative of night.

• Many Written by Chopin

Fanny Mendelssohn Hensel

• German Pianist, Conductor and Composer

• hosted a salon on sundays in Berlin “Sunday Salon”

Louis Morreau Gottschalk (19th Century)

• Pan American/Creole pianist

• First American Composer to have an international reputation.

• Known for writing program pieces

• Significant Work: Souvenir de Porto Rico (Marche des Gibaros), Op. 31

Felix Mendelson

Early to mid 19th c. composer

• Choral music, variations, sonatas, Fantasias

• German Composer

• Significant work: Saint Paul, Op. 36

For whom did Mendelssohn compose his St. Paul Oratorio? What languages was it published in? How did he use the voices and the orchestra to portray particular events in the story?

• it was written for amateur choral societies to perform in non-church settings.

• Published in English and German

• voices help the audience to understand and reflect on what is happening

  • Women’s chorus represents Jesus as it is meant to be comforting

• The orchestra was used to add emotion/dramatize events happening in Paul’s life

Who is Clara Schumann/Wieck

Nationality - German

Composer and Pianist

Composition Styles - Piano Trios, solo piano, concertos

major compositions - Piano Trio in G minor, Op. 17

composed 66 works that we know of

Louis Hector Berloiz

• 19th c

• flute and guitar player, composer

• wrote “large” music - instrumentation,structure, and form

• Genres - Program Music

• Significant work - Symphonie Fantastique

. What genre is Berlioz’s Symphonie fantastique? How many movements does it have? How do we know the program they were intended to convey? What was new and groundbreaking about Berlioz’s use of the orchestra?

• Program Music / Symphony

• five movements

• He used different solo voices or textures to depict feelings or characters along with recognizable themes that were meant to contribute to the story

• The program notes describe the melodramatic tale of the lover dreaming of killing his beloved

Lied / Lieder

• German form of combined Music and Poetry

• A frequent theme was an individual confronting the greater forces of nature or society, vulnerable yet ennobled by the encounter; another was nature as a metaphor for human experience

• based on folk tunes or poetry

• Composers - Schubert and Schumann

Schubertiad

a gathering in a private home during which Schubert would play piano and either sing his own songs or accompany a singer.

character music

works with evocative titles that are depicted in the music, often suggesting a mood, scene, or personality, like a character in a play.

Examples: Mozart’s Haffner Symphony

Absolute Music

Music that is independent of words, drama, visual images, or any kind of representational aspects.

• Example - Classical music designed to be recognized for its form

Partsong

pieces were typically composed for many parts, up to twelve or more, with textures alternating between soloists or small groups and the whole ensemble.

• Texts were drawn from the Bible, especially the Psalms, or less often from the liturgy.

• Often used in church settings

Program Music

• Instrumental music that tells a story or follows a narrative or other sequence of events, often spelled out in an accompanying text called a program

• Example: Berloiz’s symphonie fantastique

Dies Irae

made the sequence for the Mass for the Dead (the Requiem Mass)

• used in Berloiz’s Symphonie Fantastique when the song depicts him finding out his lover is corrupt

Gioachino Rossini

• violinist, singer, pianist

• began writing operas as a teenager

• Style: Opera Buffa and Opera seria, along with Bel Canto style

• Significant work: Il Barbieri di sivligia and Guillaume Tell

Bel Canto

• “Beautiful singing”

• operatic style

• lyrical and embellished writing and performance practice

• operas by Rossini, Donizetti, and Bellini exemplify this style

Nationalism

the attempt to unify a group of people by creating a national identity through characteristics such as a common language, shared culture, historical traditions, and national institutions and rituals.

• Believing that a particular country or origin of music is better than others

• Ex. Wagner displayed strong German nationalism

Exoticism

• the evocation of foreign lands and cultures

• meant to call on a listener’s memories/feelings of culture, country, folk song, stories, etc…

• ex… Bizet’s Carmen

Scena

an instrumental introduction and a recitative section that is accompanied by the orchestra

• developed by Rossini and his liberettists

• used in both serious and comic operas

Cantabile

• The slow section of Rossini’s arias

• expresses relatively calm moods such as pensiveness, sadness, or hope

• Ex. Rossini’s - The Barber of Seville

Carl Maria von Weber

• Late 18th, early 19th composer

• Nationality: German

• Wrote “The Free Shooter” which was the first German Opera

• Several pieces employ multiphonics

Melodrama

A kind of drama, or part of a drama, in which the action is carried forward by the protagonist speaking in the pauses of, and later commonly during, a musical accompaniment

• Ex. Weber’s “Free Shooter”

Richard Wagner

19th century German Composer of opera

• Antisemite

• has the idea that suffering and pain are a natural and inevitable part of love

• wrote 13 operas

• wanted to be in control of every artistic aspect of his works - built his own opera house

• Significant work: Tristan und Isolde and a book about the jewish culture

Leitmotiv

Cabaletta

The lively and brilliant section in Rossini’s arias

• called the tempo di mezzo (middle movement), which is usually some kind of transition or interruption by other characters and in which something happens to alter the situation or the character’s mood.

• ore active feelings such as anger or joy. Part or all of the cabaletta is repeated, perhaps with improvised embellishments.

Lietmotive

the work’s principal themes, the same terminology one would use in describing a symphony

• Developed by Wagner

• he association is established by sounding the leitmotive (usually in the orchestra) at the first appearance or mention of the subject, and by its repetition during subsequent appearances or citations.

• it accumulates significance as it recurs in new contexts; it may recall an object in situations where the object itself is not present; it may be varied, developed, or transformed as the plot develops; similar motives may suggest a connection between the things to which they refer, especially if one leitmotive morphs into another; motives may be contrapuntally combined; and, through their repetition, motives unify a scene or opera as recurrent themes unify a symphony.

• usually represented by a particular instrument, melody, etc…

Cavatina

• entrance aria to introduce a character, theme, or emotion

• Ex. Casta Diva from Norma

Gesamtkunstwerk

• Developed by Wagner

• Poetry, scenic design, staging, action, and music work together to form what he called a BLANK (total or collective artwork)

Giacomo Puccini

• 19th and 20th c composer

• Nationality: Italian

• Genres: Opera

• Style: Realism

• Significant works: Madama Butterfly 

In Madama Butterfly, how does Puccini use contrasts of vocal style to convey aspects of the characters? Give three examples.

mm. 9 - butterfly responding in the same style

mm. 13 - butterfly shifts her music to a hybridized western style

mm. 41 - butterfly brings out the box with her father’s sword

mm. 43 - outburtst from the orchestra to show her strong emotions

mm. 48 - primitive japanese style, sound dark savage and barbaric to operatic audience

Der Ring des Nibelungen

Wagner’s massive cycle of four operas that he wrote after settling in switzerland

• 1848 - 1852

• The Rhine Gold

• The Valkyrie

• Sigfried

• The Twilight of the Gods

The first complete performance, over four evenings, took place two years later in a theater built in Bayreuth according to Wagner’s specifications

German Romantic Opera

• Established by Weber’s Free Shooter

• Weber’s idea of putting ordinary people center stage, talking and singing about their concerns, their loves, and their fears

• Plots are drawn from medieval history, legend, or fairy tale. The story involves supernatural beings and happenings set against a background of wilderness and mystery, but scenes of humble village or country life are frequently introduced

• simple folklike melodies at times that differ from french or italian opera

Romanticism

The idiom which focused on melody, emotion, novelty, and individuality

• sought refuge in the past, myth, dreams, the supernatural, and the irrational

• Romantics regarded “common folk” as the true embodiment of the nation

Fantasy

Instrumental composition that resembles an improvisation or lacks a strict form.

• Imitative instrumental piece on a single subject

• “fairytail opera”

• Example: Wagner’s Ring Opera

Bayreuth Festival Theater

Designed by Otto Brückwald, incorporated Wagner’s highly innovative ideals for the production of his operas. Here he was able to produce the Ring cycle in its entirety for the first time in August 1876

Realism

Naturalness of life

• Bizet’s Carmen depicts this

Verismo

• The music responds directly to the text, driven by vocal melody rather than by earlier operatic conventions

• These operas present everyday people, especially the lower classes, in familiar situations, often depicting events that are brutal or sordid.

  • Partially inspired by Bizet’s Carmen

  • Example: Puccini’s operas

French Grand Opera

• characterized by more dramatic, less lyrical singing

• Example - Rossini’s Guillaume Tell

• simplicity in melody, harmony, and form with vivacious rhythms, exciting dynamics, and unusual orchestral effects

Giuseppe Verdi

Nationality: Italian

Genres: Opera

Styles: early operas built on the conventions of Rossini, Bellini, and especially Donizetti but were refined throughout his life

Notable Works: Rigoletto

Idee Fix

fixed idea or obsession, a term berloiz borrowed from psychology

• a melody that he used in each movement to represent the obsessive image of the hero’s beloved, transforming it to suit the mood and situation at each point in the story

• Ex. Symphonie Fantastique

Choral Societies

19th c. Amateur groups with members paying dues to purchase music, pay the conductor, and meet other expenses.

• One of the first, the Berlin Singakademie, began as a singing class for wealthy women. In 1791 men were accepted as well, and the group gave its first concert.

Afro-Caribbean rhythms

Souvenir de Porto Rico - which uses a theme derived from a Puerto Rican song and features Afro-Caribbean rhythms such as the habanera, tresillo, and cinquillo.

Franz Schubert

Nationality: Austrian

Significant work: String Quartet in C Major

19th century

first great master of the Romantic Lied and a prolific composer in all genres

Fanny Hensel

• Woman composer and pianist who recieved extensive education growing up

• composed many works under her Brother’s name, was unable to publish under her own name until much later in life

• Genres: Lieder, solo piano, chamber works, etc…

• Significant work: Lied fur Klavier

Felix Mendohlsson

Nationality: German

Genres: sonatas, variations, character pieand fantasias
Style: He blended influences from Bach, Handel, Mozart, Beethoven, and his own contemporaries in music that combined contrapuntal skill and formal clarity with Romantic expression, beautiful melodies, and interesting, often unpredictable rhythms

Significant works: Song without words - collection of pieces over several books

Over her lifetime, did Clara Schumann spend more time performing or composing? Why do you think that is?

Clara schuman had her own internalized stigma against women composers, believing that they were truly inferior to male composers. Additionally, when she was at home, she assumed the role of wife and mother, rather than a composer since she was unable to work while her husband composed.

How did Beethoven change the string quartet?

• He portrayed deep emotions in his chamber pieces when struggling with deafness

• quartet music had greater emotional depth and strayed from the original four part structure of the time

• expanded harmonic language and a deeply expressive style.

Name two composers known for writing Lieder. Give examples of how they convey emotions in their Lieder, both in the piano writing and the vocal writing.

Franz Schubert and Robert Schumann are two of the most celebrated composers for writing Lieder, each using piano and vocal writing to convey deep emotion.

• In their piano writing, they convey emotion through frequently employed bold modulations and unexpected chord progressions to enhance the emotional depth of the songs.

• character and mood. His ability to create distinct  musical personas

What three forms did composers use when setting poetry to music for Lieder?

Strophic Form

Modified Strophic

Through - composed

How does Rossini depict the character of Rosina, in The Barber of Seville? Give three special traits of her cavatina. Does the music affirm the text, or question it?

spirited, resourceful, and clever,

• Dynamic Contrast, Cantibile to Cabaletta, rhythms that propel the piece forward

• Whether the music affirms or questions the text depends on her own emotion. When resentment was present, there was more tension in the orchestra, whereas other joyful or tender emotions were reflected in the ensemble

10. What changes do orchestras undergo in the 19th century? Please consider the numbers of orchestras, who the musicians are, and the sizes of orchestras.

The 19th century saw a massive influx of immigrant performers, especially from Central and Eastern Europe, who joined professional orchestras

• Women’s participation grew both as players and as patrons, and in some cases, women’s orchestras emerged

• In Europe, the professionalization of orchestras meant that musicians were increasingly salaried employees rather than court musicians, and in the U.S., orchestras often relied on itinerant players and local hires.

3. Growth in Orchestra Size
Orchestras became larger and more complex. The Romantic ideal of a “richer” and more varied sound led to expanded sections:

• Strings: More violins, violas, cellos, and double basses, with standardized ratios

  Archive.

• Woodwinds: Introduction of new instruments like the English horn, bass clarinet, and contrabassoon; standardization of an eight‑instrument woodwind section

  Archive+1.

• Brass: Addition of valves to trumpets and horns, cornets, and even tubas; Wagner and Verdi expanded brass forces

What three characters appear in the Wolf’s Glen scene of Der Freischütz, by Weber? What is happening in this scene? Which character never sings? How do the harmonies and key relationships evoke mystery, danger, and the supernatural? How does Weber’s writing lay the groundwork for Wagner?

• Three Characters: Max, Samiel, and Caspar

• Samiel is the only character in this scene who never sings

• Weber uses low strings, brass (especially trombones), and woodwinds in their darkest registers to evoke the supernatural

• The harmonies shift through minor keys and chromaticism, creating tension and unease. The “skittery” violin lines and sustained low brass chords suggest the eerie, otherworldly setting

• Weber’s Wolf’s Glen is a pioneering example of using orchestral color and dramatic tension to depict the supernatural, a technique Wagner would later expand in his Gesamtkunstwerk concept

In his opera Tristan und Isolde, where does Wagner first use the Tristan chord? What does it convey? How does it function in the opera? What is its intended impact on the audience?

Wagner first uses the Tristan chord in measure 2 of the Prelude to Act I of Tristan und Isolde, and it immediately conveys the opera’s central theme of unquenchable longing and desire.

• create a sense of yearning, tension, and unresolved desire, mirroring Tristan and Isolde’s tragic, unfulfilled love

Name two composers known for writing character pieces. Name a work from each, and describe the program each work illustrates. How did these two composers achieve their expressive intent?

Schumann - His titles are evocative, meant to stimulate the player’s and the listener’s imaginations and to suggest possible meanings for the unusual effects and striking contrasts in his music. In Carnaval (1834–35), for instance, he conjures up a masquerade ball in carnival season through twenty short pieces in dance rhythms, each named for a dance, a costumed figure or acquaintance at the ball (including Clara), or an interaction between revelers, such as flirtation or recognition.

Fanny Hensel - In Das Jahr, she achieved expressive intent through visual indicators - written out in an elegant hand, looks like a one-of-a-kind manuscript: each month is on a different color of paper and begins with a hand-drawn illustration by her husband Wilhelm Hensel.