Music

Art song

  • An art song is a vocal music
    composition that is commonly
    written for a solo voice with
    piano accompaniment. It is
    most often used as a musical
    setting of an independent
    poem or text intended for
    concert repertory or as a
    recital for formal social
    occasions

ART SONGS CAN
BE CLASSIFIED AS
FOLLOWS:

  1. Songs that appear frequently in recital performances.

    • Composition that are originally intended for solo voice or piano.

    • Folk songs that are arranged for piano accompaniments and concerts and are written by a spceific composer.

    • Sacred songs composed for concert stage performances.

Art songs are composed in different parts of the world; hence, they are written in various languages.


The Lieder, a German tradition of art composition, is considered to be the most popular way of composing art songs. The formal design of art song depends on the composer’s musical language and interpretation of the text.


Examples of art song designs are the “strophic” and the “through-composed”.


The design of the art song is considered strophic when all the verses of a particular poem are sung in the same tune of music.


Some of Schubert’s songs in “Die Schone Mullerin” demonstrate the strophic design. On the other hand, an art song has the through-composed design when each section of the text receives fresh music. Songs which are through-composed have some repetitions of musical materials in them.

Most art songs follow the ABA form with the following three sections:

  1. The beginning musical section

    • The contrasting middle section, and

    • The return to the first section of the music.


      In performing art songs during recitals, both the singer and the pianist are required to have special skills. The two performers must have a unified and harmonious partnership to make an art song performance collaborative.

Opera

The opera denotes a
theatrical composition that
consists of a solo, ensemble,
choral singers, dancers, and
instrumentalists. It also has
a “libretto” which is a set of
music that is staged with
scenery, costumes, and
movement.

The themes of operas are often derived from history, mythology, fairy tales, folk stories, literature, and drama. Composers are inspired to write down music about these themes because of their musical and dramatic qualities

It is the combination of the elements of story and music that makes the opera powerful, creative, and engaging. Some of the famous composers of opera during the Romantic Period are Giuseppe Verdi, Franz Schubert, Hector Berlioz, and Richard Wagner


Franz Schubert

  • Considered as the last of
    the Classical composers
    and the first of the
    Romantic ones.

  • His music is known for its
    melody and harmony.

  • His compositions gained much
    popularity and recognition for
    bridging the gap between
    classical and romantic
    compositions.

    He is best remembered for his songs—also called lieder—and his chamber music. He wrote more than 500 compositions intended for male, female, and mixed voices.

Schubert’s compositions
between 1813 and 1815 were
regarded as remarkable for
a young emerging
composer. Aside from five
string quartets, he also
wrote three full-scale masses
and three symphonies.
When he was in college,

he finished his first full-
length opera entitled Des
Teufels Lustschloss (The
Devil’s Place of Desire). He
also set music to Goethe’s
poem “Gretchen am
Spinnrade” (Gretchen at the
Spinning Wheel)


Giuseppe Verdi

  • an Italian
    composer known for his operas during
    the Romantic Period. He was famous
    for creating melody and using
    theatrical effects intensely. His
    technique of diverting from the
    traditional Italian opera also
    contributed to his popularity as a
    composer.

  • Vincenzo Lavigna, Italian composer, helped him though he
    applied to the Milan Conservatory in 1832— he was rejected
    because of his age.


  • 1833, he became the conductor of the Busseto Philharmonic
    Society. Continued to compose successful operas such as
    Rigoletto, II Trovatore, La Traviata, Don Carlos, and Aida



    • 25 yrs old, with the help of Giulio Ricordi, he was able to
      compose his first opera, Oberto.

    • Majority of his works are serious love stories with unhappy
      endings.


Giocomo puccini

  • an Italian composer famous for his opera works that exhibited realism.


    Three of his most successful works: LaBoheme, Tosca, and Madama Butterfly.

He was regarded as a poor student in music. But his mother Albina continued to believe in the abilities of his son.

With the help of Giulio Ricordi—third opera was created based on French novel about a one-sided love affair.


Richard Wagner

  • a German dramatic composer and theorist best known for creating complicated epic operas. He is considered as the master of orchestration. His expressions involve more than spoken language.

  • Wagner’s first symphony was composed in 1833. He was inspired by Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, which he regarded as his “mystic source of highest ecstasy”. One of his famous works is the Tristan and Isolde.