The Romantic Era

1
The Romantic Era

• 1820-1900

2
Characteristics of Romantic Music

• Emotion rules reason
• Fascination with fantasy, the supernatural, the
  forces of nature, horror adventure, heroes
• Fervor for nationalism or exoticism
• Program music
• Expansionism and miniatures

3
Characteristics (cont.)

• Expanded range of pitch, dynamics and tempo
• Chromaticism
• Attention to tone colors and orchestration

4
Romantic Composers

• Composers are considered artists
• Composers wrote for middle class
• Many were virtuoso performers, conductors and
  teachers as well as composers
• Compositions seem more introspective

5
Genres

• Miniatures Short intimate pieces
• The Art Song (lied) short intimate composition
  for solo voice and piano based on poetry in which
  the piano is a partner in the drama. Art songs
  may be in strophic or through- composed form.
• Song Cycle Art songs unified by a story line or
  some other factor that links them

6
Genres (cont.)

• Program music instrumental music associated with
  a story, poem, or idea
• Program symphony A multi-movement orchestral
  composition with descriptive titles for each
  movement.
• Symphonic poem or tone poem a one movement
  program orchestral work

7
Genres (cont.)

• Incidental music music to be performed before
  and during a play.
• Etude In French, study a piece designed to
  help a performer master specific technical
  difficulties
• Nocturne In French, night piece which is
  usually slow, lyrical and intimate

8
Franz Schubert1797-1828

• Born in Vienna the son of a schoolmaster
• Composed numerous masterpieces in his late teens
• Master of the art song and composer of Erlkonig
  (The Elf King)

9
Robert Schumann1810-1856

• Known for his autobiographical works that are
  highly programmatic
• Wanted to be a virtuoso pianist but an
  unfortunate finger injury led him to a career in
  composition
• Founder and editor of the New Journal of Music

10
Robert Schumann (cont.)

• Married his piano teachers daughter, Clara
  Wieck, a concert pianist and composer
• Mental and physical health deteriorated in his
  later years. He died two years after he was
  committed to an asylum
• Known for Carnival, Scenes from Childhood and
  Fantasy Pieces

11
Clara Weick Schumann1819-1896

• Concert pianist, composer and wife and mother of
  7 children
• Promoted her husbands works
• Compositions include songs, piano pieces, a piano
  concerto, a piano trio, and three Romances for
  violin and piano

12
Frederic Chopin1810-1849

• Polish nationalist composer who wrote almost
  exclusively for the piano
• Had a well know love affair with poet, novelist,
  George Sand
• Died of Tuberculosis at age 39
• Composer of Nocturne in E Flat Major, La
  Revolutionary Etude and Polonaise in A Flat Major

13
Niccolo Paganini1782-1840

• Italian violin virtuoso who supposedly sold his
  soul to the devil in exchange for his incredible
  musical techniques

14
Franz Liszt1811-1886

• Handsome, magnetic, ladies man
• Hungarian piano virtuoso / composer
• Became religious in his later years and became an
  unordained priest of the Catholic church,
  composing masses and oratorios

15
Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky1840 to 1893

• Most famous Russian Composer
• Very gloomy personality (concealed homosexual)
• Patron Nadezdha von Meck paid him a stipend for
  14 years so that he could compose but ended the
  relationship abruptly with no explanation

16
Tchaikovsky (cont.)

• First great orchestral work Romeo and Juliet
  (concert overture)
• Greatest hits 3 fantasy ballets- Nutcracker,
  Sleeping Beauty and Swan Lake, Symphony 4 and 6,
  Piano Concerto in B Minor, violin concerto, 1812
  Overture and 8 operas

17
Hector Berlioz

• French composer who left a career in medicine for
  one in music
• Fascination with Shakespeare
• Wrote a semi autobiographical workSymphonie
  Fantastique
• Known for innovative orchestrations

18
Hector Berlioz (cont.)

• Greatest hits dramatic symphonyRomeo and
  Juliet, dramatic legend Damnation of Faust,
  Requiem, and Symphony Fantastique

19
Bedrich Smetana

• Czech nationalist composer who incorporated
  Bohemian folk music and legends into his
  compositions
• Became deaf at age 50 but continued to compose

20
Smetana (cont.)

• Famous works include a cycle of 6 symphonic poems
  called Ma Vlast -My Country
• The Moldau is one of the six symphonic poems
  it depicts Bohemias main river as it flows
  through the countryside

21
Antonin Dvorak1841-1904

• Followed Smetana as leading Czech nationalist
  composer
• Father was an innkeeper and butcher-Antonin left
  home to study music in Prague by playing in an
  opera orchestra directed by Smetana
• Johannes Brahms launched his career

22
Dvorak

• Became famous by age 36
• Went to New York in 1892 to become director of
  the National Conservatory of Music
• Here in the U.S. he encouraged American composers
  to incorporate American folk songs and spirituals

23
Felix Mendelssohn

• Classical composer of the Romantic era
• Born into a wealthy family
• Child prodigy mastered the piano by age 9,
  composed symphonies, concertos, sonatas and vocal
  works by age 13

24
Mendelssohn (cont.)

• Had a sister, Fanny, to whom he was very close.
  She was also a musician and composed. She and
  Felix shared a deep love of Shakespeare
• Despite normal and happy life he died at age 38.

25
Mendelssohn

• Greatest hits Midsummer Nights Dream
  (incidental music), Violin Concerto in E minor,
  The Hebrides (overture), the Italian and Scottish
  symphonies, and Elijah (oratorio)

26
Giuseppe Verdi1813-1901

• Known as Italys greatest opera writer
• Because of his opera, Nabucco he is a symbol of
  Italys independence
• He also wrote Aida (commissioned for the opening
  of the Suez Canal), Otello, La Traviata,
  Rigolleto and Falstaff

27
Giacomo Puccini1858-1924

• Took over where Verdi left off
• He wrote La Boheme, Tosca, Turnadot and Madame
  Butterfly
• Operas featured exoticism, very true to life
  people put in situations that stirred strong
  emotions, very singable and emotional melodies

28
Richard Wagner1813-1883

• German nationalist composer famous for his music
  dramas (opera)
• Believed that the audience should be overwhelmed
  by music and drama and that the libretto, music,
  sets, costumes, lighting and directing should
  come under one guiding hand his own

29
Wagner (cont.)

• Incorporated the leitmotif a fragment of melody
  that represents a person, place or thing in the
  drama
• Greatest HitsThe Ring Cycle, Tristan and Isolde
  and Taunhauser.