Romantic Era

THE NATURE OF PROGRAM MUSIC

• Program Music: instrumental music with literary/pictorial associations
• Associations are indicated by the title:
• Ex: King Lear would suggest characters or events
• Ex: Pieces fugitives would suggest mood

VARIETIES OF PROGRAM MUSIC

• Concert overture: A single movement concert piece based on literary ideas
• Ex: Tchaikovsky's Romeo and Juliet. Could suggest a poetic idea
• Incidental music: An overture and a series of pieces performed between acts/scenes
• Ex: Mendelssohn's music for A Midsummer Night's Dream

VARIETIES OF PROGRAM MUSIC (CONT.)

• Program music: Multimovement orchestral work
• Ex: Liszt, the Faust and Dante symphonies
• Symphonic Poem: Piece of program of music for orchestra
• In this, the contrasting sounds suggests a scene or creates a mood
• Ex: Prelude to "The Afternokn of a Faun" by Claude Debussy

HECTOR BERLIOZ(1803-1869)

• Born in France near Grenoble
• Was expected to be like his father who was a physician
• Berlioz obviously gave up medicine for music
• 1830: awarded the coveted Prix de Rome
• This let him live and work in Italy

HECTOR BERLIOZ

• 1830: Composed the Symphony fantastique
• Hector attempted suicide before marrying Harriet Smithson
• Conducted music in all the capitols of Europe, and Paris
• Was one of the boldest innovators of the 19th century
• Approach to music was individual, sense of sound unique(66)

MUSICAL NATIONALISM

• 19th century political conditions encouraged growth of nationalism
• This became a force within the romantic movement
• Strong emotions inspired the works of many composers
• Composers expressed nationalism based on music on dances of their people
• Ex: Chopin in mazurkas; Liszt in Hungarian rhapsodies

BEDŘICH SMETANA (1824-1884)

• 1st Bohemian composer to achieve international prominence
• Teen years was sent to school in Prague (loved music)
• Joined a political cause in 1848(Bohemia against Austrian rule)
• 1856: Accepted a conducting position in Sweden
• Wrote operas for the National Theatre. Ex: The Bartered Bride

THE MODALU

• Second of programmatic poems for my country
• Represents his Smetana's finest achievement
• The Bohemian river Modalu is a poetic symbol of the beloved homeland
• Music suggests the rippling streams that flow through the forest
• He evokes a hunting scene with French horns and trumpets

THE ROMANTIC SYMPHONY

• Classical period, symphony became exalted form of absolute orchestral music
• Symphony gained greater weight and importance
• 19th century composers found symphonies to be framework for lyrical themes
• Liszt and Berlioz cultivated the program symphony
• Mendelssohn, Schumann, Brahms, & Tchaikovsky each wrote

THE NATURE OF THE SYMPHONY

• Standard four-movement classical symphony started changing
• Ex: tempo and number of movements was not religiously followed
• ExCont: Tchaikovsky had a slowwww movement in his pathetique symphony
• ExCont: Beethoven pushed the cycle to 5 movements in his pastoral symphony

MOVEMENTS

• 1st movement: usually in sonata-allegro form
• Has a long expressive development
• 2nd movement: ranges in mood (whimsical to tragic)
• In a loose three-part form

MOVEMENTS

• 3rd movement: strong rhythmic/exciting scherzo
• Mood can range from light to demonic energy
• 4th movement: usually a spirited Allegro in sonata-allegro form
• May end on a note of triumph or pathos

BRAHMS & THE

JOHANNES BRAHMS (1833-1897)

• Born in Hamburg, son of a double-bass player
• Age 10, played piano to increase his families income
• He fell in love with Clara Schumann
• Said she taught him to "marvel at the nature of love, affection, and self-denial."
• Died at age 64, ill with cancer

BRAHMS MUSIC

• His aim was to show that things could still be said in tradition of classical masters
• "Variations on a Theme by Haydn" and his 2 concert overtures are often heard today
• He captured the tone of intimacy that is the essence of chamber music style
• Is an important figure in piano music
• "German Requiem" made him more famous during his lifetime than any of his other works

CAN'T GET ENOUGH OF THAT BRAHMS!

• He did not attempt to write a symphony until he was past 40. Wrote 4 of them
• 1st symphony in C minor, started in 1854 & took about 14 years to finish
• 2nd symphony was in D major, which was composed in the summer of 1877
• 3rd symphony was in F major, and was written in the summer of 1883
• 4th symphony was in E minor, started in 1884, & was completed in 1885

FIN