Exam II Composers

Question 0

Composed ten serious operas; famous for “big guitar” twelve eight pattern in accompaniment

(1801-1835)

Answer 0

Bellini

Question 1

French and Italian opera composer; developed “bel canto” style, _______ crecendo and two part opera; retired from music and later became a famous chef

(1792-1868)

Answer 1

Rossini

Question 2

Established three part opera; famous for “mad scenes” and coloratura fast sections; made the chorus a part of the drama

Answer 2

Donizetti

Question 3

Italian and French opera composer; 54 year career; composed “Nabucco”, which the “national anthem” of Italy is extracted from; later increased chorus and created more active orchestral parts.

1813-1901

Answer 3

Verdi

Question 4

German composer of the opera “Der Freischutz”

1786-1826

Answer 4

Weber

Question 5

Anti Semitic douche; developed the leitmotif and utilized endrhyme and strabrein; felt that opera needed to be reformed; used less embellishments in vocal lines and focused more on drama

Answer 5

Wagner

Question 6

Performer, composer, and conductor from Hungary; developed thematic transformation; also composed thematic poems and showed great virtuosity in his compositions.

Answer 6

Liszt

Question 7

Viennese Neo-Classicist; mainly known for masses and symphonies, which call for lush orchestration; eventually these sacred works were performed in concert venues.

Answer 7

Bruckner

Question 8

Neo-Classicist from Hamburg; pianist and conductor; pioneer of absolute music; influenced by music of the past.

1833-1897

Answer 8

Brahms

Question 9

Russian conductor and composer of ballets, symphonies, and operas; very tumultuous personal life; originally went to law school before pursuing music; lyrical and colorful orchestrations

1840-1893

Answer 9

Tchaikovsky

Question 10

Bohemian musician; traveled to many countries and borrowed many national sounds; symphonies were in the style of Brahms and Beethoven; Czech style compositions

1841-1904

Answer 10

Dvorak

Question 11

German composer of lied; songs utilize chromaticism, wandering tonality, dissonances, etc.

Answer 11

Wolf

Question 12

Bohemian conductor, part time composer, many losses in his lifetime; held many important posts in many prestigious cities; created the orchestral song cycle; extended tonality

1860-1911

Answer 12

Mahler

Question 13

Viennese conductor and composer of operas and symphonic poems; fascinated with modern music; chromaticism, dissonance without resolution; his music caused riots.

1864-1949

Answer 13

Strauss

Question 14

Member of the “Mighty Five”; theory professor; orchestrated works of earlier composers; known for his programmatic orchestral works

Answer 14

Rimsky-Korsakov

Question 15

Member of the “Mighty Five”; employs whole tone scales and Russian folk elements; earned a living as a clerk

Answer 15

Musorgsky

Question 16

Italian composer born into a family of musicians; first operas were failures; realistic opera plots; use of exoticism and lush orchestration

Answer 16

Puccini

Question 17

American female composer, performer, and teacher who signed her works under H.H.A.; composed long works; rose in fame thanks to her husband

1867-1944

Answer 17

Amy Beach

Question 18

French Impressionist composer and critic; studied abroad in Russia and Italy; influenced by old music, and music from foreign countries; stretched tonality

1862-1918

Answer 18

Debussy

Question 19

French Impressionist composer; absorbed some of Debussy’s ideas, but remained mostly tonal in his works; also influenced by music of the past and from foreign countries.

Answer 19

Ravel

Question 20

English conductor and composer of art music, utilitarian music, and film scores; used many English folk songs in his music; studied in London

Answer 20

Vaughan Williams

Question 21

Czech opera composer; his operatic works are in the vernacular and are influenced by his people; helped his country gain independence.

Answer 21

Janacek

Question 22

Finnish composer of many genres; loved creating nationalistic music for his country

Answer 22

Sibelius

Question 23

Russian composer and virtuoso pianist with enormous hands; made most of his living as a performer; composed with traditional harmonies and forms.

1873-1943

Answer 23

Rachmaninov

Question 24

Russian composer and virtuoso pianist; famous for his “mystic chord”; had a condition called synesthesia; composed with chromaticism and exotic ideas/techniques.

1872-1915

Answer 24

Scriabin

Question 25

Was born in Vienna and showed musical talent as a child
Had minimal training in music theory and composition
Worked in cabarets and theaters to earn musical living as a young man
Worked as a bank clerk as his day job
Eventually learned enough to teach composition in Vienna.
Began his career composing according to models of late Romanticism of Mahler, Liszt, Wagner, and Strauss
Studied all traditional music of the past.
Believed that art music should always say something new to humanity
Borrowed idea of developing variation from Brahms.
Was self-consciously modern in his idea of composition.
Abandoned tonality in 1908
His two most famous students, Berg and Webern followed him in this
Studied and painted in the expressionist style
Began the “Society for private musical performances” which produced works of new music between 1919 and 1921
Developed a twelve tone system in 1921.
Immigrated to Los Angeles in 1934 to escape Nazi punishment
Began his last job as a professor of composition at UCLA
Spent the rest of his life in the US.

1874-1951

Answer 25

Schoenberg

Question 26

Began studies with Schoenberg in Vienna in 1904
Also learned much from Mahler and Strauss
Used his teacher’s atonal and twelve tone methods
Many found his music to be more accessible than Schoenberg’s because of its organization
Is best known for his expressionist opera, Wozzeck, 1925

1885-1935

Answer 26

Berg

Question 27

Suffered for composing degenerate music under Nazi regime
Known for works of extreme brevity.
Works are tightly controlled and organized.

1883-1945

Answer 27

Webern