final exam Flashcards
Romantic Era
1815-1900
Music as Self Expression
Hausmusik
more subjective emotions in music
not reason that solves all but its opposite
American Revolution/Enlightenment- can solve all human problems through reason
French Revolution- reason doesn’t work
Romantic Period Ideas
romantic love
supernatural- god and all beyond life
macabre- fixation on death and hell and the devil
nature-peace and destruction
nationalism- patriotism + 10
exoticism- opposite of nationalism
the past- the middle ages
Inexpressible longing
Franz Schubert
1792-1828 contemporary with beethoven
first fully romantic composer, born and raised in Vienna, Austria
Schubertinds
The Elf King
Genius largely discovered after he died
small pieces- house music not like those played in a concert hall or theatre
Schubertinds
get together with friends at someone’s house and enjoy schubert playing his music for them, no money made, small audience
The Lied
Genre of music
German for song
solo voice and piano
short(mini)
Schubert and the lied
didn’t invent this genre but elevated it to the level of fine art
- gift for melody
- wrote 600+ lieder
- 2 kinds of intimacy: voice and piano and music and text
- word painting: piano accompniments
Song forms in the romantic era
Strophic- multiple stanza poem set to same music repeated each stanza (like hymns)
Through Composed- multiple stanzas each set to different music
Modified Strophic - between strophic and through composed, stanzas set to different but very similar music
Der Erlkonig
1815
The ElfKing
Schubert was 17 or 18 when he composed it and its a masterpiece
fear=emotion CREEPY
piano accompaniment= galloping horse hooves
form=through composed
Music of FEAR
father-reason (natural explanation for everything) older/authoritative so lower register
son-romantic (believed in the impossible and he was right) young/frightened so higher register
narrator =neutral
Erlking-major mode/soft dynamics/pretty melodies- deceptive facade
Listen and look at description on back of first page of notes to understand story
Robert Schumann
born in Zusickan, Germany
Clara Schumann- married to Robert, brilliant pianist, daughter of Schumann’s piano teacher, married in 1840, had 8 children
Schumann and the Lied
took it further in complexity and expression than Schubert
more picky about poetry
broader role for the piano
more complex harmonies
A Song Cycle
song collection on a single subject
In the Lovely Month of May
(In Wonderschonen Monet Mai)
1st song in Diecht Lieb (A Poet’s Love 1840) a song cycle written for Clara right before Robert and her were married
poem not written by Schumann
Music of REGRET
about a happy memory but sounds sad because it is in the past and not happening anymore
- ambiguous harmony makes the music sound bittersweet
- unresolved melody melody always ends up, never falls leaving mystery
- unresolved ending, wrong final chord (emotional frustration and irresolution)
strophic form
see notes to follow along with structure while listening
Frederich Chopin
1810-1949
Polish
left as a young man and went to Paris, never returned to Poland because it was too dangerous
Polish Nationalism
The Paris Salon
events held by very welathy/cultured women
piano playing in the background while they talked, gave very extravagant gifts at the end
Character piece for Piano
Genre of music
one movement
miniature
Programatic- instrumental music used to convey and extramusical idea
Etude op. 10 No. 12 (Revolutionary
Chopin’s personal reaction to what happened in Poland
music of GRIEF
virtuosity beyond what should be possible, connects well to romanticism, Pagonini on the violin
Hector Berlioz
Paris, France
son of a physician
he went to med school got spooked and fled to be a musician
his romatnic heroes: beethoven and shakespeare
music+drama
married Harriet Smithson a leading actress and wrote Symphony Fantastique for/about her
BIG orchestras
Symphonie Fantastique
1830
Berlioz
1st program orchestra a new genre invented by him: came with a written story to read as you listened
Fantastique meaning wildly imaginiative and weird
idee fixe: obsession with this woman
focus on movement 5: Dream of Witches/Sabbath
Dream of Witches from Symphonie Fantastique
Movement 5
dream of being in hell after killing his obsession lady, sees her there and she is the queen
- Intro-spooky
- She arrives and dances to idee fixe melody (clarinet)
- funeral bells
- dies irae (bassoons and tubas)
- witches’ dance (free fugue)
- dies irae and withces’ dance combined(climax)
- col legno strings (playing with wood side of bow instead of horse hairs, makes rattling sound)
- triumphant conclusion for those in hell
form decided by story not musical design
dies irae means day of wrath its part of the death mass
Felix Mendellson
1819-1847
Born in Hamburg moves to BeRlin then Liepzig, Germany
son of wealthy Jewish banker
cultivated upbringing well taught in academics, music, art
musical prodigy and so was his sister
romantic conservative unlike Berlioz, looked back for inspiration (loved bach and handl)
wrote Midsummer Night’s Dream Overture (1826) at 17 years old
Midsummer Night’s Dream Overture 1826
to be played before play was performed
sonata form (w/ programmatic expression)
Exposition:
- realm of fairies-luminous chords
- fairy music-stocatto
- royal court-triumphant
- lovers-lyrical/tender
- donkey- hee haw
Development: fairy music
Recapitulation
- realm of fairies
-fairy music
- lovers
-donkey music
-royal court
-fairy music
CODA: realm of fairies
Edvard Grieg
1843-1907
Norwegian Nationalist (marginalized countries started to become part of musical development often through nationalist music that refelcted their culture, stories, dfolk dances, etc.)
wrote Peer Gynt Orchestral Suite 1 music to accompany a Norwegian Folktale about Peer Gynt being chased by trolls
4 movements know 1 Morning mood and 4 In the Hall of the Mountain Kind
Morning Mood from Peer Gynt
Grieg
1st movement
depiction of a sunrise
A flutes vs oboe, then violins
B cellos
A’ french horn then low strings/woodwinds
coda: birdsong
In the Hall of the Mountain Kind
Grieg
Peer Gynt
4th movement
depicts trolls attacking peer gynt in the mountain
Troll Theme:
-low strings/bassoon
-high strings vs. oboes
strings plucked(pizzicato)
tempo accelerates and dynamics grow louder
faster, louder, wilder
CODA: sudden short chords depicting the mountain collapsing on the trolls
