Music History I Written Final Flashcards
Age of Enlightenment
1720-1790 - A time of critical thinking where reason was used in the pursuit of a self-fulfillment. Chief figures of the Enlightenment sought to free themselves from superstition; science became of great importance. Among philosophies of the era: man was inherently good, challenged the divine claims of monarchies (advocated rules who worked for the good of the people), “all men are created equal” and “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”
The Classical Era
1750-1800, “Classical” label came in the mid-19th century, seen as a “golden age” by the Romantics, refers to Greek and Roman aesthetic values (balance, proportion, clarity, and naturalness) Most Notable Composers: Mozart, Bach, Haydn, Handel, etc.
Dichotomies between art and nature
Nature v.s. Art, Genius v.s. Technique, Inspiration v.s. Craft, Unconscious v.s. Conscious, Effortlessness v.s. Hard Work, Divine v.s. Human, Not Teachable v.s. Teachable. “The genius of inspiration - the idea - is not an end in itself. It is merely a start…”
Obbligato accompaniment
Secondary voices contribute material that is essential or indispensable to the musical fabric of a work.
Rondo form
Meaning “round”, one of the most common forms of finales in Classical works. Involves alternation of a recurring theme with contrasting material. ABACADA pattern. A = opening, recurring idea (often called refrain), B, C, and D = contrasting ideas (called episodes/couplets)
Sonata Rondo
Aspects of both sonata form and rondo. First episode (B) is in secondary key, like the secondary key of a sonata-form exposition. When this episode returns at the end of a movement, it is transposed to the tonic as in a sonata-form recapitulation. Rondo, like sonata form, is a general principle for a composer and not a fixed entity.
Harmonic rhythm
Slowing of overall harmonic rhythm - in Baroque, harmonies often change EVERY beat. Classical is much less frequent (once or twice in a measure, perhaps)
Periodic phrase structure
A period is a unit of melodic organization made up of two balanced phrases in succession; the first phrase, called the antecedent, comes to a point of partial completeness; it is balanced by the consequent, a phrase of the same length that concludes with a sense of greater completeness.
Sonata Form (and all its parts)
Most important formal innovation of the Classical era. Essentially an expanded binary form that modulates within first reprise and usually involves more than one theme.
First reprise: Exposition - begins with one or more themes in primary key area (P) followed by Transitional (T) modulation from primary key area to one or more themes in secondary key area (S). If Major: from I to V, If Minor: from i to III (relative major.)
Second Reprise Part 1: Development - develops thematic ideas of the exposition, no key structure, departure from the Exposition’s harmonic areas.
Second Reprise Part 2: Recapitulation - balances the development with stability and predictability, original key, recap of original thematic ideas.
Some conclude with a Coda (tail) after the recapitulation.
No two renderings of sonata form are entirely alike!!!
How the sonata developed (from binary)
Sonata developed from the rounded binary form (ABA’.) In a rounded binary, original thematic material is introduced in the A section. Then, the B section serves to contrast the original thematic material. Finally, the music returns to the original thematic material, where it is either shortened or slightly altered to conclude the piece. Sonata form is a more expanded binary form, with a modulation in the first reprise and involves more than one theme.
Alberti Bass
An accompaniment figure commonly used by composers in the Classical era. Involving a “broken chord” or arpeggiated accompaniment, where the chord is presented as lowest, highest, middle, highest. Provides harmonic support and a rhythmic driving force in place of the basso continuo from Baroque music.
Fantasia
The Fantasia is a genre without formal conventions, where the music typically lacks a central theme around which the work as a whole is organized and often opens with rhapsodic, somewhat improvisatory flourishes on a triad.
Ritornello
Literally, a “brief return”; musical idea that returns at several points over the course of a work, usually after contrasting material of some kind. The ritornello principle is the structural basis by which composers construct large-scale forms around successive returns of an opening idea. This principle is especially important in the genre of the concerto.
Empfindsamkeit
An expressive style that refers to the keen awareness of and empathy for the experience of others. Can be viewed as a reaction to the rationalism of 18th century Enlightenment.
C.P.E. Bach
1714-1788 the “Berlin Bach,” son of Johann Sebastian Bach, half brother to J.C. Bach, near contemporary of Gluck. C. P. E. Bach composed in almost all the same genres as his father, but was perhaps most prolific in his works for keyboard. These include sonatas, concertos, trio sonatas, and many individual pieces such as rondos, fantasias, and dance movements.
Notable Work: Fantasia in C Minor
J.C. Bach
1735-1782, the “London Bach,” son of Johann Sebastian Bach, half brother to C.P.E. Bach. J. C. Bach was renowned in his lifetime not only as a composer of keyboard music, particularly sonatas and concertos, but also as one of the leading composers of opera seria, of which he wrote more than a dozen. He wrote
symphonies, concertos, and much sacred music as well.
Georg Matthias Monn
1717-1750, composer, wrote many instrumental works that fall stylistically somewhere between Baroque and Classical, Symphony in B Major.
Johann Stamitz
1717-1757, the most prominent
composer for and musical director of the Mannheim orchestra, one of the first composers to write a symphony that used clarinets and among the first to consistently employ the four-movement format in his symphonies.
