Romantic Era Part 3

Question 1

La Traviata genre, premiere date, translation of the title, source of text, librettist, structure

Answer 1

Genre- opera

Premiere date- 1853, at the Teatro La Fenice in Venice

Translation of title- The Lost One

Source of Text- a play by Alexandre Dumas

Librettist- Franceso Maria Piave

Structure- Three Acts

Question 2

Opera

Answer 2

a drama that is sung; combines vocal and instrumental music with drama (staging and acting), visual arts (costumes and scenery), and often dance

Question 3

aria

Answer 3

A solo song with orchestral accompaniment heard in an opera, oratorio, or cantata; highly emotional, often virtuosic

Question 4

bel canto

Answer 4

A style used in the early nineteenth-century Italian opera emphasized purity of tone and lyrical melodies of a highly ornamented nature

Question 5

libretto

Answer 5

The text of an opera, oratorio, or cantata, usually written by someone other than the composer

Question 6

recitative

Answer 6

A speech-like, declamatory style of singing heard in an opera, oratorio, or cantata

Question 7

Plot Summary of La Traviata

Answer 7

Violetta hosts a party, and she meets Alfredo Germont, one of her many admirers. Giorgio convinces her to leave his son alone to save their family’s reputation, Alfredo finds her gone, assuming she has rejected him. Alfredo arrives and confronts Violetta, humiliating her. She reaffirms her love for him. She dies shortly after learning Giorgio is prepared to give his blessing to her relationship with Alfredo.

Question 8

Giuseppe Verdi dates

Answer 8

1813-1901

Question 9

Giuseppe Verdi life

Answer 9

-Born in Roncole, Italy
-Father bought him an old spinet when he was seven
-Lived with Barezzi, gave singing and piano lessons to his daughter, Margherita, whom he later married
-Worked in Milan as a conductor at the Piccolo Scala
-Gave private lessons
-Endured the tragic death of his wife and two children
-Works were premiered all over Italy
-Died of a stroke, having a significant amount of money

Question 10

Giuseppe Verdi musical style

Answer 10

-Acknowledged as the greatest Italian composer of the opera in the 19th century
-colourful orchestration, use of special effects to heighten the drama
-Virtuoso coloratura arias with soaring melodies, spectacular runs, and vivid ornamentation
-diatonic harmonic language with moderate use of chromaticism
-Arias feature a structured approach: well-defined sections with balanced phrasing
-Librettos include love, passion, fate, intrigue, and courage

Question 11

Verdi compositions

Answer 11

Macbeth, Rigoletto, Otello, Messa da Requiem

Question 12

Music drama

Answer 12

A term used by Wagner to describe the synthesis of music and drama; served to distinguish his style from “traditional” operas of the day

Question 13

Gesamtkunstwerk

Answer 13

German for “total artwork”; an ideal expounded by Wagner in his writings; achieved through the perfect union of text, music, and stagecraft

Question 14

Leitmotif

Answer 14

German for “leading motive”; a device perfected by Wagner in his music dramas; a melodic fragment imbued with meaning, representing a character, place, object, or emotion; undergoes a transformation as the opera unfolds

Question 15

Die Walküre genre, premiere date, language, translation of title, structure

Answer 15

Genre- opera
Premiere date- 1870
Language- German
Translation of title- The Valkyrie
Structure- Three acts
Source of text- Fusion of Norse mythology and an epic medieval poem called the Nibelungenlied
Librettist- Wagner
Context- Second opera of the cycle Der Ring des Nibelungen

Question 16

Die Walküre plot summary

Answer 16

-Siegmund son of Wotan meets his twin sister Sieglinde
-Unaware that they are siblings, they fall in love
-Woton wants Valkyrie Brünnhilde to assist Siegmund in his battle against Hunding
-Wotan’s wife compels Wotan to punish the twins for their transgression: Siegmund must die in battle, and Brünnhilde cannot help Siegmund
-She defies the command, but Siegmund is slain
-Brünnhilde hides in the forest from Wotan, moved by her compassion, Wotan softens his punishment
-Wotan strips her of her divinity and puts her into a deep sleep
-He circles the plateau with magic fire, so only a fearless hero can one day rescue her and claim her as his bride

Question 17

Leitmotifs in Wotan’s Farewell to Brünnhilde

Answer 17

-low strings play the “slumber” Leitmotif in an ostinato-like matter
-the “slumber” Lietmotif is woven symphonically throughout the scene
-as Wotan kisses Brünnhilde, the “magic sleep” Leitmotif played by harp and woodwinds
-” Spear” Lietmotif is a bold, defending figure, played by trombones
-” magic fire” Lietmotif includes staccato sixteenth notes
-” Siegfried” Lietmotif, upward, thrusting theme by the brass
-” slumber” and “magic fire” combine and the curtain falls

Question 18

Richard Wagner dates

Answer 18

1813-1883

Question 19

Richard Wagner Early Years and Dresden Years

Answer 19

-His first profession was as chorus master for a theatre in Würzburg; he became music director for a travelling theatre company, accumulated heavy debt
-Married singer and actress Wilhelmine Planer
-Accepted a conducting post in Riga
-Engaged as a conductor at the court of Saxony

Question 20

Richard Wagner’s Exile Years to (Munich, Bayreuth, Final Years) Exile to Final Years

Answer 20

-Forced to flee from Dresden as a result of his political activism and revolutionary activities
-Romantically involved with Liszt’s daughter, Cosmia
-Moved to Munich at the request of his admirer, the teenage monarch, King Ludwig II of Bavaria

Question 21

Musical Style and Contributions Wagner

Answer 21

-Inspired by Norse mythology, Celtic legends, epic poems
-Wrote his own librettos
-influenced by Beethoven, the symphonic approach in operas
-chromatic harmony
-Leitmotif technique central to his operas
-Replaced the numbers approach

Question 22

program music

Answer 22

instrumental music with extra-musical associations (literary, poetic, visual)

Question 23

concert overture

Answer 23

A single-movement orchestral work with literary or pictorial associations; usually in sonata form and independent from opera or ballet

Question 24

Romeo and Juliet Overture: genre, premiere date, program

Answer 24

Genre- Concert overture
Premiere date- 1870
Program- portrays main characters and themes of Shakespeare’s tragedy Romeo and Juliet

Question 25

Romeo and Juliet Overture one note from each section

Answer 25

Introduction- begins in F sharp minor
First Theme- cellos play an agitated, syncopated melody
Bridge Theme- suddenly pp
Second theme a- Stated broadly by English horn and muted violas
Second theme b- gentle, pulsating melody

Question 26

Pytor Il’yich Tchaikovsky’s dates

Answer 26

1840-1893

Question 27

Tchaikovsky musical style

Answer 27

-embraced the symphonic forms and language of the Western European composers
-Russian folk music, dances, fables, and literature
-lyricism in his symphonies, operas, and ballets
-experimented with the structure of the symphony
-some works display virtuosity

Question 28

Verdi Compositions

Answer 28

28 operas including Macbeth, Rigoletto

Question 29

Wagner compositions

Answer 29

LIterary including art and revolution