Romantic Terms

Question 0

Art Song

Answer 0

Song of serious purpose, applied to solo songs, leider

Ex. Schubert: Erkonig

Question 1

Aria

Answer 1

Lyric song, solo voice and orchestral accompaniment, found in operas, cantatas, and oratorio
Ex. Bizet: Carmen, Handel: Messiah

Question 2

Ballad

Answer 2

Short story in poem form, voice and piano narrative poems

Ex. Schubert: Erlkonig

Question 3

Bel Canto

Answer 3

Beautiful singing, elegant italian vocal style, melodic lines featuring elaborate ornamentation
Ex. Chopin: Nocturne in C minor, Op. 48, No. 1

Question 4

Character piece

Answer 4

Short lyric piano piece, popular in Romantic era, instrumental equivalent to song, definite mood or programmatic idea, prelude, impromptu, intermezzo
Ex. Chopin: Nocturne in C minor, Op. 48, No. 1

Question 5

Col Lengo

Answer 5

Italian for with the wood, using wooden part of bow instead of string for dry hollow sound
Ex. Berlioz: Symphonie fantastique

Question 6

Concert Overture

Answer 6

Single movement concert piece based on a literary them or idea
Ex. Tchaikovsky: 1812 Overture

Question 7

Dies irae

Answer 7

Day of Wrath, a section of the Requiem Mass, the Mass for the Dead.
Ex. Berlioz: Symphonie fantastique

Question 8

Durchkompiert

Answer 8

Through-composed form. Song structure that is composed from beginning to end, without repetitions or large sections. The music follows the story line according to the text, allows the composer to mirror every shade or mood in the words.
Ex. Schubert: Erlkonig

Question 9

Etude

Answer 9

French for study. An instrumental piece used to demonstrate or improve technique such as scales, arpeggios, octaves or trills. Chopin created etudes not only for study but for public performance as well. Combine technical difficulty with high artistic quality.
Ex. Chopin: Etude in C major, Op. 10

Question 10

Exoticism

Answer 10

Musical style in which rhythm, melodies, or instruments evoke the colour and atmosphere of far off lands such as Spain, Italy, Japan, China and Egypt. Popular feature in 19th century Romantic music.
Ex. Bizet: Carmen, Act I

Question 11

Folk Song

Answer 11

Song with unknown author, passed down orally from generation to generation, sung without accompaniment and often found in variations (of words and tune) in different parts of the region.

Question 12

Habanera

Answer 12

A slow Cuban dance song in duple meter that originated from Havana, based on characteristic rhythmic figure. It gained popularity in 19th century Europe and Latin America, and greatly influenced the Argentine tango.
Ex. Bizet: Carmen, Act I

Question 13

Idee Fixe

Answer 13

Term coined by Berlioz for recurring musical idea that links different movements of a work, though its appearances may vary in harmony, rhythm, tempo, meter, dynamics, register, and instrumental colour.
Ex. Berlioz: Symphonie fantastique (idee fixe symbolizes the beloved)

Question 14

Incidental music

Answer 14

A type of program music written to accompany the action in a play. It usually consists of an overture and a series of pieces to be performed between the acts of a play and during important scenes.
Ex. Mendelssohn: A Midsummer Night’s Dream

Question 15

Libretto

Answer 15

Text of and opera or oratorio
Ex. Bizet: Carmen
Handel: Messiah
Puccini: Madama Butterfly

Question 16

Lied (Art Song)

Answer 16

German for song. Solo art song of the 19th century in German. It was created by the union of poetry and music, usually accompanied by the piano. The texts of Lied range from tender sentiment to dramatic ballad. Themes include love, longing and the beauty of nature.
Ex. Schubert: Erlkonig

Question 17

Lyric Opera

Answer 17

Hybrid from combing elements of grand opera and opera comique, featuring appealing melodies and romantic drama.
Ex. Bizet: Carmen

Question 18

Mazurka

Answer 18

Polish folk dance in triple meter. Chopin’s mazurkas represent Polish nationalism.
Ex. Chopin:Mazurka in A flat major, Op. 7, No. 4

Question 19

Modified Strophic form

Answer 19

Song structure that combines features of both strophic and durchkompiert. The same melody may be repeated for some stanzas, with new material introduced when the poem requires it.
Ex. Schubert: The Trout (Die Forelle)

Question 20

Nationalism

Answer 20

A movement in the 19th century marked by the emphasis on national elements in music such ad folk songs, folk dances; or on subjects which reflected national life or history.
Ex. Chopin: Polonaise in A flat major, Op. 53

Question 21

Nocturne

Answer 21

Night piece. In the 19th century it refers to as a short piano piece suggesting night, quiet and meditative in nature. Chopin mastered it, his nocturnes are written with melancholy style, with expressive (sometimes bel canto) melody in the right hand, accompanied in the left by broken chords.
Ex. Chopin: Nocturne in C minor, Op. 48, No. 1

Question 22

Opera

Answer 22

A drama that is sung. It combines the resources of vocal and instrumental music with drama, acting, scenery and costumes. Components include: recitative, aria, ensembles, chorus, orchestra and libretto.
Ex. Bizet: Carmen
Puccini: Madama Butterfly

Question 23

Ophicleide

Answer 23

19th century keyed brass instrument with cup mouthpiece, obsolete, used in Berlioz, Mendelssohn, and Wagner’s music, superseded the tuba
Ex. Berlioz: Symphonie fantastique

Question 24

Ostinato

Answer 24

A short, melodic, rhythmic, or harmonic pattern that is repeated throughout a work or a section of one.
Ex. Chopin: Polonaise in A flat, Op. 53 (an example is the descending octaves in bass in Section B)
Bizet: Carmen

Question 25

Polonais

Answer 25

Stately Polish processional dance in triple meter popularized by Chopin’s piano pieces in which he found an outlet for patriotic feeling.
Ex. Polonaise in A flat, Op. 53

Question 26

Program music

Answer 26

Instrumental music with literary or pictorial association with the title of the piece or an explanatory note, program supplied by the composer. Four types of program music in the 19th century: program symphony, symphonic poem, incidental music, and concert overture.
Ex. Berlioz: Symphonie fantastique

Question 27

Program Symphony

Answer 27

Multi-movement programmatic orchestral work, typically from the 19th century. It is instrumental music with literary or pictorial association with the title of the piece or an explanatory note, program supplied by composer.
Ex. Berlioz: Symphony fantastique

Question 28

Romanticism

Answer 28

Used to describe literature or art in the 19th century. The term is applied to works written in the period 1825-1900 by composers such as Schubert, Chopin, Berlioz, Bizet, in which emotional and picturesque expression appeared to be more important than formal or structural considerations.
Ex. Berlioz: Symphonie fantastique

Question 29

Rubato

Answer 29

Robbed or borrowed time. A feature in Chopin’s music in which strict time is disregarded. The accompaniment (left hand) is played in strict time while the some notes in the melody (right hand) may be played quicker (robbed) but payed back (played slower) before the end of the phrase. The use of rubato gives music a quality of caprice.
Ex. Chopin: Polonaise in A flat, Op. 53

Question 30

Song cycle

Answer 30

Group of songs or usually Lieder that are unified musically or through their texts.
Ex. Schubert: Winterreise (Winter’s Journey)

Question 31

Strophic form

Answer 31

A song structure in which the same melody is repeated with every stanza or strophe of the poem. There is no real closeness between words and music, general atmosphere that suits well to all the stanzas, common in folk and popular songs. Simple and lyrical.
Ex. Schubert: Nachtgesang (Night Song)

Question 32

Symphonic poem

Answer 32

Created by Liszt to describe a large form of orchestra program music in the Romantic era. One movement orchestra work, free in form, based on literary, pictorial, or other non musical idea.
Ex. Debussy: Prelude a “L’apres midi d’un faune” (Prelude to the afternoon of a faun)

Question 33

Ternary form

Answer 33

Three part (ABA) form based on statement A, contrast B, and repetition A.  Common in Baroque, Classical, And Romantic periods in short pieces such as songs and dances.  Found in the second and third movements of the Classical and Romantic symphony, and the second movement of the Classical and Romantic concertos.
Ex. Berlioz: Symphonie fanatstique, Second movement, Third movement

Question 34

Virtuosity

Answer 34

A very high degree of skill in performing. Virtuosos (performers of incredible technical ability) like Pagini (violinist) and Liszt (pianist) even became stars idolized by the public.
Ex. Liszt: La campanella (The Little Bell)

Question 35

Waltz

Answer 35

Ballroom type dance in triple meter. Short stylized piece in Romantic era. Chopin’s waltzes capture the brilliance of the salon and show the composer to be a true poet of the piano.
Ex. Chopin: Minute Waltz