Music in the Romantic Era

1820-1900

Romanticism (also known as the Romantic Era or the "Romantic Period') was an artistic, literary and intellectual movement that originated in the second half of the 18th century in Europe, and

gained strength in reaction to the Industrial Revolution.

In part, it was a revolt against aristocratic social and political norms of the Age of Enlightenment and a reaction against the scientific rationalization

of nature. Romanticism was embodied most strongly in the visual arts, music and literature.

French RevolutionFrench Revolution

• was an influential period of social and political upheaval in France that lasted from 1789 until 1799.

•Inspired by liberal and radical ideas, the Revolution profoundly altered the course of modern history, triggering the global decline of theocracies and absolute monarchies while replacing them with republics and democracies

• Historians widely regard the Revolution as one of the most important events in human history.

French RevolutionFrench Revolution

•Abolition of the French monarchy

•Establishment of a secular and democratic republic that became increasingly authoritarian and militaristic

•Radical social change based on liberalism and other Enlightenment principles

•Rise of Napoleon Bonaparte

•Armed conflicts with other European countries

Napoleon Bonaparte

• “After the defeat of Napoleon in 1815, the monarchy was restored in France and the old aristocratic order returned.

• Revolutionary fervor and optimism gave way to disbelief and dissatisfaction and romanticism to a more realistic view of the world.

• People yearned for reform and a new society.

– The slogan of the French Revolution Ideals: Liberté, Egalité, Fraternité

= “Liberty,Equality, fraternity” inspired hopes and visions to which artists responded with zeal.

– Romantic times stressed: Individuality, Emotion, Imagination

Nationalism and the Spread of Democracy

• One of the most meaningful and definitive forces in the 19th century

• Throughout Europe people began to promote their own national identities and resist outside authority. This push for national identity created new countries (unification of Italy, formation of German empire, United States).

• The principles and practices of democracy were on the rise.

Social and Political Influences

• Industrialism– Occurred first in Britain– Power shifted from aristocratic landowners to middle

class city dwellers. – Populations moved from an agrarian center to an

urban center.

– Importance of nature. Romantics idealized nature in both visual art and music for its power, beauty and unpredictability

Caspar David Friedrich1774-1840

Inventions

The Arts in the The Arts in the Romantic PeriodRomantic Period

– Stressed Individualism and EmotionStressed Individualism and Emotion– Breaking away from rules and Breaking away from rules and

conventionconvention– Glorification of NatureGlorification of Nature– NostalgiaNostalgia– The Macabre and the supernaturalThe Macabre and the supernatural– Exotic InfluencesExotic Influences– RealismRealism

Romantic writers• The Romantic poets rebelled against the

conventional concerns of their Classical predecessors;

• One of the prime traits of all Romantic artist was their emphasis on intensely emotional expression. Another was their sense of uniqueness, their heightened awareness of themselves as individuals apart from all others.

“I am different from all the men I have seen“If I am not better, at least I am different”

” - Jean Jacques Rousseau

Literature and Writing

• Romanticism was born towards the end of the 18th century with the works of these two great German writers.

• Goethe wrote poetry, novels and plays; Schiller was a playwright. Both of their writings were used to express romantic fascination with emotion, life and death, sin and redemption, guilt and selflessness.

Friedrich von Schiller (1759-1805)

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832)

• Victor Hugo (1802-1885)

– French poet, playwright, novelist, essayist, visual artist, statesman, human rights activist

– Explored the Romantic theme of conflict between the individual and society

– Les Miserables, 1862

Dedicated “to the unhappy

ones of the Earth”

• Charles Dickens (1812-1870)

– English novelist and social campaigner– Novels are works of social commentary– Fierce critic of poverty and social stratification

• Karl Marx (1818-1883)

• German philosopher and economist• The ideas of Marx, while most influential in the 20th century , said that the history of society is one of struggle between the ruling class

(capitalists) and the working class (proletariat) who are being exploited.

• He predicted a revolution. • He believed in a society in which all people give according to their

means and take according to their needs.”

Art Song and Song Cycle

• Lieder, chansons, art songs

• Compositions for solo voice and piano

• Poetry and music are intimately fused

• Typical forms used: strophic and through-composed

Franz Schubert (1787-1828)

Austrian composerProlific and gifted composer who wrote 600 lieder, piano sonatas, character pieces, 15 string quartets, 9 symphonies

Erlkönig (1815) poem by Johann Wolfgang von GoetheThrough-composed form

Clara Wieck Schumann (1819-1896)

• German composer and pianist• Married Robert Schumann and

premiered many of his piano compositions

• Composed a piano concerto, piano trio, solo piano pieces and songs

• Romance

Painting• Eugene Delacroix (1798-1863)

– Leader of the Romantic movement, represented social concerns

Liberty Leading the People, 1831

• Camille Corot (1796-1875)

View Near Volerra, 1838

• Francisco Goya (1746-1828)

The Third of May, 1808

• Gustave Courbet (1819-1877)

Burial at Ornans, 1850

Romanticism in MusicRomanticism in Music

Musical Milieu (r)– Public and Subscription Concerts

– Founding of Conservatories

Improved musical instruments

• Strings

String sections increased in size and were given more difficult accompaniment parts (scales, arpeggios)

Woodwinds• Development of new instruments

– saxophone (baritone and tuba) were invented by Adolf Sax

– piccolo, bass clarinet and English horn were added.

• Important improvements in wind instruments– “Boehm system” of fingering for flutes and

clarinets achieved better facility and intonation for the performer and greater musical range created by inventor and flautist Theobald Boehm between 1831 and 1847

Saxophone

English Horn

Piccolo

Bass Clarinet

Percussion

• Expanded to include bass drum, snare drum, cymbals and other exotic percussion instruments (gong, castanets)

• Nationalists– Following the many wars and conflicts of the

19th century country boundaries in Europe became more defined. Nationalistic music (music that highlighted folksongs, dances, folklore) abounded. Most nationalistic music followed a more traditional pattern of composition and sound. Many composers utilized nationalistic melodies, dances and stories.

– Composer Examples: Smetana, Mussorgsky, Rimsky-Korsakov, Wagner, Chopin, Verdi, Puccini, Liszt

Composer

• Composers gradually left the patronage system and became free agents of their own works.

• This meant that the composer, their music and their livelihood depended on the public’s approval.

• For the first time, a composer’s work might not be publicly performed during his or her lifetime.

• Romantics saw themselves as outsiders, isolated from mainstream society, struggling to express their creative ideas.

• In general, composers held higher social status than in the Classical period.

Composers

• Traditionalists– Tended to compose in the style of their

teachers (classical era). While extending the elements of music, they rarely went outside of the norms.

– Composer Examples: Brahms, Tchaikovsky Schumann, Mendelssohn, Franck, Schubert, Chopin, Mussorgsky, Rimsky-Korsakov, Puccini, Fanny Mendelssohn Hensel, Clara Schumann

Conductor

• Resulted from the orchestras growth in numbers and complexity• Became necessary to have one person to lead and control the

orchestra

Performer

• Rise of virtuosic performers

• the public was captured by virtuosity and showmanship

Niccolo Paganini Franz Liszt

Frédéric Chopin (1810-1849)• Polish composer and pianist• Lived in Paris for most of his life• Associated with George Sand (Aurore

Dudevant)• The only major composer to have

completely oriented his creative life around the piano.

• Piano compositions are generally dances or free-form works (preludes, etudes, nocturnes and impromptus).

• Nocturne in E-Flat Major, Op. 9, No. 2, 1830-1831

• Night piece

Franz Liszt (1811-1886)• Hungarian composer and virtuosic pianist• Showman• Daughter married Wagner• Innovative composer both harmonically

and formally. • Used complex and unusual chords• Created the symphonic poem and utilized

thematic transformation (influenced Wagner)

• Composed two symphonies, symphonic poems, piano music, orchestral and operatic transcriptions

• Transcendental Etude No. 10 in F Minor, 1851

General Musical General Musical CharacteristicsCharacteristics

IndividualityIndividuality

Expressive Aims and SubjectsExpressive Aims and Subjects

Nationalism and ExoticismNationalism and Exoticism

Rise and Importance of Program MusicRise and Importance of Program Music

Brass

•Addition of valves and improvement to valves on brass instruments allowed the playing of a full chromatic compass for the first time and to more easily play quick runs of notes

•Tubas and Trombones were added

Vocal Genres

• Opera

• Music Drama

• Mass and Requiem

• Art Song

Art song

• An art song is a vocal music composition, usually written for one voice with piano accompaniment, and usually in the classical tradition.

• Art song can be traced back to the Medieval period but became especially popular during the Romantic era. Thus, it is considered a genre of Romantic music.

Art song song structure

• Strophic form – in which the same melody is repeated with every stanza, or strophe, of the poem

• – hyms, carols, and most folk and popular songs are strophic.

Art song song structure

• Through – composed form – the other song type, proceeds from beginning to end, without repetitions of whole sections.

• Modified strophic form – combines features of the other two. Same melody may be repeated for two or three stanzas

The Lied or lieder when referring to its plural form.

• Is a German-texted solo vocal song with piano accompaniment.

• Some composers wrote groups of Lieder that were unified by a narrative thread or a descriptive theme

• A song cycle is a group, or cycle, of individually complete songs designed to be performed in a sequence as a unit. The songs are either for solo voice or an ensemble, or rarely a combination of solo songs mingled with choral pieces. Ex. The poet’s love

Instrumental Music• Absolute music tended to reflect the Classical heritage of Mozart and

Haydn; it tended to be more traditional in compositional style and instrumentation

Symphony, concerto, sonata, string quartet

• Program music was compositionally guided by a story, poem, idea or scene; it tended to be more progressive in compositional style and instrumentation --music intended to convey an impression of a definite series of images,scenes, or events.

Program symphony, Tone poem, Symphonic poem

• Character Pieces

In contrast to the large instrumental genres, these were smaller pieces typically for piano called character pieces

Musical Elements

Melody– Age of lyricism– Highly important– Expression of personal feeling is the goal– Phrases tended to be longer and irregular in

length– Themes were more complex and utilized

chromaticism– Strong tied to harmony

Texture

• Essentially homophonic

• Vocal solo with expressive accompaniment

• Very rich and expressive harmony

• Feeling of heaviness and richness

• Melody and harmony just like coming deeply into your soul

Timbre

• Hugely important compared to other elements.• Composers give a lot of details.• Orchestra expand, tone color and expressiveness are

considered equal with form. “beauty of sound”• Piano is the most important single instrument• Solo voice and piano are very popular combination• Opera remains very important (golden age of opera)• Music is much difficult to play

Instrumentation

• This period saw a full exploration of the instrumental families.

• Instruments were used for both their individual and collective color potential.

• Instrumental timbre was used to convey mood and atmosphere.

• The orchestra became much larger – from 70 players to more than 100 (resulting in the necessity of a conductor).

• Instruments could play louder and carry farther. • Instruments were capable of major changes in dynamics.

Harmony• Basically tonal (tonal center can be easily

sense)

• There is a sense of scale

• Major and minor are slowly eroded because of extra notes that is thrown in.

• By end of the 19th century chromaticism (movement by half steps) stretched tonality to the breaking point

• Chromaticism imbued greater dissonance and tension into the sound

Rhythm• Fairly straight forward rhythms• Rhythmic effects were used for “color” – rubato

a fluctuation of tempo within a musical phrase often against a rhythmically steady accompaniment

• Irregular rhythms, unusual rhythm, become more complex.

• A new vocabulary of music terms arose that indicated how to achieve the composer’s desired sound – cantabile, dolce, con amore, allegro agitato. These designations produced a more emotional sound and response.

Rhythm

• A new vocabulary of music terms arose that indicated how to achieve the composer’s desired sound – cantabile, dolce, con amore, allegro agitato. These designations produced a more emotional sound and response.

Dynamics

• Gradual and frequent changes

• Much wider range – extremes of dynamic variation

• Used extensively throughout the compositions