Romanticism and MusicBy: Meghan, Britt, Carly, and Erica

How is Romanticism displayed in music?

• Emphasis on emotion and great freedom of form

• Romanticism also emphasized:– the individual– the subjective– the irrational – the imaginative– the personal – the spontaneous– the visionary– the transcendental

How is Romanticism displayed in music continued...• Composers pushed all instruments to the limits of

their expressiveness– Expanded the range to explore the entire chromatic scale,

and linked instrumentation with the human voice

• When a composition had words, the romantic influence can be especially evident– poetic texts, legends, and folk tales, and the linking of

words and music either programmatically or through forms such as the concert overture and incidental music is common

Comparing Music During the Romantic Era and the Classical

Era

Classical Era (1750-1820)

Characteristics:Simple melodies: “Sonatas” (one or two instruments)

Piano

Emphasis on balance, restraint, beauty, and eleganceHomophonic

Easily remembered melodies

Unexpected pauses, syncopations, and frequent changes from long notes to shorter ones

Popular Composers:Mozart, Beethoven, Joseph Haydn, Franz Schubert

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Ludwig Van Beethoven

Franz Schubert

Romantic Era (1850-1920)

Characteristics:Artistic freedom, experimentation, creativity, expressive, and nationalism

Contained warm, personal melodies; expressive indications, implied interpretive freedom and harmonic color

Color was intensified by improvements in instruments, particularly the piano.

Combined Romantic poetry with voice and piano waltz, mazurka, polonaise, and etude

Popular Composers:Brahms, Schumann, Chopin, Wagner, Bach

Romantic Era Cont.

MELODY: Long, lyrical melodies with irregular phrases; extensive use of chromaticism ; vivid contrasts

RHYTHM: Frequent changes in both tempo and time signatures.

TEXTURE: Almost entirely homophonic.

TIMBRE: A great variety of tone color; woodwind and brass sections of the orchestra increased; many special orchestral effects introduced; rich and colorful orchestration.

Johannes Brahms

Robert Schumann

Johann Sebastian Bach

American Involvement in Romantic Music

• There were several provident American romantic practitioners:– Louis Moreau Gottschak

• Pianist and composer• Born in New Orleans• Moved to Europe in 1942 and came back to

United Sates in 1953• 1960-1965 were most famous years• Known for combining African and Latin

rhythms with classical European style

American Involvement Cont.

• John Knowles Paine– First American-born composer to achieve

fame for his large-scale orchestral performances

– Born in Portland, Maine– In 1958 traveled to Germany to study

music– Came back in 1962 and became the first

professor of music at Harvard

America’s small involvement

• America had little involvement in the Music era of the Romantic movement

1. Industrial Revolution

– Happened at the same time (1820-1870)

– America was heavily involved in the Industrial Revolution

2. European Composers stayed strictly in Europe

-Most of the European composers didn’t travel on American Tours

-Most Americans didn’t know about movement until later on

American Involvement Cont.

• John Phillip Sousa– Born in Washington, D.C.– Started musical studies at around age 6– Didn’t travel to Europe to study music;

several European tours– Conducted the U.S. marine band

America’s small involvement cont.

3. During the Romantic period, American composers were still classical

-Before the Romantic music period was classical music period

-At the time that classical music period was over in Europe, just beginning in U.S.

-America was a celebrating classical music at time of Romantic movement

How did the music during the Romantic Era differ from the

music directly after it?

Romantic vs 20th Century

• Going from Romanticism to 20th century modernism was a change that

would forever change the course of history

Romantic vs 20th Century

• Stylistic Changes were being made in:– European Countries– Nonwestern Countries– America

• Paris was the center for music, art, and literature during the early years of this period– Impressionism evolved out of this during the

second half of the 19th century

Romantic vs 20th Century

• Impressionism– Reaction to Romanticism in France– Focused on suggestion and atmosphere

rather than strong emotion or the depiction of a story

– Less use of major and minor scales– Goes for a more dissonant sound (clashing

notes)– Longer compositions vs. shorter ones

Romantic vs 20th Century

• Expressionism was the German version of impressionism

• Typical instruments were:– Woodwinds, strings, piano, and small chamber

ensembles

• Nationalism-– This played a large part in romantic music, but not so

much in 20th century music, because it placed a large emphasis on the importance of local traditions and customs and 20th century music hardly emphasized this at all

Overall, the Main Differences…

• Less emotions, more how the world was actually perceived (impressionist music)

• Less spirituality, more focus on concrete things (neoclassicism)

• Less focus on melodies and rhythms (more diverse)

• Less of an interest in the past

Major Romantic Composers

Ludwig van Beethoven

1770-1827

Bonn, Germany

Deaf at age 28

Music writing techniques: Sloppy, always making corrections

Popular compositions: Eroica (third symphony), Beethoven’s Fifth, Fidelio

Famous Piano Sonatas: Pathétique, Moonlight, Waldstein and Appassionata

Felix Mendelssohn

February 3, 1809 – November 4, 1847

Hamburg, Germany

Conservative musical taste

Famous pieces:Wedding March

Violin Concerto in E Minor, op. 64

A Midsummer Night's Dream

Robert Schumann

June 8, 1810 - July 29, 1856

Zwickau, Germany

Inspired by Schubert and Mendelssohn

Famous pieces PapillonsCarnavalKreisleriana

Frederic Chopin

March 1, 1810- Oct. 17, 1849

Zelazowa Wola, Poland

Wrote his first composition at age 7

Famous PiecesPolonaiseNocturne Op9, No2 Funeral March

Johannes Brahms

• 7 May 1833 - 3 April 1897

• Hamburg, Germany

• Major creative block during the mid-1850s

• Famous Pieces• Double Concerto• Liebeslieder Waltzes• Academic Festival Overture

Works Cited

"Felix Mendelssohn (1809 - 1847)." MFiles. Music Files Ltd. , n.d. Web. 26 Apr.  2010. <http://www.mfiles.co.uk>.

"Frederic Chopin." 8notes. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Apr. 2010.       <http://www.8notes.com>.

"Johannes Brahms." Self Confidence or Modesty. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Apr. 2010. <http://www.mcs.csueastbay.edu>.

"Robert Schumann." Guitar Press. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Apr. 2010. <http://guitarpress.com>.

Works Cited

• "The 20th Century." Fine Arts Society. Fine Arts Society, 25 Apr. 2010. Web. 25 Apr 2010. <http://www.fasindy.org/education/twentieth/>.

Works Cited"The Classical Era." Think Quest. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Apr. 2010. http:// www.library.thinkquest.org

Criswell, Chad. "Romanticism in Music." Suite101. N.p., 16 Apr. 2006. Web. 30 Mar. 2010. <http://musicappreciation.suite101.com/article.cfm/thebirthofromanticism>.

"Romanticism in Music." InfoPlease. HighBeam Research, 2007. Web. 27 Mar. 2010.  <http://www.infoplease.com/ce6/ent/A0860800.html>.

"Romantic Music ." RP Fuller. Richard Fuller, 15 Feb. 2010. Web. 25 Apr. 2010. <http://www.rpfuller.com>.

"The Romantic Period." Mostly Wind. Carole B. Miller, 10 Feb. 2009. Web. 25 Apr. 2010. <http://www.mostlywind.co.uk>.

Schmidt-Jones, Catherine. "Music of the Romantic Era." Connexions. N.p., 19   Sept. 2008. Web. 28 Mar. 2010. <http://cnx.org/content/m11606/latest/>.

Works Cited

• Criswell, Chad. “Romanticism in Music.” Suite 101. N.p., 16 Apr. 2006. Web. 20 Apr. 2010. <http://musicappreciation.suite101.com/ article.cfm/ thebirthofromanticism>.

• Fuller, Richard. “Romantic Music.” Richard Fuller. N.p., 15 Feb. 2010. Web. 23 Apr. 2010.

• “Romanticism (music).” TalkTalk. Tiscali, 2010. Web. 24 Apr. 2010. <http://www.talktalk.co.uk/ reference/ encyclopaedia/ hutchinson/ m0019061.html>.

• Schmidt-Jones, Catherine. “Music of the Romantic Era.” Connections. N.p., 19 Sept. 2008. Web. 22 Apr. 2010. <http://cnx.org/ content/ m11606/ latest/>.