Music: Second Semester

1. The Romantic Period-1820-1900

- Personal expression- stressed emotion, imagination, and individualism

-passionate, stormy feelings

-�Realm of fantasy�- (unconscious, irrational, world of dreams) appealed to many artists -emphasis on self expression and individuality

-love was strongly sought after in songs (popular topic): usually, lovers are unhappy and face overwhelming obstacles (ex- Shakespeare�s plays)

-Nationalism- composers wrote songs representing their own national identity

-Wide Range of dynamics- includes much contrast between very soft to very powerful sounds

-Range of pitch also expanded- very high and low sounds (because of this, new instruments were made such as the piccolo and contrabassoon) going from PPP to FFF

-Length of compositions- widely varied

-short songs played by single instruments lasting 1 or 2 minutes (ex- Chopin)

-extremely long songs lasting hours played by huge number of performers

-Melodies- more expressive, lyrical

-Harmony- more colorful, unstable chords

-Tempo- fluctuations, use of rubato

-New Forms- miniative and menu

-Texture- homophonic

-Paris becomes the artistic capital of Europe during Romantic Era

2. Felix Mendelssohn- (1809-1847)

Biography-

• Dark eyes, intelligent, slim, Jewish, beloved by all who knew him

• Hometown Hamburg

• Family: Father was a wealthy banker in Berlin; mother wrote poetry, entertained artists, writers, musicians, read Greek &Latin; sister Fanny also musically gifted(practiced & studied long and hard with her)

• Cherubini- Parents got him best possible teachers for him who claimed he was very gifted; Mendelssohn�s father wanted to see how gifted he really was to took him to see Luigi Cherubini (musical head in Paris- his opinion was considered law). Cherubini was confident in Mendelssohn�s talent and urged him to study in Paris but his father brought him back home to find the best teacher in Germany

• �Der Freischutz�: as a child Mendelssohn heard this opera which was filled with realistic effects,  brought life to German forest, had strange mysterious music- mostly it evoked in the listener Romantic images- set Mendelssohn dreaming of his future music

• House: Mendelssohn�s father built a big mansion with a music room surrounded by gardens- hosted many Sunday afternoon musicales on gardens- here Mendelssohn (17 years old) wrote �Midsummer Night�s Dream� which served as overture for one of Shakespeare�s plays (big hit)

• Musical characteristic-  As in Midsummer Night�s Dream, Mendelssohn used another world, fairylike qualities in his music � all his music had sweetness, delicacy, and a refinement of good taste- composed Violin Concerto in E minor in same qualities

• Travel: Mendelssohn was constantly on the road-often traveled to Switzerland, France, Italy, England, Scotland- always took his paint box with him- put his experiences into music (Ex- Hebrides Overture, Fingal�s Cave-  sounds of ocean and the Reformation Symphony- used Lutheran chorales as a tribute to Martin Luther

• Moses Mendelssohn (Felix�s grandfather)- forced to live in Jewish ghetto, suffered anti-Semitism- succeeded to make himself respected member of society. Felix Mendelssohn was very proud of him and even though he was brought up as a Christian and married a Protestant, he never forgot he was Jewish and as a result wrote the oratorio Elijah showing greatness of Jews

• Leipzig- musical center of Germany- Mendelssohn went there to be conductor of the Gewandhaus orchestra- became a great success- instead of playing the piano or violin as orchestra leaders did before him, he stood up to conduct- 2 years later he founded  the Conservatory of Music�became the most famous school in all Europe

• Johann Sebastian Bach- forgotten and neglected until his time- Mendelssohn first discovered him when he was 12 when he found an autographed copy of St. Matthew Passion in a dusty heap of old manuscripts belonging to one of his teachers- his mother had music copied and gave it to him as a birthday present. In Berlin University, he heard his friend say that Bach�s music was like a math exercise- set out to correct him by organizing 16 friends with good voices into a choir to practice Bach�s chorales every Saturday night

• Bringing back Bach- They did so well that the leader of the Berlin Singakademie turned over his chorus to them and they began to rehearse Bach�s St. Matthew Passion- they sold out for their performance and Mendelssohn (22) was a big hit- thanks to Mendelssohn, Bach was reintroduced to the world after being forgotten for over 100 years

• Critics- not among the greatest European Musicians, but his music is sentimental- say that his life was too happy to give music depth and never achieved anything than his first hit Midsummer Night�s Dream

Definitions-

1. Concerto- a soloist + the orchestra

2. Cadenza- part of a movement of concerto where the soloist plays alone (orchestra stops playing) � the only time when a soloist can improvise and show his mastery and virtuoso

3. Incidental Music- instrumental, not vocal music, intended to be performs before or during a play (or 20^th century movie) � background music, sets the mood, highlights drama,

4. Overture- short piece of music before the body of the piece begins (plays the Theme!)

5. Music Score- music written for specific orchestra or movie- until 1800s no background music

6. Coda- ending based on theme A

7. Etude- music guideline- helps you learn the music

3. Frederic Francois Chopin- (1810- 1849)

�The poet of the piano�

• One of the greatest classical pianists- from Romantic period (classical music)

• Early years- born March 1, 1810  in Zelazowa Wola Poland- even before he was 6 Chopin loved music- very intrigued by sounds when his mother played piano- he began to play and his parents got him a piano teacher (age 7) (teacher made him do performances in first 2 years of lessons)

• Dual citizenship- born in Poland, citizen of France

• Famous musicians studied- Adalbert Zwyny, and through him he learned to admire Bach and Mozart- he enjoyed making up his own music and hated monotonous scales- found music theory very boring

• First Pieces- in first year of lessons composed and published short polonaise (slow dance in � time with qualities of a march)- same year composed a military march- at age 8 he had his first major concert- NEVER IMITATED OTHER PIANISTS- very original- had stage fright

• Paris- studied in Warsaw Conservatory for 3 years- then at age 20, left Poland to study in Paris (worlds intellectual, artistic headquarters- piano performances)- Chopin mingled with high status people in society (princes, ambassadors) � few close friends yet knew and was respected by everyone- first concert in Paris 1882- big success

• Piano teacher- through popularity and skill, established himself as piano teacher- many students- became very rich (charged 30 francs[nickel] a lesson) � taught exercises of Clementi and Bach- advanced students received exclusive Chopin methods � made them practice at least 3 hours a day in order to learn properly- taught them his pedaling, fingering, and rhythm methods

• Work- Some composers came close to duplicating Chopin�s technical manner but few had Chopin�s tonal quality. Chopin worked slowly, precisely, always refining music       -first to use all 5 fingers to play instead of 4

• Last Years- age 22 became ill with tuberculosis, which was incurable(spit blood, cough) lungs were then damaged by bad bronchitis- gave no concerts between Feb. 1842 and Feb. 1848- gave his final memorable performance in Paris � near death he could no longer compose music or play piano; became weak and depressed- died at age 39 on October 17, 1849

• Funeral- Mozart�s requiem was sung and the funeral march written by Chopin was played

Definitions-

1. Rubato- slight holding back or pressing forward of tempo to show changes in mood, or intensity of expression

2. Nocturne- a piece; a slow, lyrical intimate composition for a piano

3. Waltz- a dance in triple meter, smooth, flowing

4. Mazurka- a dance in triple meter, faster than a waltz- jumpier

5. Polonaise- a dance in triple meter which originated as a stately procession for the Polish nobility

4. Franz Schubert- (1797-1828

• Time Period: past century=rationalistic, versed in logic, math, science- now people went against these things and emotions �broke through barriers�- whatever was beautiful and strange was sought after- people began to listen to nature, read old tales and forgotten legends. Kings and Princes were no longer admired- rather geniuses and heroes (Napoleon considered greatest of them all) - talked of death (Poet Goethe wrote �him alone will I praise who living aspires to die by the fire�) - Musicians soon followed these poets- Beethoven was first with his powerful music.

• Schubert- had Classical and Romantic-�bridged� the two- short, fat stumpy and nicknamed �the little Mushroom�

• Hometown- Vienna- father was school master, mother was a cook

• Musical Education- Schubert�s father made sure he had the best musical education and sent him to the Viennese School for Imperial Choristers (aka Convict)- at first people made fun of him but soon admired him for his superb voice- made friends- as a farewell to the school he wrote his First Symphony in D Major with last line �finnis et fine�

• Very Poor- He tried teaching in his fathers school but he wanted to write music more than anything- hated teaching- very poor and publishers barely gave him money (only one public concert in honor of Beethoven�s death at end of his life which paid well but soon spent all of the money on friends)- friends paid for him to remain in Vienna

• Compositions- always composing- didn�t take off his glasses at night b/c he didn�t want to have to look for them in the morning- his friends convinced him to write an opera- Des Teufels Lustschloss but it wasn�t a success- he wrote many more songs which were dramatic but Schubert�s problem was that he didn�t have a sense of theater- Next year he wrote 3 more operas, 4 sonatas, 2 masses and 146 songs

• Der Erlkonig- In 1815 Schubert found Goethe�s poem Der Erlkonig which tells the story of a father riding through the forest with a sick baby and how they pursued the demon spirit. The boy has visions of the legendary Erlkonig who symbolizes death Schubert was fascinated by this strange and haunted poem and began writing words and notes to form his first lied or art song- with its words, melody and accompaniment it was a big success this motivated him to compose more (church music, operas, & cantatas�)

• Improving life- fortunes improved- many of his friends published his works through singing, playing or organizing parties for him called �schubertiaden-� he soon was able to travel to Austria a wrote a very successful piece called the Trout Quintet- he became very proud and sent 3 pieces to Goethe (who never acknowledged them)- didn�t have to work very hard on his pieces(came easily to him)- met with Beethoven but couldn�t converse with him because Beethoven was deaf

• Four Handed Pieces- like the sociability of 2 people sitting next to each other as they performed (never appealed to Beethoven)- wrote the Unfinished Symphony this way   -wrote songs that �transformed the keys into singing Voices�- some songs such as his sonatas require a mastered pianist (wanderer fantasy)

• The Unfinished Symphony- first romantic orchestral work- called unfinished because only has 2 movements- was put away in a draw and never heard for 43 years

•  Mood- dreaminess, yearning for some happiness that never domes- also capable of writing quick stepping sparkling music such as after Napoleonic times
  began combining many pieces of poems to form lieder(plural of lied), added in lines from Shakespeare

• Accompaniment- up to that time the harpsichord and piano accompaniment had little importance in relation to the vocals of the song- Schubert gave the piano equal status to the voice- his accompaniments became equal partners for the singer and in a sense summed up the story of the song in the concluding epilogues.  

• Older years- became sadder, usually hungry and poor, became ill, rejected, his mood reflected in his songs- died in 1828 at age of 32 while corrected a song (Die Winterreise- journey towards death of a heartbroken man)- after his death, his songs disappeared from the world- father and brother kept manuscripts hidden for they were modest and didn�t know what a musical genius he was-

• Later popularity- a friend named Schumann came to Vienna to visit the Schuberts- he admired Schubert�s work and when he found the great manuscripts he took them back to Leipzig where they were performed in the Gewandhaus with his friend Felix Mendelssohn conducting

Definitions-

1. lied- romantic art song filled with beauty with German text for solo voice with piano accompaniment (galloping horse?)

2. Strophic form- same music for each stage

3. Prelude- brief piano section that introduces the mood of the song

4. interlude- piano section between stanzas

5. postlude- piano section like an epilogue

Comparison of 3 composers�

Mendelssohn- wrote music in all forms except operas

Schubert- wrote music in all forms except concertos (over 600 songs)

Chopin- wrote exclusively for piano

Schubert- primary source of income was from his pieces

Chopin- primary source of income came from teaching

Chopin- never married; George Sand was pseudonym for his girlfriend�author

5. Program Music

1. Program Music- instrumental music (not Vocal) associated with a story, event idea, or scene. There is a descriptive title and program- the composer�s explanatory comments.

• Program Symphony- a symphony with a program and has 4-5 movements. There is a descriptive title and sometimes a subtitle

                        EX- Symphony Fantastique- by: Berlioz

                              Romeo and Juliet- by: Berlioz **note- there are two songs called                                             Romeo and Juliet, the other is further down by Tchaikovsky

• Concert Overture-one movement instrumental composition based on a story, usually written in sonata allegro form

                   EX- Romeo and Juliet by Tchaikovsky

                              Romeo and Juliet the Soundtrack

• Incidental Music- instrumental, not vocal music, intended to be performs before or during a play (or 20^th century movie) � background music, sets the mood, highlights drama

              EX- Wedding March (Midsummer�s nights dream) - Mendelssohn

• Symphonic Poem- a one movement composition associated with a story, poem, idea or scene, written in irregular form

                                    EX- Paul Dukas �The Sorcerer�s Apprentice�

                                           Rimsky-Korsakov- �Scheherazade�

2. Absolute music- non program music written for its own sake and not intended to tell a story

-orchestra made up of 100 people

6. Hector Berloiz-

- loved Shakespeare

-fell in love with an actress (unrequited love) and wrote an award winning symphony for her. She fell and became crippled- they got married- unhappy marriage

1. Program symphony � see above

2. Id�e fixe- a recurrent melody that represents Belioz�s beloved throughout the symphony-unifies the symphony

EX- Hector Berloiz wrote Symphonie Fantastique: (5 movements) Program Symphony

1. Berloiz falls in love with a woman, everywhere he goes, her face appears to him, he dreams about her at a ball.

2. Even in quiet countryside, he can�t stop thinking about her, fearing she is deceiving him

3. Tries to kill himself by taking Opium, dreams he has murders her and is watching his own execution

4. In his dream, ghosts, sorcerers and monsters joined by his beloved surround him for the funeral

7. Nationalism in 19^th Century

1. Nationalism- in music it is a deliberate intent to draw inspiration from a composer�s own homeland. Nationalism was a revolutionary movement which influenced romantic composers. They used folk songs and dancers, legends, poetry, and their own language in operas (not just Italian)

                        EX- Tchaikovsky: 1812 Overture, Symphony #4, 4 movements

2. Exoticism- drawing creative inspiration from cultures of lands foreign to the composer

                        EX- Rimsky-Korsakov- �Scheherazade�

8. Peter Illyich Tchaikovsky

1. Concert Overture-see above

2. Symphonic Poem- see above

9. Giuseppe Verdi-

-Verdi composed not for the musical elite but for a mass public whose main entertainment was opera. He composed passionate pieces almost all ending tragically. He is known for the expressive vocal melodies in his operas. Verdi composed Rigoletto when he was 37. It was his 16^th opera and was a big success. Unlike past pieces, here he translated human emotion and passion into beautiful melodies. It is Verdi�s earliest work in the standard repertoire, along with La Traviata, Aida and IL Trovatore.

-In 1850 when the Treato la Fenice in Venice asked Verdi for a new opera he adopted a melodrama by the French playwright Victor Hugo called Le Roi s�amuse, where the king almost victimized by his hunchback jester was supposed to be Francois I of France. The play provoked a scandal because the police feared that a plot showing a monarch in bad light might provoke bad things. Verdi had to change the names of his characters so the king became the Duke of Mantua, a character in the play.

-The play was introduced in Venice on March 11, 1851 and became a big hit. It was a huge surprise in that no one had heard the music before the show. (Verdi realized how great the music was and only introduced it to the man singing it 2 days before the show.). It has remained among the most popular operatic arias.

The Rigoletto- (1851)

Summary:

Verdi dared to create an operatic hero out of an old hunchback, a court jester, named Rigoletto- who loved his daughter, Gilda more than anything. Rigoletto�s master, the Duke of Mantua, has won Gilda�s love when posing as a poor student. He seduces Gilda causing Rigoletto to plot his death. Gilda loves the Duke and sacrifices herself to save him.

Act by Act:

Act 1- Strolling among the courtiers, the Duke of Mantua boasts of his greatness. The Rigoletto suggests that his master win the beautiful Countess Ceprano by imprisoning her husband. Sir Ceprano vows revenge on Rigoletto�s wife. When an old noble, Monterone, denounces the duke for seducing his daughter, he is mocked by Rigoletto, sure that his master will protect him. Monterone is lead away to prison and curses Rigoletto.

Act2- Worrying about the curse, Rigoletto returns home lat at night to his home where he has hidden his beautiful daughter Gilda. We see on his way home Rigoletto�s harsh and cruel manner, when he dismisses Sparafucile, a professional assassin. However, when he gets home his manner becomes softer.  Gilda begs her father to tell her the story of her mother who died long ago. Rigoletto tells his daughter of her mother�s greatness and says that she is all he has left. Fearing her safety, he commands Gilda�s nurse Giovanna not to allow anyone into the house. As Rigoletto leaves the house, the Duke slips past him, bribes the nurse to allow him to enter, telling her that he is a poor student names Gualtier Malde. She falls in love with him and soon he must leave. Meanwhile, the courtiers provoked by Ceprano, stop Rigoletto in the street asking him to help them abduct Ceprano�s wife. Rigoletto allows them to mask his face but they blindfold him instead. The courtiers brake into his house and steal Gilda. Rigoletto frantically searches her room and finding no one, returns in anguish.

Act 3- The Duke paces the palace wondering if his courtiers will bring Gilda to him. He learns that they have brought her to his chamber and he rushes to her. Soon, Rigoletto arrives searching for Gilda, who he confesses is his daughter. Gilda appears and runs in shame to her father to confess her love for the Duke. The enraged Rigoletto swears to take revenge and Gilda out of love begs for the Duke�s pardon.

Act 4- On a dark night, Rigoletto and Gilda wait outside a lonely inn to which Sparafucile (the professional assassin) and his sister Maddalena, lures their victims. Rigoletto forces Gilda to watch the Duke, disguised as a soldier, make love to Maddalena. While Maddalena leads her victim on, Rigoletto tells Gilda to go home and dress herself as a boy and meet him in Verona. He then pays Sparafucile to murder the Duke and leaves. As a storm comes, Gilda overhears Maddalena urges her brother to spare the handsome Duke and kill Rigoletto instead. Sparafucile refuses because that would be unprofessional but tells her that he will spare the Duke and kill the next person to enter the inn instead. Gilda, glad to sacrifice herself to save the Duke, knocks on the inn door in the stormy night and is stabbed. Rigoletto returns to collect the body of the Duke but suddenly hears the Dukes voice in the background and opens the bag with the body. He sees his daughter�s crumpled body. Asking for forgiveness, Gilda tells her father she goes to join her mom in heaven. When she dies, Rigoletto cries that Monterone�s curse has been fulfilled.

R= Romanism

C=Classicism

• impartial approach; reality rather than illusion-C

• aristocratic patronage of the arts-C

• emphasis on balance and clarity of structures-C

• emotional subjectivity; fantasy-R

• interest in the strange and the unknowns-R

• wide range of emotional expression-R

• nationalism-R

• traditionalism; adherence to established methods-C

• enthusiasm for the culture of the Middle Ages-R

• exoticism-R

• belief in the supernatural; personification-R

• art and culture of ancient Greece as a basic influence-C

• brilliant colors and dynamic motion-R

• emotional restraint and �good taste�-C

• nature as the mirror of the human heart-R

• frequently autobiographical-R

• period of the industrial revolution-R

• individualism-R

• faith in the power of reason-C

• period of the American and French Revolution-C

10. Impressionism

�         Impressionism- a style in art and music which stresses misty atmosphere, fluidy (water), & tone color.

- It originated in France.

-Main composers: Debussy & Rowel

-used dissonant chords that do not resolve themselves & whole tone scale- a scale made up of whole tones in which there is no main tone (tonic)

-Large orchestras that surround the conductor in a semicircle

11. Claude Debussy- 1862-1918

�         Whole Tone Scale- a scale made up of whole tones that doesn�t have a main tone

(Tone- A sound with a definite pitch and is produced in regular vibrations)

12. Maurice Ravel 1875-1937

�         Ostinato- a short melody or rhythm repeated persistently throughout a section of music (EX- Bolero by Maurice Ravel)

�         Scale- a group of notes (from 5-12 or more in Arabic music) in ascending order or descending order- ( basically a group of notes that follow each other by going up/down)

-Bolero-composition was based on one rhythmic pattern repeated over again throughout the piece and in 2 forms of 1 melodic idea- very passionate, rich

(Types of scales-

-major/minor- 7 notes played on the white keys, starting on C

-Penatonic- 5 notes played on black keys

-Whole time- 6 notes (C, F, G, G...)

-Chromatic- 12 notes- play every white/black key in a row

16. The Twentieth Century (1900-the present)

-1^st 15 years- people felt like they were still in 19^th century- no changes occurred

-1^st half of the 20^th century- changes took place �

            EX- WWI- stopped ideas of 19^th century-

-After that the 20^th century really began:

• Music- reflected the disorder of the time- it no longer tried to �please� the audience- it was composed to excite people & make listeners sit up and notice the music
  - fast pace
  -used new instruments- drums
  -Amplification- makes louder noises (19^th century amplification was to include more people in orchestra, now there is louder music & electronics to do that)
  -More fundamental changes in 20^th century years than in any time since Baroque period

• Events affected music: WWI, October Revolution, WWII, inventions & discoveries(radio, gramophone, cars, telephone, movies, photography), changes in the economy, technology(space age, computers)

• Story lines began to changes- famous riot occurred in Paris in 1913 (early 20^th century) at the premier of �The Rite of Spring� by Stravinsky. It was about sacrifices and a beautiful girl who dances until her death. People hated it & threw things & screamed

Common critiques-

- �cruel dissonance

-�from the 1^st measure to the last measure, whatever note one expects to hear is never the one that comes�

-�hideous sounds is a mild description�

Techniques-

(In tonal Music-you can hear what the next note will be.)

�         Atonal where you have no idea where the note will go.

�         Polytonal- two tones are played in two different chords

�         Polychord- 1 chord that is consonance and another chord played with the first chord forming dissonance (unpleasant sounds)

-All of these techniques were used to wake people up.

Characteristics of 20^th century music:

1.   rhythm- uneven rhythms, changing meters

2.   melody- difficult to sing

3.   harmony- clash of many sounds

4.   tone color- new instruments

5.   orchestra- unusual ensembles

14. Igor Stravinsky (1882-1971)

-Neoclassicism- an artistic movement in 1920s-1950s which is characterized by emotional restraint, balance, clarity; Neoclassic composers favored polyphonic textures but used 20^th century harmonies &rhythm

• polychord- a combination of 2 different chords

• polyrhythm- two or more contrasting rhythms played at the same time

• polymeter- several different meters used at the same time

• polytonality- two or more tonal centers used at the same time

15. Arnold Schoenberg (1874-1951)

-Expressionism- An artistic movement centered in Germany and Austria 1905-1925. It stresses intense, subjective emotions, & explored inner feeling rather than showing outward appearances- They used intentional distortions to assault and shock their audiences & bring tension. They rejected the normal �prettiness�. Expressionism was concerned with social protest & often showed the horrors of war.

                        EX- art- The Scream by E. Munch
                              music- Survivor from Warsaw by A. Schoenberg

• 12 tone system- a system which gives equal importance to each twelve chromatic(12 tones played on black & white keys) tones

• tone row- set or series of a special ordering of the 12 chromic tones

• atonality- the absence of the main key

• Sprechstimme- a style of vocal performance halfway between singing & speaking

A survivor from Warsaw-

- Dramatic cantata for a narrator, male chorus, & orchestra

-deals with the Holocaust & 6 million Jews that died by Nazis

-Story based on a survivor of Warsaw Ghetto- over 400,000 died there

-narrators text= written in English except for the Nazi commands shouted in German & includes the last sentence of Shemah Isroel in Hebrew= the 3 languages in his life

-narrators part= Sprechstimme- � speaking � singing

- 6 minutes building up to last intense sentence of male singers singing Shemah Isroel

- example of a 12 tone composition-

-new instruments- trumpets, military drums, high xylophone

Song

-Opening: with a brief orchestral introduction- captures nightmarish atmosphere in ghettos as Nazis transported Jews to death camps

-music is identical to the mood- EX- Nazi shouts= loud fast powerful music

-if the song weren�t so intense and dramatic- you wouldn�t hear the feeling/ugliness behind it all- instead it would be a pretty, sad song

Other 20^th century composers

• George Gershwin (1898-1937)

• Aaron Copland (1900-1990)

• Leonard Bernstein(1918-1990)

• Louis Armstrong (1901-1971)