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Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
•German writer and statesman
•His writings were incredibly influential on our Romantic composers •Already a celebrity by age 25 •Wrote: poetry, dramas, an autobiography, books about literature, 4 novels, and scientific books on anatomy, botany, and color -
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Antonio Salieri
He told his biographer, Mosel, in 1800 the following: “From that period [around 1800] I realized that musical taste was gradually changing in a manner completely contrary to that of my own times. Eccentricity and confusion of genres replaced reason and masterful simplicity.” Romanticism
–He said that “Eccentricity and confusion of genres replaced reason and masterful simplicity.”
•Symphonies with programs
•Sonata form distorted
•Operatic dramas intensified
•Etc. -
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Luigi Cherubini
Italian composer: French opera titled Lodoïska (1791) https://youtu.be/Ig-Kie3IIzM?t=1m6s •Plot: the defeat of oppression dramatized as a heroic rescue from enslavement and imprisonment
•This need to display liberty, equality,
and heroism fueled not only opera, but
music performances in general, and
not just in France, but in other parts
of Europe as well -
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Napoleon Bonaparte
Napoléon Bonaparte, usually referred to as simply Napoleon in English, was a French military and political leader who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led several successful campaigns during the Revolutionary Wars. He was the de facto leader of the French Republic as First Consul from 1799 to 1804. -
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Ludwig Van Beethoven
He is the transitional figure from the Classical to the Romantic style
•Composed all genres:
•9 symphonies
•1 (bad) opera
•Much piano music
•Lieder
•Many chamber pieces -
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Chancellor of Austria, Klemenz Wenzel von Metternich
Hosted the Congress of Vienna and was instrumental in shaping social activities
•The social activities fueled two new musical genres: the character piece and the Lied (song) -
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Industrial Revolution
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Alessandro Manzoni
Manzoni had a difficult life.
The early death of Manzoni's wife in 1833 was followed by those of several of his children, and then of his mother.
In 1837 he married again, to Teresa Born who also died.
Of the nine children born to him in his two marriages all but two pre-deceased him.
The death of his eldest son, Pier Luigi, on April 28, 1873, was the final blow which hastened the poet’s end;
he fell ill immediately and died of cerebral meningitis on May 22. -
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Carl Maria von Weber
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Carl Maria von Weber
The creator of German Romantic opera with Der Freischütz (The Free shooter or Magic Bullet, 1821) Wolf Glen Scene -
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The French Revolution
The “common” people saw themselves as empowered to break free from oppression •Nobility oppression of the commoners •The commoners revolted -
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Giacomo Meyerbeer
Jewish German composer who studied in Italy and composed French opera in Paris
Known primarily for grand opéras: Les Huguenots
Overture Act V – Ein feste Burg -
Gas Lighting invented
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Gioachino Rossini
Continued Mozart’s operatic style: THE most famous composer in Europe between 1815 and 1835 -
Paris Conservatoire
France founded the Paris Conservatory as a state institution for the training of musicians
•Replaced the training in churches and courts
•Cherubini was on the founding faculty and became its director in 1822 •In 1822, London opened its own music school called the Royal Academy of Music -
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Franz Schubert
Early romantic. Composed over 600 Lieder in his short life
•Composed 17 operas and Singpiele, 9 symphonies, 35 chamber works, 200 choral pieces, and more
•Son of a school teacher and taught school for a short while -
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Gaetano Donizetti
Wrote over 70 operas -
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Romanticism
a movement in the arts and literature that originated in the late 18th century, emphasizing inspiration, subjectivity, and the primacy of the individual. -
19th Century Salon
The Salon was a “drawing room” Like a parlor or formal living room; visitors would be greeted and entertained Friends would gather to play and sing They were present all over the world -
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Nationalism
Germany exerted its artistic superiority in Europe: other countries responded with ideas that promoted the worthiness of their own cultures (1840s-90s)
National “schools” sprung up in all non-Germanic European countries
Nationalism = a reaction against Germany by countries who wanted to proclaim their own nationalistic worth and patriotism in the face of Germany’s arrogant stance -
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Vincenzo Bellini
Famous for his opera Norma (1831) -
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Hector Berlioz
French composer, conductor, critic, and author
Innovator of orchestration techniques that created the modern orchestral sound
Wrote a treatise on orchestration -
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Fanny Mendelssohn
Older sister of Felix (1809-47)
They died the same year: she in the spring, he in the fall about 6 months later, both from a series of strokes
Given the same musical training as her brother: also a child prodigy
Goethe remarked that the siblings were equal in talent -
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Felix Mendelssohn
Early romantic. He was a famous conductor, pianist and composer, and founder of the Leipzig Conservatory. Felix was very important because he revived J. S. Bach’s music
Started an “old music” trend; Baroque choral-orchestral works by Bach and Handel again performed -
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Frédéric Chopin
Early romantic. Poet of the piano. -
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Robert Schumann
German composer, writer, pianist
Studied literature: founder and editor of Die neue Zeitschrift für Musick (The New Journal for Music)
4 symphonies, 300+ Lieder, a piano concerto, much chamber and piano music – and one bad opera -
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Franz Liszt
Early romantic -
War of 1812
The War of 1812 began as a result of American rights being infringed upon by the British. Though there was no clear victor, Americans felt a sudden burst of nationalism that lead to the American Romantic Period. -
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Richard Wagner
Wagner and Beethoven were the two most influential musicians in the 19th century Wagner’s musical innovations in harmony and orchestration revolutionized instrumental music and opera Born in Leipzig, Germany
Early 1830s: Began composing operas; had some positions with regional opera companies
1843: Appointed as the second Kapellmeister for the King of Saxony in Dresden
Led a colorful life -
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Giuseppe Verdi
The most important Italian composer in the mid to late 19th century
Primarily an opera composer
Composed a very popular Requiem, some other choral music, and 2 string quartets
Hailed as a hero of Italy and audiences yelled “Viva Verdi” at his productions -
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Richard Wagner
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The Congress of Vienna
Europe was reorganized in 1815, after agreements were reached.
–Here is what Wikipedia is good for.
–http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_congress_of_Vienna
•The Romantic era began without a unified Germany.
•As the century goes on, this becomes an issue, as some long for German unification -
Mary Shelley publishes Frankenstein
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Carlsbad Decrees
These decrees placed severe limits on freedom of expression by individuals (including artists) and institutions such as Universities and presses.
•Vienna was not a place in the 1820s that allowed any kind of artistic expression.
•Think about how this could have affected the emerging romantic style.
–Both Beethoven and Schubert were working there in the 1820s. -
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Clara Schumann (Wieck)
Early romantic. Clara: child prodigy, composer, and performer
Had already written the majority of her piano concerto by age 13
Toured throughout her life, often with her friend andviolinist, Joseph Joachim. -
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Clara Wieck
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Jacques Offenbach
Known for his opérettes: La belle Hélène, Orphée aux enfers -
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Bedřich Smetana
Bohemian
Best known for his programmatic cycle of 6 symphonic poems called Má vlast (My Country)
The Moldau is the second tone poem in this cycle -
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Stephen Foster
American song composer
He was the first American to make a living as a professional songwriter, although he died broke at the age of 37; a penniless alcoholic -
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Louis Moreau Gottschalk
American Nationalist
Born in New Orleans
His mother was from the Caribbean, and his father was of British Jewish heritage -
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Johannes Brahms
Brahms was the younger composer of the group
1853 (age 20): traveled to meet the Schumanns
This meeting began a life-long friendship German romantic composer
Continued the classical traditions, especially in form
A scholar; one of the first editors of J. S. Bach’s music In 1850 when certain composers in Germany wanted to honor Bach, they began a collected edition -
Electric Motor invented
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Georges Bizet
Blended styles into opéra comique with Carmen (1875) -
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Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Trained musically in the West: his Russian nationalist colleagues did not enthusiastically support him or his music
Composed 8 operas, 7 symphonies, 3 piano concertos, 1 violin concerto, symphonic poems, overtures, chamber, keyboard, choral music, and songs Composed symphonies and symphonic poems -
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Antonin Dvořák
Invited to come to America and head up the National Conservatory in New York City He took an interest in the United States’ folk music
Studied Black American cultures and music of the Native Americans -
Tone Poems Invented
Franz Liszt -
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Giacomo Puccini
Trained in music but wanted to follow his passion for the theater
Did not compose a lot of works, but they are treasured today
Puccini was the most important Italian composer after Verdi -
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Ignacy Jan Paderewski (first slide---with the hair, 1860-1941)
Polish pianist and composer Prime minister and foreign minister of Poland in 1919 Made a piano roll recording of this piece -
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Gustav Mahler
Most known as a conductor and secondly as a composer
Bohemian
Bridged the Austro-German romantic traditions of composing with the new modern styles in the 20th century
His music was neglected until after the end of WWII -
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Symphony No. 9 in E minor, From the New World
The symphony can be seen as a descriptive landscape
Dvořák composed a symphony “from the new world” that he was visiting
Imbued the symphony with the flavor of America as he saw it -
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Maximalism
Expansion: forms, genres, sizes of orchestras, melodies, thematic development, harmonies
Music was pushed to the limit without crossing the threshold of atonality or modernism
Mahler and Richard Strauss