MUSIC OF THE ROMANTIC PERIOD

MUSIC OF THE ROMANTIC PERIOD 1820-1910

Romantic Period is described as a cultural movement that stressed emotion, imagination,
individualism and freedom of expression. These characteristics are evident in music, art and literature
of the era.
Nationalism was also incorporated in the music of the Romantic period. Nationalism in terms of being
patriotic, having a strong feeling for one's nation, and expressing excessive pride in one's country or
culture.
Most of the musical compositions of the era portray literature, history, emotions, and nature.
THREE GENRES OF ROMANTIC PERIOD
-Violin and Strings -Music Piano Music -Program Music
VIOLIN AND STRINGS MUSIC
NICCOLO PAGANINI
He was born on October 27, 1782, in Genoa, Italy. His musical skills started with playing the
mandolin at the age of five. He eventually transferred his training to the violin at the age of seven with
different violin professors in Italy. Paganini became the most famous violin virtuoso in the world. His
compositions inspired a lot of other composers such as Franz Liszt, Frederic Chopin and Robert
Schumann.
Some Works of Niccolo Paganini:
"La Campanella"
24 Caprices for Solo Violin, Op. 1
Concerto No. 1 in Eb, Op. 6
15 Quartets for Guitar and Strings Trio
"The Carnival of Venice"
PIANO MUSIC
Pertains to the sheet music to be played on a piano. Piano music of the Romantic period was filled
with innovations. Most of the compositions require a high level of virtuosity. Some were reinventions
of sonatas from the Classical era. Today, some piano compositions from the Romantic period have
been adapted into songs. An example of this is Chopin's Etude Op. 10, No. 3 in E major that was used
for the song "No Other Love”.

FREDERIC CHOPIN
Frederic Chopin was known as the "Poet of the Piano". He was born on March 1,1810 in Zelazowa,
Poland. Frederic Chopin began to play piano at age 4. He composed polonaise at the age of 7. He
studied piano at Warsaw Conservatory and most of his music was influenced by folk music. He
finished his formal education at the higher school in 1829 and soon traveled to Europe giving concerts
in places such as Vienna, Munich, Paris, and London. He wrote almost exclusively for piano. He
made extensive use of piano pedal in most of his compositions.
Some of his music is characterized by its beautiful tone, rhythmic flexibility, grace and elegance.
Some of his compositions like mazurkas and polonaise express his love for Poland.
Chopin is famous for the following:
BALLADE- a verse form or narrative that is set to music
ETUDE -a piece composed for the development of a specific technique.
MAZURKA - a Polish dance in triple time signature
NOCTURNE - an instrumental composition of a pensive, dreamy mood, for the piano
POLONAISE - a slow Polish dance in triple time that consists of a march or procession.
PRELUDE-a short piece of music that can be used as a preface, and introduction to another work or
may stand on its own
WALTZ-a German dance in triple meter
IMPROMPTU-a short free-form musical composition usually for a solo instrument, like the piano
SCHERZO-a musical movement of playful character, typically in ABA form
SONATA-composition for one or more solo instruments usually consisting of three or four
independent movements varying in key, mood, and tempo
FRANZ LISZT
The best word that describes the works of Franz Liszt is "virtuosity". He was known as the virtuoso
pianist, a composer and the busiest musician during the romantic era. He played and studied in Vienna
and Paris while performing in concerts in the rest of Europe.
A turning point came when, in his early twenties, Liszt heard the virtuoso violinist Niccolo Paganini
perform so he decided to dedicate himself in becoming a virtuoso pianist. He was known for his
symphonic poems where he translated great literary works into musical compositions. He also made
piano transcriptions of operas and famous symphonies. Many of his piano compositions are
technically challenging pieces.

Some of Liszt's PIANO WORKS:

La Campanella
Liebestraume No. 3
Liszt's "Hungarian Rhapsodies" were originally written for solo piano, but many were arranged for
orchestra or other combinations of instruments. The Hungarian Rhapsody No.2 is the most popular
and was the basis for the Tom & Jerry cartoon called the Cat Concerto.
Un Sospiro
Sonata in B Minor
Arrangements of the 9 Beethoven Symphonies
Transcriptions of Lieder by Schubert
ORCHESTRAL COMPOSITION:
Symphonic Poems (Hamlet, Les Preludes)
ROBERT SCHUMANN
One of the famous Romantic composers that beautifully combined music and words is Robert
Schumann. He was a composer and music critic. He spent most of his time with musical and literary
circles thru the effort of Friedrich Wieck who took some time to teach Schumann how to play the
piano.
It was in 1834 when Schumann founded a music journal wherein, he edited and wrote music criticism
for his publication. He wrote numerous write-ups and one of which was the performance of Frederic
Chopin in Paris, France. In his journal, Schumann often wrote under two pseudonyms - Eusebius (his
sensitive, lyrical side) and Florestan (his fiery, stormy side).
PIANO WORKS:
"Abegg Variations," Opus 1(1830)
"Davidsbundlertanze" ("Dances of the Band of David"), Opus 6 (1837)
"Carnaval," Opus 9 (1835) - a portrait of a masked ball attended by his allies and his beloved Clara
"Phantasiestucke," Opus 12 (1837) - a series of mood pieces
"Kreisleriana," Opus 16 (1838) - a fantasy on the mad Kapellmeister
"Kinderszenen," Opus 15 (1838) - a poetic series of evocations of a child's world
He wrote over 100 ART SONGS. Some of which are:
"Frauenliebe und Leben" ("A Woman's Love and Life")
"Dichterliebe" ("A Poet's Love")
ORCHESTRAL MUSIC
"Piano Concerto in A Minor," Opus 54
"Overture, Scherzo
"Finale," Opus 52 (a mini symphony)
"Konzertstuck in F Major for Four Horns and Orchestra," Opus 86
PROGRAM MUSIC is an instrumental composition that conveys images or scenes to tell a short
story without text or lyrics. It entices the imagination of the listener.
HECTOR BERLIOZ
Hector Berlioz is a French romantic composer born on December 11, 1803. At his young age, he
learned to play guitar and flute but never became skilled in a specific musical instrument.
One of his famous musical compositions is a five-movement symphony called "Symphony
Fantastique". In this composition which is also known as "Fantastic Symphony", Berlioz showcased
the important features in his composition in creating tone color. He assembled hundreds of musicians
to produce a powerful sound. In most of his compositions, he made tone color as the basic part of his
musical language.
STORY OF SYMPHONIE FANTASTIQUE:
A young, extremely sensitive and imaginative musician tries to kill himself with opium due to
depression caused by discouraged love. Unfortunately, the dose was not enough and does not kill him
but instead, plunges him into a heavy sleep flocked with nightmares. His experiences, feelings and
memories are translated into hallucinations of musical thoughts and images. The girl he loves was
transformed into a melody and like a recurring theme, he meets and hears everywhere. Each
movement of the symphony refers to a different vision in the young musician's mind.
PETER ILYICH TCHAIKOVSKY
Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky who was born on May 7, 1840, in Votkinsk, Russia, was known for his
ballet music. As a big fan of Mozart, Tchaikovsky studied composition with Anton Rubinstein and
moved to Moscow and started teaching at the new conservatory.
He continued his music career in New York and became famous after composing the musical poem
"Fatum" and "Romeo and Juliet”. He composed haunting melodies and used a great deal of folk music
in his symphonic works. Unfortunately, there are very few surviving manuscripts written by
Tchaikovsky. His fame peaked in the last ten years of his life and later died due to cholera.
Tchaikovsky's Famous Compositions:
Swan Lake
Sleeping Beauty
The Nutcracker
Romeo & Juliet
1812 Overture
Symphony No. 2
Symphony No. 6 "Pathetique"
Piano Concerto No. 1
CAMILLE SAINT SAËNS
Camille Saint-Saëns was known as a talented musician from an early age. He was born in Paris on
October 9, 1835 and started his music through the help of his aunt by teaching him piano lesson when
he was only two years old and afterward, he began composing piano piece at age three.
He was considered as a composer who creates elegant music, neat, clean, polished and never
excessive. One of this is example is "The Swan". As an organist and one of the best pianists of his
time, he sat very still at the piano and played gracefully and cool.
Best known music of Camille Saint-Saëns:
Carnival of the Animals
Danse Macabre and his Symphony No. 3
The Swan
Over 300 works, unusually in all genres, including
3 operas (Samson and Delilah the only one remembered)
5 Symphonies (best known No. 3 the Organ Symphony)
3 concertos for violin and orchestra
5 concertos for piano and orchestra
2 concertos for cello and orchestra
organ music
numerous pieces for the piano
approximately 100 songs
chamber music
sacred music including a Requiem
Generalization
Romantic music refers to Western music composed in the late 18th century to the 19th century.
Composers and artists believed in letting their imagination and passion be seen through their works.
Ludwig Van Beethoven bridged the music from Classical to Romantic era by expressing his passion
and emotions through his music. Other composers were inspired by this musical style that they started
to use music as a means of expressing their emotions and individuality.
As the century progressed, music became increasingly available and popular among the middle class.
Concert halls provided venues for musical performances, and instrumental music was available to a
wide audience.