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.
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, Federic Chopin and Robert Schumann.
Some works of Niccolo Paganini

Some works of Niccolo

Paganini:
FRÉDÉRIC CHOPIN
Frédéric Chopin was known as the "Poet of the
Piano".
He was born on March 1, 1810 in Zelazowa,
Poland. Federic 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 travelled to Europe giving
concert 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 eleganc.
Some of his compositions like mazurkas and
polanaise express his love for Poland.
FRANZ LISZT
The best word that describes the works of Franz
Liszt is "vistuosity". 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 im becoming a virtuoso pianist. He was known for his
symphonic poems where he translated great literary work into
musical compositions. He also made piano transcriptions of operas
and famous symphonies. Many of his piano compositions technically
challenging pieces.
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
foundes 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 Federic Chopin in Paris, France. In his journal,
Schumann often wrote under
two pseudonyms - Eusebius (his sensitive, lyrical side)
and Florestan(his fiery, stormy side).
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 "Fantastique Symphony",
Berlioz showcased the important features in his
compositions in creating tone color. He assembled
hundreds of musicans to produce a powerful sound.
In most of his compositions, he made tone color as
the basic part of his musical language.
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
hunting melodies and used a great deal of folk music
in his symphonic works. Unfortunately, there are very
few surviving manuscript written by Tchaikovsky. His
fame peaked in the last ten years of his life and later
died due to cholera.
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
pianist of his time, he sat very still at the Piano and played
gracefully and cool.
 Generalization
Romantic music refers to western music composed in the late
18th century to the 19th century. Composer 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.
Read the statement carefully, choose the letter of the correct
answers.
____1.Music of the romantic Era.
a. 1750-1900 b. 1820-1910. c. 1750-1820
____2.Frédéric Chopin wrote most of his piano for the following instrument.
a. violin. b. piano. c. Flute
____3.Second movement of Symphony Fantastique.
a. Reveries Passion. b. Ball. c. Scene in the county
____4.Composer of "The Nutcracker"
a. Berlioz. b. Saint-Saëns. c. Tchaikovsky
____5.He was known as the virtuoso pianist, a composer and the busiest musician
during the romantic era.
a. Liszt. b. Chopin. c. Schumann
____6.An instrumental composition of a pensive, dreamy mood, for the piano.
a. Muzurka. b. Noctume. c. Prelude
____7. Composer who was known for his Ballet music.
a. Berlioz. b. Saint-Saëns. c. Tchaikovsky
____8.Is an instrumental composition that conveys images or scenes to tell a
short story without text or lyrics.
a. piano music b. program music c. violin and strings music
___9.One of the famous Romantic composers that
beautifully combined music and words..
a. Liszt. b. Schumann. c. Chopin
____10.Which of the following is not a type of program music?
a.Song cycle. b. Symphonic poem. c. incidental music
THANKYOUU!