The Music of the Romantic Era
Historical Background
 Music is affected by many things; ideas, attitudes, discoveries,
inventions, and historical events can change music of the times.
 For example, the "Industrial Revolution" was gaining steam
throughout the nineteenth century. This had a very practical
effect on music: there were major improvements in the
mechanical valves and keys that most woodwinds and brass
instruments depend on. The new, improved instruments could be
played more easily and reliably, and often had a bigger, fuller,
better-tuned sound. Strings and keyboard instruments dominate
the music of the Baroque and Classical periods, with small
groups of winds added for color. As the nineteenth century
progressed and wind instruments improved, more and more
winds were added to the orchestra, and their parts became more
and more difficult, interesting, and important.
 As in any time of change, new musical techniques came
about to fit in with the current trends. Composers began to
experiment with length of compositions, new harmonies,
and tonal relationships. Additionally, there was the increased
use of dissonance.
 :tones sounding simultaneously are said to be dissonant if they
produce an unpleasant effect
New Musical Forms
 Symphonic Poem,: an orchestral work that portrayed a
story or had some kind of literary or artistic background to it.
 Art Song, :a vocal musical work with tremendous emphasis
placed on the text or the symbolical meanings of words within
the text.
 Programme music : music that tells a story or describes a
scene.
 Another social development that had an effect on music was
the rise of the middle class. Classical composers lived on the
patronage of the aristocracy; their audience was generally
small, upper-class, and knowledgeable about music.
 The Romantic composer, on the other hand, was often
writing for public concerts and festivals, with large audiences
of paying customers who had not necessarily had any music
lessons. In fact, the nineteenth century saw the first "pop
star"-type stage personalities. Performers like Paganini and
Liszt were the Elvis Presleys of their day.
Brahms
 The son of a double bassist in the Hamburg Philharmonic
Society, Brahms demonstrated great promise from the
beginning. He began his musical career as a pianist,
contributing to the family coffers as a teenager by playing in
restaurants, taverns, and even brothels.
 Brahms composed for piano, chamber ensembles, symphony
orchestra, and for voice and chorus. A virtuoso pianist, he
premiered many of his own works; he also worked with the
leading performers of his time, including Robert and Clara
Schumann.
 Brahms became a close
Friend of the Schumann
family and supposedly helped
Clara raise her children after
Roberts mental breakdown.
Facts:
 Born: May 7, 1833 – Hamburg
 Died: April 3, 1897 - Vienna
 During his teenage years Brahms was described as , having
long fair hair, blue eyes, slender, and a high voice; he was
often mistaken for a girl.
 Brahms was given an honorable grave site next to Beethoven
and Schubert; two composers he greatly admired.
 Brahms’ parents married in 1830. His father was 24 and his
mother was 41.
Works
 Brahms - Violin Concerto in D major
 Brahms, Hungarian Dance No. 5
 Wondrous Cool
 Lullaby
Franz Liszt
 October 22, 1811 – July 31, 1886
 Liszt became known throughout Europe during the romantic
era for his skill as a pianist. Supposedly he played with such
passion that women would faint during his performances
 He was said by his contemporaries to have been the most
technically advanced pianist of his age and perhaps the
greatest pianist of all time.
 One of his most notable contributions was the invention of
the symphonic poem.
The effects Paganini
 After attending an April 20, 1832 concert for charity, for the
victims of a Parisian cholera epidemic, by Niccolò Paganini,
Liszt became determined to become as great a virtuoso on
the piano as Paganini was on the violin.
Works
 Totentanz
 Mazeppa, Symphonic Poem
 Orpheus
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
 A Russian composer, his wide ranging output includes
symphonies, operas, ballets, instrumental and chamber
music. He wrote some of the most popular concert and
theatrical music in the classical repertoire, including the
ballets Swan Lake, The Sleeping Beauty and The Nutcracker, the
1812 Overture.