Periods of Classical Music
Classical Music is art music rooted in the
traditions of Western Music.
Romantic and 20th Century
The Romantic Period
1820 - 1910
The Romantic Period
• Music begins to break out of the classical strictness, and
becomes more expressive and emotional. Rules get
broken and new ideas develop.
• The Romantic Period in music was related to
Romanticism, the European artistic and literary
movement that arose in the second half of the 18th
century, which was a revolt against social and political
norms.
• Traits of this time include a preoccupation with the past,
especially the middle ages and legends of chivalry, a
turn towards the mystic and supernatural, and a new
attention given to national identity.
Composers
Beethoven, Schubert, Mendelssohn,
Chopin,
Brahms, Strauss, Tchaikovsky, Debussy.
Wagner,
Verdi,
Modernism
The transition between Romantic and
20th century is known as Modernism.
We will not be studying it today.
20th Century
1901-2000
20th Century Music
• The 20th Century saw a revolution in music listening as the
radio gained popularity worldwide and new media and
technologies were developed to record, capture, reproduce
and distribute music.
• Music performances became increasingly visual with the
broadcast and recording of music videos and concerts.
Because music was no longer limited to concerts, operahouses, clubs, and domestic music-making, it became
possible for music to quickly gain global recognition.
• Music of all kinds also became increasingly portable.
Headphones allowed people sitting next to each other to
listen to entirely different performances or share the same
performance.
20th Century Music
•
20th Century music brought a new freedom and wide
experimentation with new musical styles and forms that
challenged the accepted rules of music of earlier
periods.
• The invention of musical amplification and electronic
instruments, especially the synthesizer, in the mid-20th
century revolutionized popular music and accelerated
the development of new forms of music.
• Music during this time period that was not popular or
sacred music is also referred to as “modern classical
music”.
20th Century
• Many composers reacted to the Post-Romantic and
Impressionist styles and moved in quite different directions;
two of these directions were atonality and neoclassicism.
• The single most important moment in defining the course
of music throughout the century was the widespread break
with traditional tonality, this is called atonality.
• After the First World War, many composers started
returning to the past for inspiration and wrote works that
draw elements from it. This type of music thus became
labeled neoclassicism.
Influences on Composers
• Music during this time was influenced by important
cultural trends; some composers were especially
impacted by communism and had to write music that fit
the style of socialistic realism, while others chose to
include political or nationalistic themes in their music.
• Impressionism (an emotional style of composing),
electronic music, and jazz-influenced compositions were
also important at this time.
Composers
Aaron Copland
Debussy
Shoenberg
Grainger
Stravinsky
Gershwin
Copland
Debussy
Stravinsky
Gershwin
Schoenberg
Grainger
Need to Know
• Approximate dates
• The Romantic period was very focused on expression and
emotional feeling in music.
• In the 20th century, radio and new technology made music
accessible to everyone, and music became more portable.
• Music during this time period that was not popular or sacred
music is also referred to as “modern classical music”.
• Neoclassicism – drawing elements from the past but
creating new music.
• There was experimentation with atonal music, this music
would not sound quite right to our ears.
• Order: Medieval, Renaissance, Baroque, Classical,
Romantic, 20th Century
Gershwin & Schoenberg Mash-Up