Music in the Renaissance (1450
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Transcript Music in the Renaissance (1450
The Classical Style (17501820)
Background
belief in progress
reason, not custom or tradition, was the best
guide for human conduct
middle-class vs. aristocracy
American & French Revolutions
changes in visual art
rococo: light colors, curved lines, graceful
ornaments
neo-classical: firm lines, clear structure, moralistic
subject matter
The Classical Style (1750-1820)
Changes in music
Preclassical period (ca.1730-1770) - transitional
Carl Phillip Emanuel Bach (1714-1788)
Johann Christian Bach (1735-1782)
style galant: concentration on simplicity and clarity
Classical
term borrowed from visual art
refers to influence of Greek and Roman models
no such reference in music
Characteristics of Classical Style
Contrast of mood
Flexibility of rhythm
Basically homophonic texture
Balanced, symmetrical, tuneful melodies
Dynamics and the Piano
End of Basso Continuo
The Classical Orchestra
Strings - 1st/2nd violin, viola, cello, double bass
Woodwinds - flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon (2 each)
Brass - 2 French horns, 2 trumpets
Percussion - 2 timpani
Classical Forms
Instrumental compositions
4 movements that contrast in tempo and character
1. Fast
2. Slow
3. Dance-related
4. Fast
symphony
string quartet
sonata
Contrasting themes in movements
Balance within larger structure of movement
Composer, Patron, and Public in
the
Classical Period
Social Trends and Classical Composition
Effects on musicians
More people with more $
Middle Class influence
public concerts
pieces for amateur musicians
comic opera
familiar tunes in “serious” music
Vienna
seat of Holy Roman Empire
one of the music centers of Europe
aristocrat winter quarters
outdoor music
Sonata Form
Exposition (may be preceded by Introduction)
Development
First theme in tonic key
Bridge - modulation to new key
Second (contrasting) theme in new key
Closing section in key of second theme
new treatment of themes; modulations to different keys /
retransition
Recapitulation
First theme in tonic key
Bridge
Second theme in tonic (or parallel major) key
Closing section in tonic / (may be followed by a coda)
Classical Forms
Theme and Variations
theme repeated over and over with alterations melody,
rhythm, harmony, accompaniment, dynamics, or tone color
each time
A(theme) - A’(variation 1) - A’’ (variation2) - …
use of countermelody
Minuet and Trio
often used as 3rd movt. / 3/4 usually in mod.tempo
Minuet
Trio
Minuet
A
B
A
||:a:||:ba’:||
||:c:||:dc’:||
aba’
da capo
scherzo - faster than minuet
Classical Forms
Rondo
as an independent piece or a movement
often serves as a finale
A B A C A (B A)
sonata-rondo
Symphony
B A - development - A B A
4 movements - FSDF - attributes of each movement
Concerto
3 movements - FSF
double exposition
cadenza
Classical Chamber Music
Characteristics
designed for intimate setting of a room (chamber)
2-9 musicians, with one player to a part
lighter sound than orchestral music
musicians work as a team
no conductor
Types
String Quartet
2 violins, viola, cello
usually 4 mvts. - FSDF or FDSF
Sonata for Violin and Piano
Piano Trio (violin, cello, piano)
String Quintet (2 violins, 2 violas, cello)
Joseph Haydn (1732-1809)
Background
Born in Rohrau, Austria
musical background until age 6 - folk songs and peasant
dances
sent to a relative to receive basic music lessons
age 8 - choirboy at St. Stephen’s Cathedral in Vienna
upon his voice change - dismissed from St. Stephen’s
had no composition or instrumental lessons
barely stays alive by teaching lessons for 8 years
also took odd jobs
Haydn’s talent gradually noticed by aristocracy
music director for court of a Bohemian count
age 29 (1761) - enters service of Esterházy family
Haydn and the Esterházy Family
1761-1790 - most of Haydn’s music composed for
the Esterházy’s, richest and most powerful
Hungarian noble family
Eszterháza - family’s palace in Hungary
opera house, theater, 2 concert halls, 126 guest rooms
Haydn’s responsibilities as musical director
compose all music requested by patron
conduct 25-member orchestra
coach singers
oversee instrument conditions and music library
two concerts and two opera performances weekly
daily chamber music
150 pieces with baryton part for Nicholas Esterházy
Joseph Haydn
Advantages and disadvantages of patronage
Personal characteristics of Haydn
good-humored and unselfish
cared about personal interests of his musicians
early 1780’s - met Mozart, became close friends
Haydn’s popularity grows while serving the
Esterházy’s
1790 - Nicholas dies - Haydn free to go to London
Salomon / London symphonies
servant to celebrity
Joseph Haydn
1795 - returns to Vienna
wrote two oratorios
new agreement with Nicholas Esterházy II
one mass composed each year (6 written)
The Creation
The Seasons
1809 - dies at age 77
during time of Napoleon’s occupation of Vienna
memorial service of Viennese with French
generals and an honor guard of French soldiers
Haydn’s Music
pioneer in development of symphony and
string quartet
use of folk tunes / original folk-like melodies
master of theme development
musical “jokes”
104 symphonies
68 string quartets
many known by nicknames
may have invented the string quartet
Other works - piano sonatas, piano trios,
divertimentos, concertos, operas, masses.
Haydn’s Music
Symphony No. 94 (“Surprise”)
key, form, tempo, notable features of
each movement
Trumpet Concerto in E-flat Major
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756 born in Salzburg, Austria
1791)
age 6 - playing the harpsichord and violin,
improvising fugues, writing minuets, sight-reading
perfectly
compositions as a child
age 8 - 1st symphony
age 11 - 1st oratorio
age 12 - 1st opera
Leopold Mozart (father) shows off his son
age 6-15 - Mozart tours Europe almost half the time
Empress Maria Theresa of Austria
Louis XV of France
George III of England
Mozart
Visit to Sistine Chapel
age 15 - return to Salzburg - under patronage of
Prince-Archbishop Colloredo
only given subordinate seat in orchestra
lack of initiative
insubordinate / requests for dismissal
1781 (age 25) - goes to Vienna to be free-lance
musician
concerts attended by the emperor and nobility
married Constanze Weber
friendship with Haydn
Mozart
1786 - Vienna loves The Marriage of Figaro
1787 - Vienna dislikes Don Giovanni
Leopold dies during the composition of D.G.
Mozart’s popularity deteriorates
1791
The Magic Flute
Requiem
commissioned by Count Walsegg
“strange” messenger
thought he was writing his own Requiem
dies of rheumatic fever - December 5, 1791
Mozart’s Music
More than 600 compositions
“K.” = Köchel number
Mozart’s output catalogued by Ludwig von
Köchel
Most notable ~
concertos
operas (mostly comic)
piano sonatas
Requiem
Mozart’s Music
Don Giovanni
unique blend of comic and serious opera
characters / plot
Symphony No. 40, K.550
Act I: Introduction
Act I: Leporello’s catalogue aria
Act I: Duet (Don and Zerlina)
key, form, tempo, notable features of each
movement
Piano Concerto No. 23 in A Major – 1st mvt
Requiem – Dies irae
Ludwig van Beethoven (17701827)
Background
born in Bonn, Germany into a family of
musicians
Johann (father) comes home from tavern late
and makes Ludwig practice at the keyboard until
morning
age 16 – improvises for Mozart in Vienna
mother dies, father becomes an alcoholic
age 18 – becomes legal guardian of two
younger brothers
Beethoven
1792 (almost age 22) – studies with
Haydn in Vienna
Haydn neglects Beethoven / secretly goes to
another teacher
1st 7 years in Vienna very productive
rebels against social convention
age 29 – 1st signs of deafness appear
1803-04 – 3rd Symphony dedication
Bonaparte ---- becomes ---- Eroica
Beethoven
self-educated
drifter in romantic relations
earns money through publishing
age 44 – stops playing piano in public, but
continues to conduct
1815 – Casper dies
never in the service of aristocracy
1809 – paid by three Austrian nobles to stay in Vienna
becomes coguardian of nephew, Karl
5-year custody battle
Karl attempts suicide / Beethoven shattered
Beethoven’s Music
expands range of pitch and dynamics
works and reworks music during composition
expands forms (i.e. 50-minute 3rd Symphony)
continuity between contrasting movements
expands sonata form
resemblance of themes in separate movements
movements linked w/o pause
development section
develops themes in coda
scherzo preferred over minuet
larger instrumentation for orchestra
uses choir in 9th Symphony
Beethoven’s Music
Piano Sonata in C minor, Op. 13
(“Pathétique”)
key, form, tempo, notable features of each
movement
Symphony No. 5 in C minor, Op. 67
key, form, tempo, notable features of each
movement