Classical Era 1750-1820

Classical Era 1750-1820 Classical Ideas Aesthetic Proportion and Balance o Inspired by Classical Antiquity o Illustrated in the period s architecture Enlightenment Age of Reason o Pursuit of truth and discovery of natural laws o Scientific advances o Social justice, equality, tolerance, freedom of speech o Gives way to age of revolution Comic Opera o Opera of the middle class o Librettos poked fun at nobility Public Concerts o Moved to the concert hall o Supported by middle class The Piano o Replaced harpsichord o Invented around 1700 o Could produce dynamic contrasts o Played by amateurs (and women) Musical Manifestations of Social Change Vienna Importance Capital of old roman empire Administrative center for Austrian Empire Crossroads of Central Europe 4 th largest city in Europe Musical importance Aristocracy patronized music by supporting numerous composers Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven lived in Vienna Many amateur performers

Classical Style Melody Antecendant and consequent phrases Short simple melodies More influenced by vocal music Frequent cadences Harmony Irregular rate of harmonic change Often changes more rapidly at cadences Creates fluid, flexible harmonic rhythm Simple chords Alberti bass- passage of static harmony and broken chords Rhythm Departs from the regular driving patterns of Baroque era Greater rhythmic variety within a single movement Texture Mostly homophonic Light and transparent Thin bass and middle range Counterpoint used sparingly and mainly for contrast Color Orchestra increased in size (50-60 musicians) Instrumentation becomes more standardized Strings remain the core of orchestral sound Metal strings replace gut strings Full woodwind ensemble becomes standard Woodwinds would often be paired Brass would normally consist of pairs of horns and trumpets Tympani was used Other percussion instruments were used on special occasions

Classical Forms Theme and Variations A simple theme is continually altered and each variation is different Progressively gets more complicated Coda to give conclusion Standard methods o Melodic- ornamenting, overlaying with figural patterns, adding contrapuntal melody o Changing the timbre of melody o More radical transformations- rhythmic alterations, harmony changes, new melody based on original harmony Sonata Allegro Form The only form to originate during the classical period- 1750 Made it possible to incorporate drama and conflict within a single movement The standard first movement form in the Classical Era s instrumental compositions 3 sections- Exposition, Development, Recapitulation (can have introduction and coda) Exposition o Presents or exposes the main thematic material of the movement Development o Thematic material from the exposition is worked out Recapitulation o Exposition them introduced again Ternary Form (ABA) Presentation, contrast, return Presentation and return in tonic key Contrast would use different melody or key Minuet and Trio History o Genre of dance not form o Elegant music with stately tempo in triple meter Structure o Most in Baroque Era were binary form but ternary in Classical Era o Trio- second movement that was paired with first o Created overall ABA form Rondo Form one of the oldest musical forms (dates to middle ages) Similar to Baroque ritornello form One of the easiest to hear because of the single, unvaried return of theme Typical patterns- ABACA, ABACABA, ABACADA

Classical Genres String Quartet Chamber music- one person per part, no conductor Most historically important genre of chamber music 4 movements- fast, slow, minuet, fast Scherzo replace minuet (high spirited) Symphony Origin o Traces back to the sinfonia o Three sections- fast, slow, fast o The overture to the late Baroque Italian opera From sinfonia to symphony o Sinfonias began to be performed apart from opera o Sections expanded into movements o Other composers added a fourth movement (minuet and trio) Performance o Rise in genre s popularity tied to growth of public concerts o Larger halls and audience necessitated a larger, more colorful orchestra o Public concerts required ensembles of fifty to sixty Structure o 1 st movement- fast, sonata form, serious o 2 nd movement- slow, large ternary, lyrical o 3 rd movement- lively, minuet trio, elegant o 4 th movement- fast, sonata form, bright Concerto Baroque o Concerto grosso/solo concerto o 3 movements- fast, slow, fast o 1 st and 3 rd movements used ritornello form Classical o Solo concerto was the rule o 3 movements- fast, slow, fast o 1 st movement- sonata form Opera Baroque o Serious opera with heroic characters o Rigid divisions between recitative and aria o Emotions segregated- only one emotion per aria Classical o Comic opera dominated o Powerful for social changes

Sonata Baroque o 4-5 movements o Dance rhythms o For solo- harpsichord, strings, continuo Classical o 3 movements o Used sonata form, ternary, rondo, theme and variations o Piano most common sonata Classical Composers Haydn (1732-1809) Spent entire life in Austria Early music training as choirboy Trained in baroque style Appointed by Prince Esterhazy as composer and leader of personal orchestra Required to compose lots of music o Symphonies and divertimentos for evening entertainment o Operas for courts private theater o String trios Compositions were owned by the prince o Pirated editions appeared o Haydn was later allowed to sell compositions Continued their service for nearly 30 years Haydn was known as the father of the symphony and string quartet Haydn and Mozart played in string quartets in 1784-1785 o Haydn played 1 st violin o Mozart played viola o Mozart dedicated a string quartet to Haydn Haydn wrote 104 symphonies London Tours o Offered a large fee to compose and conduct works for London audience o Visited London twice- 1791-1792, 1794-1795 o Presented to royal family o Awarded honorary degree of doctor of music from Oxford o Composed the 12 London Symphonies o Surprise Symphony No. 94 Last years o Primarily composed masses for chorus and orchestra as well as two oratorios o Last public appearance was 1808 o Died with no burial o Phrenologists asked for permission to look at Haydn s skull, they decapitated his head and the skull was passed around

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791) Born in Salzburg, Austria Father was a violinist and composer (Leopold) Mozart was probably the most famous child prodigy in history of all the arts o Age 4- wrote his first composition o Age 5- wrote his first symphony o Age 6- picked up a violin and began playing with father o Age 12- commissioned by Emperorer (Franz Joseph II) to write an opera Father realized that his son was a genius o Took him on extended concert tours beginning at age 5 o Spent childhood on the road o Considered a novelty o Played for royalty o Very hard life- difficult travel, no advanced warning of arrival, often paid in gifts Mozart possessed a phenomenal musical memory o 1770- tested by a leading London scientist who proclaimed he was a genius o 1770- heard the annual Sistine Chapel Performance of Miserere by Gigorio Allegri and wrote it down from memory Moved to Vienna in 1781 o Never found an acceptable patronage position o Worked as a free-lance musician o Reached the peak in 1785-1787 o Music lost popularity during final years o Considered too thick and dissonant Lived to be only 35 o Mystery to death o Listed severe military fever o Buried in communal grave required by law Produced 600 works o 41 symphonies o 20 operas o 26 string quartets o 40 concertos o Piano sonatas/chamber works Musical characteristics o Beautiful melodies o Singing, vocal quality o Simplicity, lightness First prominent composer to attempt career outside court system o Some success but not profitable o Not the inept character portrayed in move Amadeus A Little Night Music o Serendade o Public entertainment outdoors o Summer 1787

Symphony No. 40 in G minor K. 550 o Symphonies 39, 40, 41 were composed in a six week period o Written during the summer of 1788 o Style conveys a mood of tragedy and despair o Falling half step Keyboard works o Was a pianist himself o Virtuoso player o Expanded the boundaries o Piano Concerto No. 17 in G major K. 453 Composed in 1784 3 rd movement suggested by the song of Mozart s pet bird Horn Concerto in Eb Major k. 495 o Composed in 1786 in Vienna o Written for friend, Leutgeb o For natural horn Operas o He wrote comic operas and serious operas o Entertaining plots o Music was theatrical and perfect for opera o Marriage of Figaro o Don Giovanni o Cosi fan tutte o The Magic Flute Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) Prominent artistic figure in 1800 s 1800-1824- composed nine symphonies Early Years (1770-1802) o Born in Bonn, Germany o Came from a family of musicians o Alcoholic and abusive father o Father and grandfather were court musicians o Displayed great musical talent o Father forced him to practice at all hours o Hoped to exploit him as a child prodigy Traveled to Vienna in 1787 to study with Mozart Began studying with Haydn in 1793 Made his living in Vienna as a concert pianist o Playing was extraordinary o Famous for violence, volume, and force o Noted for improvisations o Extremely expressive o Piano Sonata Opus. 13 The Pathetique

Reception by Viennese aristocracy was remarkable o One gave him a string quartet o Another gave him a small orchestra o All gave him gifts o Beethoven treated them with audacious independence and rudeness Taught affluent pupils Sold compositions to various publishers Provided with an annuity to compose without financial worries Well-known eccentric Change addressed 28 times in 33 years Bad health from mid-20 s on (jaundice, gout, headaches, fever, inflamed eyes, spitting up blood, and many other afflictions) Heiligenstadt Testament o Written in Vienna suburb of Heiligenstadt in 1802 o Part of last will and testament Beethoven s Deafness o Early symptoms began in 1796 o Experience humming, ringing, and buzzing in ears o Lost abilities to distinguish high frequencies o Loud noises caused pain o 1809-1814-gradually quit performing o Never fully deaf Heroic Period (1803-1813) o Works became longer, more assertive, full of grand gestures o Composed symphonies no. 3-8 during this period o Symphony No. 3 Erioca - 1803 Changed the direction of the symphony as a genre Doubled the length Slow movement is a funeral march Finale is a culmination of all four movements Was the bridge of the romantic era Originally dedicated 3 rd symphony to Napoleon but then scratched out his name when he declared himself emperor o Symphony No. 5 in C minor - 1804-1805 Premiered December 22, 1808 4 movements convey a sense of psychological progression 1 st movement- fateful encounter 2 nd movement- quiet soul-searching 3 rd movement- further wrestling with elements 4 th movement- triumphant of victory