• J. Peter Burkholder, A History of Western Music
• Chapter 24—The Romantic Generation, pp. 595-630
• Chapter 25—Romanticism in Classic Forms: Orchestral, Chamber, and Choral Music, pp. 631-658
• Chapter 26—Romantic Opera and Musical Theater to Midcentury, pp. 659-678
• J. Peter Burkholder, Norton Anthology of Western Music, Vol. 2 (NAWM)
• NAWM 111-126, pp. 300-538
• Hector Berlioz, Evenings with the Orchestra (RESERVE)
• Third Evening [Weber, Der Freischütz], p. 52
• Fourth Evening: A Debut in Freischütz, pp. 53-57
• Fifth Evening: The S in Robert le diable, pp. 60-63
• Sixteenth Evening: Paganini, pp. 194-199
• Twenty-Second Evening [Gluck Iphigenia in Tauris], pp. 253
• Robert Schumann, On Music and Musicians (RESERVE)
• Liszt as performer, pp. 155-157

I. The Virtuoso

• Compare the descriptions of these two virtuosi.
• What can you glean about their life-style and social status?

II. Berlioz as Author

• What do these excerpts tell us about Berlioz’ personality?
• What is the role of the artiste or composer in society?
• What composers does Berlioz especially admire?
• Reading between the lines, how does Berlioz respond to the music of these great composers? What is the appropriate response to greatness? (Consider the story of the butcher’s assistant, among others.)

III. Paper Preparation

Listening Report 3

Romantic Song, Character Pieces, Classic Forms, & Opera

• Identify composer, title, section, and genre
• Describe the dramatic situation (what’s going on?) in any excerpts from an opera, Lied, or program work
• List two style features (heard in the excerpt) typical of the composer
• Answer any additional questions drawn from the Listening Report and Study Questions below

Each cluster of works listed below is accompanied by a set of Study Questions and, in some cases, Listening Report Questions (highlighted in blue). The Study Questions are designed to help you prepare for the Classicism Exam and require no written report; for the Listening Report Questions, you must provide written answers to be turned in with this Encounter. For the Listening Report Questions, listen as many times as necessary to provide complete answers to each question.

Return to top
 

Listening List

The Romantic Generation: Song & Lied

B) Development of Western Music, Vol. II (DWMA)—MCD D489 1998

• DWMA 145—Franz Schubert, Erlkönig (Lied)—CD3, track 4 (For the words see Assignments module: Encounter Listening: Encounter 3)
• Alternate Recording: Blackboard Assignments module—Encounter Listening—Encounter 3—Schubert Erlkönig

C) NAWM 113—Robert Schumann, Dichterliebe (song cycle)

• No. 1: Im wunderschönen Monat Mai (Lied)—CD8, track 72

Listening Report Questions on A-C:

• 1. For each song, first read the poem. Then listen. As you answer 1a and 1b, discuss each song separateley.
• a. For each song, did the composer’s musical expression of the poem sound the way you expected? Why or why not? Mention any important features that support your argument, such as the use of melody, accompaniment, texture, and so on.
• b. For each song, what form is used? Strophic? Through-composed? Something in between (modified strophic?)? Based on your reading of the poem, is that form what you expected? Is it appropriate for that poem? Why or why not?

Study Questions on A-C:

• a. Please discuss Schubert’s use of characterization in Erlkönig. How does he let us know (musically) which character is singing—narrator, father, son, or erlking? Further, how does Schubert contrast the real, natural world in which the father lives with the supernatural realm of the erlking? In what ways is this song frightening?
• b. Some writers commenting on Im wunderschönen Monat Mai contend Robert Schumann doesn’t understand this poem. Do you agree? Explain, and please include specific references to the music!

The Romantic Generation: The Virtuoso & the Character Piece

D) Development of Western Music, Vol. II (DWMA)—MCD D489 1998

• DWMA 154—Robert Schumann, Carnaval, Op. 9 (cycle of character pieces)
• Eusebius (character piece)—CD4, track 3
• Florestan (character piece)—CD4, track 4
• Alternate Recording: Blackboard Assignments module—Encounter Listening—Encounter 3—Schumann Carnaval
• Alternate Recording:VIDEO 784.262 C615—Claudio Arrau DVD

E) NAWM 116—Robert Schumann, Phantasiestücke, Op. 12 (cycle of character pieces)

• No. 2: Aufschwung (character piece)—CD8, tracks 76-83

F) NAWM 118—Fryderyk Chopin, Nocturne in D-flat Major, Op. 27, No. 2 (character piece)—CD8, tracks 89-95

G) NAWM 119—Franz Liszt, Trois études en concert, No. 3: Un sospiro (character piece)—CD9, tracks 1-6

H) NAWM 120—Louis Moreau Gottschalk, Souvenir de Porto Rico (Marche des Gibaros), Op. 31 (character piece)—CD9, tracks 7-15

Listening Report Questions on D-H:

• 2. Romantic character pieces are short, Romantic works for solo piano that convey a specific mood or character—never the same mood twice! And they go by many different names—nocturnes, preludes, etudes, songs without words, album leaves, and so on. What different moods do these specific pieces express (describe each one separately)? Are these works absolute music, program music (see definition in Listening Report Question 3 below), or somewhere in between? Can you fully appreciate, enjoy, understand (these can be scary words to use, so pick one or use a word of your own) these pieces without knowing if the composer intended any specific extra-musical associations?

Study Questions on D-H:

• c. As you listen to each piano work, describe (for each one separately) its mood and the ways composers use melody, accompaniment, tempo, meter, texture, & pianistic techniques (etc.) to create it.
• d. Both Carnaval and Phantasiestücke deal with Schumann’s alter egos, Eusebius and Florestan. Are Schumann’s depictions of these characters similar or different in these two works? Can you fully appreciate, enjoy, understand this piece without knowing about the extra-musical associations that Schumann had in his head?
• e. Compare the Liszt etude (Un sospiro) and the Chopin Nocturne. What do you think are the important similarities and differences? What’s nocturnal about Chopin’s nocturne? What makes the Liszt piece an etude (a study-piece)? As you listen to Un sospiro, does Schumann’s description of Liszt ring true or not (RESERVE reading from Schumann, On Music and Musicians, pp. 155-157)?
• f. In what ways would this Gottschalk Souvenir sound exotic to European listeners?

Romanticism in Classic Forms

• Hector Berlioz, Symphonie fantastique (cyclic program symphony)
• mvmt. v: “Dream of a Witches’ Sabbath”—DVD track 6 (follow NAWM 121 score as you listen!)
• Alternate Recording: NAWM 121, CD9, tracks 16-29

J) NAWM 122—Felix Mendelssohn, Violin Concerto in E Minor, Op. 64 (violin concerto)

• mvmt. iii: Allegretto non troppo–Allegro molto vivace (sonata-rondo form)—CD9, tracks 30-40

Listening Report Questions on I-J:

• 3. Starting with Beethoven’s Symphony No. 6 (Pastoral), program music became an important new genre, especially in orchestral music. Program music is instrumental music that “tells a story or follows a narrative or other sequence of events.” This Berlioz symphony is an excellent example of program music. Do you hear any direct links between the music and the program Berlioz provided for this movement (see Assignments module: Support Materials)? Explain. What would you make of this music without knowing about the program? Can you figure out the form? Is the form even important in this movement? What is most important here?
• 4. Do you need to know the “story” to appreciate, enjoy, understand program works? Does knowing the story make a difference to you? So should concert goers be given a program for these works? How does the example of absolute music (Mendelssohn) compare with the program music by Berlioz? Which is more original? Which is more carefully crafted? Which would you rather listen to?

Study Questions on I-J:

• g. Talk about orchestration in this Berlioz symphony—do you hear anything new, weird, or striking? How is the Berlioz symphony different from Beethoven’s 3rd Symphony (Eroica)? Or is it not different? How is it different from Haydn symphonies?
• h. Which features of the Mendelssohn concerto sound Classical? Which features sound Romantic? Does Mendelssohn seem more or less radical than the other early Romantic composers? Explain.

Early Romantic Opera

• Act I, no. 7: Una voce poco fa (cavatina)—CD9, tracks 48-54

• Act II, Finale: “Wolf’s Glen Scene” excerpt —CD9, from 1:25 on track 61 (NAWM p. 514) to the end of the NAWM excerpt

Listening Report Questions on K-L:

• 5. Weber’s opera struck such a nerve with German audiences that it became the quintessential German Romantic opera, the work that defined the genre for all subsequent composers. How does this work differ from any operatic work we’ve heard before? For instance, what’s different about Weber’s use of the orchestra? Is this all about the singer? How does the story differ from earlier operas?

• i. Opera underwent many changes in the Romantic era. Describing each excerpt separately, tell me how each composer used the music, voice(s), and orchestra to tell the story. Also tell me which was most important for each composer: music, voice, or orchestra? Mention specific musical elements where necessary, such as melody, accompaniment, tempo, texture, vocal or instrumental effects, and so on.
• j. What about the Rossini aria shows that it is very much about the singer? What does the music tell us about Rosina?
• k. What do you think of Weber’s melodrama (spoken word with orchestral accompaniment) sections? Are they effective? How are they revolutionary? How does your reaction compare with Berlioz’ description (see RESERVE readings on Weber).