Art and Culture
What were the years of the classical period?
1750-1820
Aimed for balance and proportion; composers believed that there was a "formal correctness" to how music should be written.
What is the difference between form and genre?
Form is how a piece is written (its structure), while the genre is the style of music (symphony, string quartet, etc).
Name the three composers that we studied in class from the Classical era. Which two composers contributed to help create the mature classical musical style?
Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven
Haydn and Mozart
Describe the Rococo art/architecture style of the time.
Inspired by nature, curved/flowing lines, highly decorative
Describe the melody of Classical music.
Melodies were tuneful, catchy, elegant and simple. They were balanced phrases, often with a question-answer format. They were grouped in symmetrical numbers of measures and had a light and airy feel to them.
What were the two forms that we studied in class that emerged in Classical Era?
Themes and Variations, Sonata Allegro
A prodigy, who toured all over Europe at a young age. He performed at the age of 5 and wrote compositions starting at the age of 8. Unfortunately, he died an early death.
Mozart
Enlightenment, or the pursuit of truth/equality
Describe the harmony of Classical music
Simple chords, with quick and flexible chord changes.
What is the structure of the themes and variations form?
One principal theme, and it is manipulated in multiple variations.
List three facts about Haydn
Answers vary: From Austria, grew up as a student of music and served at three different churches. He was hired as court composer for royalty in Austria, and had a long music career.
Describe the Neoclassicism style of art.
Line/symmetry, precisely drawn figures, simple, inspired by Greek/Roman architecture, often depicted heroism
Describe the texture and rhythm of the classical era.
Rhythm: flexible and not driving, stop and go feel, lots of rhythmic variety
Texture: primarily homophonic with occasional polyphonic phrases. Emphasis was primarily on the melody
What is the structure of the Sonata Allegro? Describe each part of the Sonata Allegro.
Exposition: 2 themes presented
Development: themes are manipulated, it is harmonically unstable
Recapitulation: themes of exposition return, back to stability
What contributed to Beethoven's transition from a Classical composer to a Romantic composer?
Started going deaf in his 20s and was fully deaf by 1814, was physically and socially isolated from others.
The two prevailing art styles of the eras came one after the other, with one art style coming as a response against the former. What were these two art styles and which came as that response and why?
Describe the color of the music in the Classical era.
Larger orchestras, more woodwinds, and piano was the primary keyboard instrument
The Moonlight Sonata by Beethoven does not follow a typical classical music form. Why is this?
No clear structure or main theme being manipulated. Not a lot of repetition, mostly based off of emotion and feeling.
Why was Beethoven not considered fully as a classical musician?
He was a "bridge" between the Classical and Romantic era. He took elements of classical music but also wrote music using lots of emotion and feeling.