Periods of Classical Music Romantic and 20 th Century Classical Music is art music rooted in the traditions of Western Music.

The Romantic Period

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, Wagner, Verdi, Brahms, Strauss, Tchaikovsky, Debussy.

Modernism The transition between Romantic and 20 th century is known as Modernism. We will not be studying it today.

20 th Century

20 th 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, opera- houses, 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.

20 th 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”.

20 th 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 Grainger Schoenberg Gershwin

Need to Know Approximate dates The Romantic period was very focused on expression and emotional feeling in music. In the 20 th 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, 20 th Century

Gershwin & Schoenberg Mash-Up