Music 190W Week 12

Music of the Classic Period (1750-1820)

The works and composers we'll study in this chapter are some of the best known in the classical music repertoire. As we study the musical style and the social and historical context, keep this question in mind: why has this music had such enduring popularity? Is it something about the way the music itself is put together? Are there social and historical reasons we're not aware of that make this music, rather than Renaissance or Baroque music, the classical music that has achieved mass popularity over several centuries?

Reading

Chapter 12; Hacker topics 21 & 22

Listening

CD 2, tracks 23-37

Study Questions

• Review p. 255: "the Baroque period was a time of..." and "the Classical period reflected..."
• which element of music was the main focus of works in the Classical Period?
• which texture is used most in this period?
• what are the characteristics of Classical melodies?
• sections of pieces end with clear cadences: be sure you can hear them
• modulation, the change of key from the tonic to another key and back again, is an important part of the form of Classical works. I won't ask you to name the new key, but I expect you to be aware when the key is changing. Ask for clarification and examples in class if you can't hear this yet.
• what formal plan is used most in Classical music (see p. 255)?
• how was instrumental music handled in the Classical period? (see pp. 255-56)
• why was the Baroque basso continuo not needed in the Classical period (except for opera)?
• what is chamber music? what are some chamber ensembles?
• Classical instrumental genres: sonata, symphony, concerto
• what is a cadenza?
• a movement is a section of a longer work. The term comes from the French word "mouvement," which means tempo. The sections of a longer work are typically in different tempos and are referred to by the Italian tempo indication: allegro, adagio, largo, andante.
• opera is the most important vocal genre in the Classical period. We may listen to some in class.
• Classical forms: sonata form (also called sonata-allegro form); theme and variations; minuet and trio; rondo. Read the descriptions on pp. 258-60 carefully. They are clearly written. We'll listen to examples of these forms in class.
• Read carefully the biographies of Haydn, Mozart, and Beethoven on pp. 260-64. I will expect you to know the important aspects of each. Pay special attention to the patronage situation of each of these composers. As we have seen in previous periods, the way composers make their living affects–but doesn't completely determine–the way their music sounds.

Listening Examples

Beethoven, Piano Sonata No. 8 in C Minor ("Pathetique"), third movement, tracks 23-30

This movement is in rondo form. In rondo form, the opening theme returns after contrasting material has been presented. Use the description on pp. 265-66 and these links to follow the form of this movement.
a rondo theme (track 23)
b first contrasting section (track 24)
a rondo theme returns (track 25)
c second contrasting theme (track 26)
a rondo theme returns (track 27)
b derived from first contrasting theme (track 28)
a rondo theme (track 29)
coda (track 30)

Listen to the entire movement.

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Mozart, Symphony No. 39 in E flat Major, fourth movement, tracks 31-37

This movement is in sonata form. Follow the description of the form on p. 269 as you use these links. Each major section of the form corresponds to a track on CD 2. We will listen to this piece in class. Use this outline to review the parts of a movement in sonata form.

Exposition
first theme (a) track 31
second theme (b) track 32

Exposition repeats
first theme (a) track 33
second theme (b) track 34

Development track 35

Recapitulation
first theme (a) track 36
second theme (b) and coda track 37

Listen to the entire movement.

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Hacker handbook topics

Topic 21 deals with other puncuation marks, topic 22 with capitalization. Most of this will be familiar. On the quiz I'll ask about items from this list of useful things to know about punctuation:

• En-dashes (or hyphens) are the dashes used to separate parts of a word that is broken between two lines. To make one of these, use the dash key on the keyboard once.
• Em-dashes are used for emphasis within a sentence. In print, em-dashes are longer than en-dashes. On a typewriter em-dashes are made with two dashes together (--). On computers em-dashes can be specified. On the Mac, you can choose the em-dash by pressing shift-option-dash. To include one of these in an html document, use this code: –
• Em-dashes are used to introduce a list (colons are also used for this), and to set off a restatement, an amplification, or a shift in thought (handbook, p. 70).

  The centerpiece of any middle-class living room in the 19th century–the home entertainment center of the era–was the piano.

• (When an entire sentence is within parentheses, the period goes inside the parentheses.) When a parenthetical phrase ends a sentence, the period goes outside the parentheses (like this).
• When you have to insert words in quotations to make the meaning clear, they go inside square brackets, so it's clear that they're not part of the quotation.
• When you're quoting something that has an error in it, the latin word "sic", within square brackets, signals that the error is in the original, not in your copying of it.
• Capitalize the main words in a title of a book or major musical composition and put them in italics: Igor Stravinsky's The Rite of Spring. Titles of songs and smaller musical works are put in quotation marks: Son House's "Death Letter."

Quiz

Take the Week 12 quiz.

Learn more about it

AudioVisual Services in the Main Library has numerous videos on Western Art Music. In addition to the writing prompts found at the end of the quiz each week, you can also watch one of these and base your writing assignment on what you learn from the video. If this appeals to you, see me for specific suggestions of videos.

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Music 190W page
This file was last modified on 16 May 2000.