78

Unit 17

1. Read and translate the text about periods in music.

2. Translate and learn the words and expressions given after the text.

PERIODS IN MUSIC

The Baroque period

The Baroque period saw an explosion of new musical styles with the introduction
of the concerto, the sonata and the opera.

 The loosening of the Church’s political control of Europe meant that non-
religious music could now flourish, in particular instrumental music.
 The idea that instruments should be grouped together in a standard way
created the first versions of the modern orchestra.
 An important type of instrumental music in the Baroque era was the
concerto. Two of the greatest composers of concertos were Corelli and Vivaldi.
 Opera encouraged composers to devise ways of illustrating moods in their
music; affecting the listener’s emotions became a major objective in composition
during this period.
 Opera spread to France and England, and composers such as Rameau,
Handel and Purcell began producing great works.
 Bach is regarded as one of the greatest geniuses in the history of music. He
demonstrated a standard approach to harmony that dominated music until the late
19th century.

The Classical era

Everything we play on Classic FM is 'classical music', music that's distinct from
pop, jazz, or folk music. But the Classical era in the history of music specifically
refers to the period when composers such as Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven were
 79

active, championing the symphony, composing comic operas, and developing the
piano sonata.

 This new musical style coincided with the Age of Enlightenment, a time of
radical change in social values focused on human rights and freedom of religion.
Its architectural style was reminiscent of ancient Rome and Greece – hence the
term 'Classical'.
 Orchestras went through great changes: harpsichord or organ were no longer
their musical foundation and wind instruments such as the horn, trumpet, clarinet,
flute and oboe joined the strings to create a new, distinctive sound.
 The orchestral set-up led to the era's most important type of music, the
symphony. It developed rapidly at the beginning of the era, moving from a
standard, strict three-movement format with a quick opening, a slow middle
movement and a quick one to finish, to become an expansive four-movement
vehicle for orchestral expression.
 Along with the orchestra came the string quartet, consisting of two violins, a
viola and a cello. The works are themselves called ‘string quartets’ and follow a
standard, four-movement format reminiscent of the symphony.
 The piano was also introduced during this period. The most important solo
pieces of the Classical era were sonatas, written for any solo instrument but most
notably composed for the piano.
 The Classical era was dominated by its two greatest composers, Haydn and
Mozart, who worked in Vienna. Haydn composed fantastic choral, operatic,
orchestral and instrumental music – but the symphonies were his greatest
achievement.
 In the last years of the 18th century came Beethoven, who started writing
music in the style inherited from Mozart and Haydn. He eventually outgrew it, and
split apart the Classical style at the seams, marking the dawn of the Romantic era
in music.
 80

The Romantic era

The Romantic era is known for its intense energy and passion. The rigid forms of
classical music gave way to greater expression, and music grew closer to art,
literature and theatre.

 Beethoven pioneered Romanticism and expanded previously strict formulas

for symphonies and sonatas, and introduced a whole new approach to music,
giving his works references to other aspects of life - for example, his 'Pastoral'
Symphony No. 6 describes countryside scenes.
 As well as symphonies, the tone poem and descriptive overture were popular
as pieces of stand-alone orchestral music that evoked anything from a painting or
poem to a feeling of nationalistic fervor.
 The Romantic era gave birth to the virtuoso. Liszt was one of the greatest of
his time, and wrote demanding piano music to show off his own brilliance. Chopin
is also among the outstanding composer-performers from this time. Verdi turned
Italian opera on its head by introducing new subject material, often with social,
political or nationalistic themes, and combined these with a direct approach to
composing.
 Germany’s Richard Wagner also played a key role in developing the
operatic genre. Before Wagner, the action and music in opera was split into short
pieces or 'numbers' much like a modern-day musical show. Wagner's operas are
written as long, continuous sweeps of music. The characters and ideas are given
short signature melodies called leitmotifs.
 Wagner's ideas dominated most music, from the large-scale symphonies of
Bruckner and Mahler to the heroic tone poems and operas of Richard Strauss,
even reaching Italy, where Verdi and Puccini started to produce operas according
to many of Wagner’s rules.
 Ideas and compositions became more and more outlandish and inventive
until the musical rules had to be rewritten, and the scene was set for the biggest
change in music for centuries – the beginning of Modernism.
 81

Music in the 20th Century

Music in the 20th Century changed dramatically, due to the hostile political
climate, advances in technology, and huge shifts in style. Many composers,
struggling to build any further on the music of generations gone by, reacted
against established musical trends, creating exciting new forms and styles.

 Music was greatly influenced by the enormous political events which shook
Europe in the middle of the 20th Century. Shostakovich, in particular, was
persecuted by the Soviet regime when his music was thought to be too ‘modern’ or
elitist, meaning he was forced to write in two styles – symphonies for the
authorities, and smaller works such as string quartets which were true to his own
voice. The Holocaust, Hiroshima and World War II convinced many post-war
composers that they needed to put the past behind them and find ever more
progressive methods: see Pierre Boulez’s Structures, Schoenberg’s experiment
with tonality and John Cage.
 American composers like George Gershwin and Duke Ellington began to
draw on their own native music - jazz. Stravinsky and Ravel responded with music
that also embraced jazz styles. Folk music was also a great source of inspiration for
composers like Vaughan Williams, Bartók and Messiaen.
 Modernism in music was about being radical and different. For the first
time, musicians and audiences realised that music didn’t have to be confined to
tradition, but by 1960 this idea had run out of steam. The next generation of
‘serious’ composers relaxed and had a wider palette of musical colours to work
with – influences from other cultures, popular music, ancient music and the
experiments of modernism.
 Steve Reich, Philip Glass, Michael Nyman and John Adams championed
Minimalism, breaking musical boundaries and winning them huge popularity.
Their music reflects advances in music and technology – sometimes including
elements of jazz and rock.
 82

 A group of composers who met while studying in Manchester have become

the main exponents of ‘post-modern’ music in Britain. While music written by
Peter Maxwell Davies, Harrison Birtwistle and Alexander Goehr isn’t
everybody’s cup of tea, it can be profoundly powerful and stimulating.
 Film music and video game music increased in popularity towards the end of
the century, with the soundtracks to E.T., Star Wars, Harry Potter and Lord of the
Rings making their mark on classical music.

Words and expressions

 to flourish
 genius
 reminiscent
 hence
 harpsichord
 operatic
 rigid
 to pioneer
 leitmotif
 outlandish
 inventive
 hostile
 to struggle
 to persecute
 elitist

3. Use the correct form of these words and expressions to complete the
sentences.

reminiscent flourish pioneer elitist

inventive hence rigid genius
 83

harpsichord operatic leitmotif struggle

outlandish hostile persecute

1. __________ is a musical instrument similar to a piano. It was played especially

in the 17th and 18th centuries.
2. She's just found out she failed her exams, __________ her bad mood.
3. We were disappointed that they insisted on such a __________ interpretation
of the rules.
4. There are some experiments, but universities in many of these countries are
very __________.
5. Watercolour painting began to__________ in Britain around 1750.
6. He__________ the genre of Afrobeat, a mix of jazz and funk with traditional
African themes.
7. There are two __________ in his score marking the heroine and her Fairy
Godmother.
8. In the last few years London has seen a variety of __________ styles in
contemporary opera.
9. Chaplin was not just a __________, he was among the most influential figures
in film history.
10.All sorts of people were allowed to lecture, some of them with quite
__________ ideas.
11.We see a dictator using force to repress and __________ his opponents.
12.She was herself an __________ composer, the hilarious Stripsody being her
best-known score.
13.She was angry and __________ because she felt out of control and scared.
14.I've been __________ to understand this article all afternoon.
15.That song is so __________ of my adolescence.