The Development of Harmony from Schumann through Brahms to Debussy

There was a return to a monophonic texture for the cello and the dynamics became pianissimo. Since this movement’s form was ostinato, I heard short melodic, rhythmic, and harmonic patterns repeated. This piece was long, at twelve minutes, and at one point I stopped taking notes, in awe of what I was hearing. The entire piece felt symmetrical to me and was sing able throughout. Beethoven’s Sonata 3, Opus 69 nears a close with a texture that was heterophonic, dynamics that go from forte to piano and a bright tone color for cello and piano. The melody remained conjunct with a contour that was wavelike, by ascending and descending, especially for the piano. The tempo returned to allegro throughout this piece and ended with the dynamics returning to forte and the final cadence as the harmony resolved in consonance.

This transition creates a large contrast in not only meter and rhythm, but also emotion. Section C is different in that its meter is the least definite. Its meter starts out very slow, clearly slower than all other sections. Slowing the meter here feeds to a more solemn expression, which is a stark contrast from the faster, fuller, and more excited state of section A. A conveys a forceful, strong expression with its fast meter and strong harmonic chords whereas B has a softer tone and slower, patient rhythm. Contrasting rhythm and meter changes help lead to an emotionally charged piece, typifying music during the Romantic Era.

As noted by Robert Hughes, "Beethoven was not only the embodiment of all that was before him, but also of that which was yet to come" (Hughes 486). The truth of this may be seen by comparing Beethoven's 5th Symphony in C Minor to Haydn, the father of Symphony, and his 95th in C Minor. While Haydn's symphony is both playful and dramatic, Beethoven's symphony is grander both in terms of scale and vision. He expands the size of the orchestra to incorporate the sounds swirling around, underlying, and depicting the arrival of Fate in a rhythm-driven, thematic symphony that takes Haydn's form and runs with it as though to the top of a mountain peak. This paper will analyze the symphonies by movement, according to form, size, structure, tonalities, melodies, orchestral sound and overall mood and effect.

Johannes Brahms works were absolutely created as expanded developments of older forms, similarly to many of Beethoven's. (Guthrie) Johannes admired him so much that he wanted to follow in his footsteps, and make the impact of his music spread. By doing this, more composers were influenced by the ways of Ludwig. Berlioz admired Beethoven's sixth symphony because of the way each movement was connected to nature. (Guthrie) Like Brahms, Berlioz wanted to spread this influence, so he wrote his music with the same ideas in mind. He showed this in his Symphonie Fantastique by subordination the entire form of the piece to the feverish narrative that is exhibited in Beethoven’s music to accompany the symphony. (Guthrie)[p Thus spreading Beethoven's influence even deeper into the music world. Beethoven influenced Stravinsky in Juxtaposing chords. (Discuss) He did this by creating juxtaposed chords, using a D major chord and a B minor chord simultaneously. While they are similar, this contrast is influential during this time, seeing as it was unheard of. Using the strength of this new idea, Stravinsky put juxtaposed chords in his Russian Ballet. (Discuss) Beethoven’s music was extremely personal and idiosyncratic in style. (Beethoven) Which was strange for this time period, considering music used to only be made for the use of entertainment and not for the sake of passion. This style also fits perfectly

The concert started off at a quick and stimulating pace with Brahms’s Sonata for Two Pianos in F Minor. The piece starts with descending arpeggios echoing a sensation of distress or confusion. There are frequent slight pauses, creating a sense of suspense for what is to follow and building on the emotions

Who is Richard Wagner? Who is John Williams? How did Richard Wagner influence John Williams? What is leitmotif and how did both of these men use the idea of leitmotif? In this paper I am going to talk about whom these men are and what advancements they brought to their era of composition.

The Classical and the 19th century Romantic Period were eras where many of the most famous composers and compositions that we know today were born. The Classical Period brought forth big name composers like Joseph Haydn, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, CP Bach, and Ludwig van Beethoven. The 19th century Romantic Period was characterized by composers like Franz Schubert, Felix Mendelssohn, Robert Schumann, and Edvard Grieg. But, what really were these artistic periods? What makes them different from each other? And how did the Classical Period inevitably end and influence the beginning of the Romantic Period? Here we will not only cite in depth research of both the Classical and the 19th Century Romantic Period, but also pull direct characteristics of the classical period from Beethoven’s “Zärtliche

Beethoven contributed one of the most significant musical developments through his fifth and ninth symphonies. He used a musical motive as the basic of his entire piece. (Beethoven described the motive as “Fate knocks at the door”.) It was the first time in history that anyone had done such a thing for a multi-movement piece. Beethoven’s contribution has become a norm in the music world, even to this day.

beginning of the piece almost sounded like music that would be played in a classic horror/haunted house movie - the part where the piano plays itself! My emotions were mixed up throughout the entire piece and I tried very hard to paint a picture in my mind to what the composer was actually expressing and what kind of story was he trying to tell. “Could it be a tragic love story?”, “Could it be a story about a miserable life, a horrible death and/or the transfiguration to the afterlife?”. These were the questions I was asking myself when I listened to this classical piece. Although I could not understand the complexity of it, I still enjoyed listening to it very much. The only thing I knew was that the nickname of this classical piece was called “The Moonlight Sonata” and that the piece written by the great Ludwig van

The early piano sonatas of Beethoven deserve special mention. Although his first published examples of concertos and trios and the first two symphonies are beneath the masterpieces of Mozart and Haydn, the piano sonatas bear an unmistakably Beethovian stamp: grandiose in scope and length, and innovative in their range of expression. The sonatas were able to move expression from terrible rage to peals of laughter to deep depression so suddenly. Capturing this unpredictable style in his music, a new freedom of expression which broke the bounds of Classical ideals, was to position Beethoven as a disturbed man in the minds of some of his contemporaries. Furthermore, he was to be seen as the father of Romanticism and the single most important innovator of music in the minds of those after him. (Bookspan 27).

Claude Debussy and G.F. Handel are well known for long musical presence. Although they have similarities within their pieces being studied, the various differences are present more often. Debussy’s “Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun” is a softer, springtime sound with the flute as its main instrument. Handel’s “The Trumpet Shall Sound” has a gospel feel with the soloist’s melismatic notes and the presence of the trumpet soloist. Through the comparison between rhythm, harmony, timbre, dynamics, form, and word-music relationship, we will be able to see the similarities and differences.

A Look into Different Interpretations of the First Movement of Moonlight Sonata: The Piece that Portrays an Assortment of Emotions

Employing remote keys and tonicisation seem not sufficient for the composer to display his ability to expand the expressiveness of his music. Thus, Beethoven employed the technique modal mixture through out the second theme in both exposition and recapitulation. For instance, the second theme in the exposition starts with B major harmony (mm.65-69) (Fig. C). With a descending scale, the second theme swiftly changes to b minor (mm.72-79) (Fig. J). It creates abrupt change in the mood from a sweet dance-like major passage to a stormy minor one. From measure 72, b minor persists throughout the second theme except

Chopin’s third sonata is a masterwork filled with pianistic elements, daring harmonies, experimental form, and a wealth of expressivity. In this four-movement work, references to other Chopin compositions and influences from fellow composers are found. At the same time, there is a progressive element; it looks forward to the heights which would be achieved by Chopin and later composers.

In the course of the development of music, many great composers have contributed their brilliance towards the revolution of music. To be a great composer does not necessarily mean that they have reached a vast amount of fame. However, it means that their compositions have ingenuity and value. The melodies they have cleverly created have reached a point of worthiness in the world of music. For it is the sweet harmonies a composer creates that defines who he is. One of these gifted composers was Frederic Chopin, born on February 22, 1810 in Zelazowa Wola, Poland. Young Chopin was already composing by the age of eight and as his musical career developed he became known as a master of piano composition. Although he was often misunderstood