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Nicolo Paganini
1782-1840
Virtuoso violinist, big influence on Franz Liszt -
Gioacchino Rossini
1792-1868
The most important opera composer of the early 19th century -
Franz Schubert
1797-1828
Austrian composer of Early Romantic era -
Hector Berlioz
1803-1869
French composer and conductor. Very popular for his Symphonie Fantastique -
Fanny Mendelssohn
1805-1847
Female German pianist and composer of the Romantic period; Lots of her music had to be published under her brother's name. -
Frederic Chopin
1810-1849
Polish pianist and composer; Mainly known for his piano compositions -
Robert Schumann
1810-1856
German composer and pianist -
Richard Wagner
1813-1883
German composer and conductor -
Giuseppe Verdi
1813-1901
Italian opera composer -
Clara Schumann
1819-1896
Female German composer and pianist -
Start of Romantic Period
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Virtuosos
A musician who specialized in one instrument and dazzled audiences with displays of technical mastery. -
Programmatic Music
A Programmatic work recounts a narrative or sequence of events -
Etudes
Studies, usually focusing on technicality or expression, for one particular instrument. Piano etudes were most popular. Chopin and Liszt made etudes worthy of concert performance -
Lied
A song for singer and piano -
Character piece
Depicts or suggests a mood, personality, or scene. One movement piece for solo piano -
Tone poem
One movement orchestral programmatic work -
Orchestra
The size of the orchestra increased dramatically, with forty players at the start of the century, with almost ninety by its end. -
Conductors
Originally the orchestra was led by a harpsichord, or by the leader of the violins. Now, a conductor used a baton to beat time and cue entrances. The conductor also indicated tempo and shaped musical phrasing. -
Idee Fixe
Fixed Idea. A melody used in each movement. First used by Berlioz. -
Rubato
Speeding up or slowing down of the tempo to be expressive -
Johannes Brahms
1833-1897
German composer and pianist -
Mazurka
a Polish folk dance in triple meter often with a heavy accent on the second or third beat of each measure -
Tuba
Bass brass instrument invented by Wilhelm Wieprecht and Johann Moritz. Became the bass of the orchestral brass section. -
Georges Bizet
1838-1875
French composer of Romantic Era -
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
1840-1893
Russian composer, one of the most influential of the Romantic Era -
Saxophone
A woodwind instrument made out of brass created by Adolphe Sax. -
Recital
A solo concert in a large hall. Term coined by Franz Liszt, who was the firs pianist to give these concerts. -
Bel Canto
"Beautiful singing" coined by Rossini. Very dramatic singing style. -
Nationalism
Inspiring patriotic sentiments. Many composers wrote music symbolic of their nation, with other composers critiqued for not being nationalistic enough -
Antonin Dvorak
1841-1904
Czech composer, organist, and music theorist -
New York Philharmonic
founded in 1842 -
Franz Liszt
1843-1907
Hungarian composer and pianist; considered one of the greatest pianists ever -
Clarinet
Boehm system clarinet was patented. This is the system we use today. -
Gustav Mahler
1860-1911
Austro-Bohemian composer -
Claude Debussy
1862-1918
French composer and pianist -
Richard Strauss
1864-1949
German composer -
End of Romantic Era