Gr. 9 – St.

Rose of Lima
Group 1: Angel Bonita Jania Araneta Jayrhol Galeste
Angela Gavina Oliver Agas Janle Tarectecan
Alliyah Ortiz Mark Orseo

Romantic Era
(Music)

The Historical-Cultural Background of Instrumental Romantic Music

Primarily, the Romantic Movement was an intellectual, artistic, and literary movement that
started in the second half of the 18th century in Europe. People at that time was rebelling against
social and political standards of the Classical Period. They believed in expressing their
imaginations and passion and expressing it in their artwork like literature, arts, education, and
music.

How Romantic Era music related to its historical and cultural background?
People in the Romantic Era moved away from the standards of balance and restraint prominent
during the Classical Period. The Romantic Era swayed away from the Classical Period by
allowing artistic freedom and experimentation.

(Painting by Girodet, a painter of the Romantic Movement)

The Characteristic Features of Instrumental Romantic Music

Noteworthy are the music characteristics attributed to Romanticism. These characteristics
include themes that focused on national identity, surrender to nature, mystic and supernatural, a
longing for the infinite, the strange and surprising, spiritual experiences, and subjectivism.

(Cover Page of a Music Score)

Art and Media Portrayed by Romantic Era Elements
Romantic Era elements are presented in arts and media in the form of paintings and literature.
They reflect themes that focused on surrender to nature; the mystic and supernatural; a longing
for the infinite, the strange, and the surprising; and spiritual experiences. Examples are paintings
shown below:

Death of Sardanapalus Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

Eugene Delacroix Robert Louis Stevenson

Wanderer above the Sea of Fog

Caspar David Friedrich

The Musical Elements of Romantic-era Music

The art song became lyrical, and composers gave efforts to associate the music text to its
musical counterpart. Here are some of its elements:
First, compared to the dramatic tones of the opera, the melody tones became more lyrical.
Next, the use of the piano as accompaniment resulted to the adding of emotion, mood, and
meaning to the melody through the use of harmonic, rhythmic, and melodic material independent
of the voice.
The Performance Practices during the Romantic Era
Romantic music composers found themselves essentially compelled to use sharp contrasts.
This may be found in the use of dynamics as composers sought to include expressiveness in their
composition through the use of abrupt changes in music volume.

Composers explored the expression of feelings like flamboyance, intimacy, unpredictability,

longing, and rapture.

Program Music
Is a form of instrumental music that is intended to express a story or image that depicts the
theme and scenes in a literary text. An example of this is Fantastic Symphony by Hector Berlioz.

Other Arts that Portray Romantic Era Element

Romantic-era influences on pop music may not prove easily to pinpoint as modern music
embody elements coming from a number of past movements. Examples of musicians
representing new romanticism include Boy George, Spandau Ballet, Duran Duran, Visage, and
Peter Robinson.

Steve Strange Adam Ant Boy George