ROMANTI

C ERA
 HISTORICAL- CULTURAL BACKGROUND OF
INSTRUMENTAL ROMANTIC MUSIC

The Romantic Movement was an intellectual, artistic

and literary movemrnt that started in the second half
of the 16th century in Europe. It gained momentum
when people reacted against the Industrical
Revolution. It started as a literary movement in
Germany in the late 18 th century when Romativ ideas
spread from Germany to other European countries.
People at the tume were rebelling against social
and political standards of the Classical Period. They
believed in expressing their imaginations and passion
and in expressing it in their artwork like literature,
arts, education, and music.
 HOW IS ROMANTIC ERA MUSIC RELATED TO
ITS HISTORICAL AND CULTURAL
BACKGROUND?

As a result of the social and political

standards of the 18 th century, Romantic-era
music became the result of a period of change.
People in the Romantic Era moved away from
the standards of balance and restraint
prominent during the Classical Period by
allowing artistic freedom and experimentation.
Music melody became a dominant
characteristics of music and it became very
expressive.
R

P
L
 WHAT ARE THE CHARACTERISTIC
FEATURES OF INSTRUMENTAL ROMATIC
MUSIC?

Noteworthy are the music characteristics

attributed to Romaticism. These characteristics
include themes that focused on national identity,
surrender to nature, the mystic and supernatural,
a longing for the infinite, the strange and
surprising, spiritual experiences, and subjectivism.
During the Romantic Era musicians started new
ways foe expressing music like lengths of
compositions, new ways to harmonize, and tonal
relationships.
 WHAT ARE THE CHARACTERISTIC
FEATURES OF INSTRUMENTAL
ROMATIC MUSIC
Composers increased the use of dissonance and
extended chromaticism in the melody and experimented
on the creation new ways to produce sounds using
existing musical instruments. The Romantic Era was also
the time composers tried to use various tone colors. As a
result, new forms of music proliferated like the symphonic
poem, an orchestral piece that conveyed a story.
Another form of music is the art song, a vocal
composition that gives premium on symbolic meanings
attached on the lyrics
and the focusing of virtuoso and lastly, the
popularization of the gifted performers who can sing or
play intruments like the piano and the violin.
 WHAT ARE THE MUSICAL ELEMENTS OF
ROMANTIC-ERA MUSIC?

Elements of the Romantic-Era gave way to

changes in vocal 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
operaa, the melody tones became more lyrical.
Poetry was converted into a form that may be
emotionalized through music. Next, use of the piano
as accompaniment resulted to the adding of emotion,
mood, and meaning to the melody through of the use
of harmonic, rhythmic, and melodic material
independent of the voice.
 WHAT WERE 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. Other than volume,
contrasts were also found in the use of range
of pitch, as compositions contained extreme
use of high or low sounds,.
 WHAT IS PROGRAM MUSIC?

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.
Program music refers to the Romantic-era
European musical work. An example of this is
Fantastic Symphony by Hector Belfoz.
 ARE THERE OTHER ARTS THAT
PORTRAY ROMANTIC ERA
MOVEMENT?

Romantic era influences on pop music may not

prove easy to pinpoint as modern music embody
elements coming from a number of past
movements. However, New Romanticism, a
branch of pop culture, was found in the British
nightclub scene from 1979 to 1981. Accordingly, it
was a counter-movement to punk. Examples of
musicians representing New Romanticism include
Boy George, Spandau Ballet, Duran Duran,
Visage, and Peter Robinson. Helen Robinson’s
Covent Garden shop, PX, propagated fashion
designs representing Romatic themes .
 MUSICIANS REPRESENTING NEW
ROMANTICISM

Boy George Spandau Ballet

 MUSICIANS REPRESENTING
NEW ROMANTICISM

Duran Duran Peter Robinson