The early romantic period - more or less the first half of the 19th century - saw the birth of numerous composers whose works still feature prominently in the experience of today’s music listening generation.
In music, Romanticism contributed to a status shift in the role of the composer. While composers of the previous (classical) period were more likely to be in the employ of the wealthy (eg. Bach and Mozart), the Romantic movement saw composers become artists in their own right.
If the composers of the classical period held the belief of logical order and clarity, the Romantics believed in allowing their imagination and passion to soar spontaneously and interpret it through their works.
April saw us explore the music of Schubert and Chopin - two such composers whose lives occupied the same period of time (save for about five years), yet whose music was widely different in its expression.
Franz Schubert wrote about 600 lieder (German songs) as well as instrumental and choral music, whereas Frederic Chopin is best known for his beautiful character pieces for solo piano.
Why not explore, then, as we did, the compositions of these two music greats and visit the links to the class notes at the end of this report. There you will find a potted history of Schubert and Chopin, a few details of what lay behind some of their music and Youtube links to the music we enjoyed.
Music Appreciation Class Notes - 10th April
Music Appreciation Class Notes - 24th April
Bill Squire
