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Insite on Composers |
"Classical Music in a Nutshell"
By Betsy Schwarm
First things first: the experts would like us to think of it as art music, not classical
music, since they feel the term "classical" refers specifically to the time of Mozart and Beethoven.
But as the world at large considers all of it, from before Bach through modern orchestral composers, to be "classical,"
we'll go with that term here. Also, though art music goes well back into the Renaissance and even into Medieval
days, orchestral works are less ancient than that, so this discussion will focus on times when orchestra music
was being written, as that's what you'll hear at Arapahoe Philharmonic concerts.
So, with that introductory proviso, let's start our discussion in the early 1700s, the days
of Johann Sebastian Bach, George Friderich Handel, Antonio Vivaldi, and their colleagues. During this time, which
is known as the Baroque Era, there were three main sources of employment for composers and musicians: the royal
courts, the church, and some especially prosperous cities which used music for civic occasions. Since the royal
courts had most of the money, the largest quantity of music was written for them. In that venue, composers were
essentially talented servants, a bit higher up the social ladder than the cook, but not much. They were required
to write music the way the prince (or whoever) wanted it to be. Work for churches and cities was not much more
flexible. Music of this time tended to use lots of string instruments and the keyboard instrument known as the
harpsichord, which was a predecessor of the piano. Some woodwind instruments might appear, especially oboes, but
brass and percussion instruments were rarely heard. It was music of careful structures and a strict sense of order:
no wild, chaotic emotions here.
Next came the Classical Era, of the late 1700s and very early 1800s; these were the days
of Franz Joseph Haydn, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Ludwig van Beethoven, and their colleagues. During this time, the
royal courts begin to fade in influence; this is, after all, the time of the French Revolution. So, though early
in this time, the courts were still telling composers what to do with their music, by the end, composers had gained
the right to begin doing things their own way. Beethoven, as the youngest of "the big three," gets the
real benefit of this shift; Mozart died too young (not quite thirty-six) to take advantage of the change. As the
royal courts begin to fade in influence, the middle class rises, and concerts for the general public become even
more popular. String instruments were still emphasized, though now woodwinds, brass, and a bit of percussion begin
to influence the orchestra, too. The harpsichord fades away in favor of its younger cousin, the piano. Classical
Era music still has some order and structure, though less strictly formatted than Baroque music had been. There's
still no wild chaos, but emotions definitely come to be felt.
Around 1820, a new era begins, known as the Romantic Era. This is when one starts to find
strong, dramatic, sometimes even chaotic emotions in music, with lots of brass and percussion joining those strings
and woodwinds in the orchestra. It is music of high drama, and great individual variety. No longer are court and
church officials declaring how they want things to be; composers now can get away with doing things the way they
want them to be, for the sake of their own personal expression. Thus, their music becomes more individual in sound,
and less and less similar to music of other composers, even from the same time period. Conservatives of the era,
those who still liked the old Classical Era structures, though perhaps with the newly popular big orchestra, included
Franz Schubert, Felix Mendelssohn, Johannes Brahms, Peter Tchaikovsky, and Antonin Dvo?ák. Radicals of the
era, those who let it all hang out, included Hector Berlioz, Franz Liszt, and Richard Wagner. On both sides of
that divide, composers came to be interested in expressing their national or ethnic roots in their music, to make
it sound like their homelands. Some composers, such as Wagner, but also Giuseppe Verdi, became real specialists
in opera, musical dramas with orchestra and singers; however, some of their works adapt well even to performance
outside the opera house.
The Romantic Era lasted until nearly the end of the 1800s. By the turn of that century, new
ideas were developing, and these ideas were myriad: composers might work in a style that resembled nothing anyone
else was doing. There are more of these new ideas than we have space and time to explore, but one with the most
long-lasting place in the spotlight is Impressionism, a mostly French idea related to the popular artistic style.
Impressionist music, especially that of Claude Debussy and sometimes Maurice Ravel, is open and flowing in sound,
with a gentle, pastel-like character and no dramatic outbursts. It specializes in subtle shifts of color. Another
popular idea came to be known as Neo-Romanticism: it preserved the high drama and rich musical expression of the
earlier generation, but with a greater variety of sounds and instruments, as the new century progressed. Sergei
Rachmaninoff fits here, along with Edward Elgar, Samuel Barber, and various others. Some composers continued the
idea of expression national roots through music; prominent amongst these is the American Aaron Copland. Then there
were the composers who transcended categories, always doing things their own way, perhaps different ways from one
decade to the next. Principal in this area was Igor Stravinsky, whose famous works include The Rite of Spring,
with its almost demonic energy, but also Pulcinella, a graceful and tuneful tribute to music of the 1700s. Also
important in this area was Dmitri Shostakovich, like Stravinsky a Russian, but unlike his countryman, he stayed
home after the revolution and found himself contending with strictures from Stalin, who succeeded in making the
earlier generation of royal overlords seem moderate in their demands. Shostakovich's music often has much energy,
but sometimes sardonic humor as well, depending on the national mood of the day.
By the time one reaches the mid twentieth century, classical music becomes even more fragmented
in influence, with composers moving in a multitude of personal directions. Some specialized in edgy, dissonant
music that can almost make one's teeth hurt; others wanted to revive and revise some of the older ideas to prove
that they still worked. Most of these composers are new enough on the scene that it's difficult to identify the
biggest names; history will have to decide that question. However, of currently popular names, one must mention
John Adams and John Williams, both of whom have proven themselves masters of grand, dramatic expression without
verging into ideas that casual audience members find it difficult or unpleasant to follow. They take the best ideas
of the previous generations and make them enjoyable for a current audience.
*****
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Insite on Composers |
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