VII. FRÉDÉRIC CHOPIN

“The Poet of the Piano” – only great composer who wrote almost exclusively for piano

Raised in Warsaw, PolandMain airport in Poland is named after him

Moved to Paris at 21, stayed the rest of his life

Friends with Victor Hugo (poet), Delacroix (painter, Liszt and BerliozShy, disliked crowds, preferred to play in salons rather than concert hallsFrail physique

Difficulty drawing big sounds out of the pianoKnown for tone, rhythmic flexibility, atmospheric use of the pedal

Elegant, fashionable

Lived in luxury

Met Aurore DudevantWell-known novelist, pen

name: George Sand

Feminist, often wore men’s clothing, smoked cigars, fought for sexual freedom

Became lovers when Chopin was 28 and she was 34

Chopin thrived on her care, composing many of his greatest works in the 9 years they lived together

After their split, his health deteriorated and he composed very little

Died of tuberculosis at 39

Chopin’s Music

Relatively small body of work compared to other composers

Most pieces short, but exhibit infinite variety of moods

Elegant and graceful

Seen as the composer who best wrote for piano and its expressive ability

Music lends well to rubato for heightened expression

Lends a poetic and improvisatory quality to his music

LISTENING TO CHOPIN

Nocturne in E Flat Major, Op. 9, No. 2

Written when he was about 20

Nocturne – (“night piece”) slow, lyrical, intimate composition for piano

Books pg. 302

LISTENING TO CHOPIN

Étude in C Minor, Op. 10, No. 12 (Revolutionary)

Étude – study piece designed to help a performer master specific technical difficultiesThe Revolutionary develops speed and endurance in the left hand

Books pg. 304

VIII. FRANZ LISZT

1811-1886

Handsome, long-haired, magnetic personality

Born in Hungary

Studied in Vienna, met Beethoven and Schubert

By age 19, already known as a brilliant pianist

Incredible showman, irresistable to womenAge 36: abandoned traveling, became court conductor for Duke of Weimar

Composed orchestral worksTaught students free of chargeOne of the most unselfish and generous musicians who ever livedWas known to provide financial support to Wagner

Active writer, publishing music criticism and books on Chopin and other topics

1861 – resigned Weimar, went to Rome, took holy orders in 1865

Contemporaries thought this strange“Don Juan: Holy Man”Composed masses, oratorios

Last 17 years of his life: traveled again

Wrote some experimental piano music that foreshadowed some 20th c. music

Liszt’s Music

Controversial—some think it’s vulgar, bombastic; others revel in its extroverted romantic rhetoricFound new ways to exploit piano—unprecedented range of dynamicsCreated symphonic poem, or tone poem—a one-movement orchestral composition based to some extent on literary or pictorial ideasHighly influential on other composers

LISTENING TO LISZT

Transcendental Étude No. 10 in F Minor

(1851)

Books pg. 309-310

IX. FELIX MENDELSSOHN

1809-1847

Born in Hamburg, Germany

From wealthy, famous familyFather: banker

Grandfather: Jewish philosopher Moses Mendelssohn

Age 9: brilliant pianist

Age 13: had written symphonies, concertos, sonatas, vocal works

Age 20: conducted Bach’s St. Matthew Passion—first time since Bach’s death, started Baroque revival

Often performed as pianist/organist

Age 26: became conductor of the Leipzig Orchestra—transformed it into one of the finest groups in Europe

Also painter, writer, brilliant conversationalist in 4 languages

Happily married, father of 4

Died at age 38 of a stroke

LISTENING TO MENDELSSOHN

Concerto for Violin and Orchestra in E Minor, Op. 64

Books pgs. 312-316

HOMEWORK

Compare and contrast the following composers in 3 categories:

personal life, performance abilities, compositional style

Frederic Chopin, Franz Liszt, Felix Mendelssohn

This Thursday: Group work in the Media Center