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The Romantic Phenomenon
The Romantic Phenomenon
The Romantic Phenomenon
Artist: Walter Schenkman
Genre:
Music for piano
Category:
XIX Cent.
Composer:
Various Artists
Supported languages: Italiano
Extended description:
The Romantic Phenomenon defies easy description with its abundance of currents and counter-currents. For instance, the present performance features the work of five composers, each one with a distinctive musical personality; moreover, there are five different approaches to musical composition, each one further differentiated by individual attitudes to the question of “absolute”, or “program”, music.
The proponents of “absolute” music – Brahms with his huge Symphonies, Mendelssohn with his lyrical piano pieces pointedly called Songs Without Words, and Chopin with his Nocturnes – sought to follow in the footsteps of Bach and Beethoven; and their scores hold no implied extra-musical connotations. On the contrary, those who chose the “program” route – Liszt in the forefront with his Symphonic Poems, and Schumann not far behind in some of his piano compositions – looked to the “story-line” of a specific title, text, or poem for their inspiration, and their music seeks to convey the sense of that text or title.
On the other hand, there are a number of factors that unite our composers as well. As an obvious example, at least four belonged to the same generation: they were born around 1810, and came of age in the early 30s (Brahms, born in 1833, the exception). Next, there was a spirit of youthfulness. In fact, three of five knew pratically nothing other than youthfulness: Chopin and Mendelssohn both died before age 40, and Schumann shortly thereafter. Liszt alone of this group was to be granted a long life; and as the leading representative of the “Program Music” faction in the second half of the century – togheter with Wagner – he would stand in active opposition to Brahms.
Another feature common to all five was their early training as performers – primarily on the piano. And in performance, spurred on by the recent dazzling example of Paganini’s virtuosity on the violin, they pursued an active interest in developing their own virtuosity to a high degree: naturally, Chopin and Liszt come immediately to mind in this connection; but Mendelssohn and Brahms were also outstanding pianists, and Schumann’s ambition in this direction was only stymied by an early hand injury. The cultivation of virtuosity endowed each of the five with a rare sense of feel for what was appropriate in scoring for the piano: they knew the possibilities – and the limitations – of the instrument, and they also knew (and challenged!) the limitations of the human beings who would play their works.
Finally, as true Romantics – and despite any and all differences of a personal and stylistic nature – the music of each of the five composers performed here appeals directly to the heart. It is always highly expressive; at times, even unabashedly sentimental. And perhaps it is this combination of expressivity and sentimentally that lends the music of the Romantic Phenomenon its inique charm.
The proponents of “absolute” music – Brahms with his huge Symphonies, Mendelssohn with his lyrical piano pieces pointedly called Songs Without Words, and Chopin with his Nocturnes – sought to follow in the footsteps of Bach and Beethoven; and their scores hold no implied extra-musical connotations. On the contrary, those who chose the “program” route – Liszt in the forefront with his Symphonic Poems, and Schumann not far behind in some of his piano compositions – looked to the “story-line” of a specific title, text, or poem for their inspiration, and their music seeks to convey the sense of that text or title.
On the other hand, there are a number of factors that unite our composers as well. As an obvious example, at least four belonged to the same generation: they were born around 1810, and came of age in the early 30s (Brahms, born in 1833, the exception). Next, there was a spirit of youthfulness. In fact, three of five knew pratically nothing other than youthfulness: Chopin and Mendelssohn both died before age 40, and Schumann shortly thereafter. Liszt alone of this group was to be granted a long life; and as the leading representative of the “Program Music” faction in the second half of the century – togheter with Wagner – he would stand in active opposition to Brahms.
Another feature common to all five was their early training as performers – primarily on the piano. And in performance, spurred on by the recent dazzling example of Paganini’s virtuosity on the violin, they pursued an active interest in developing their own virtuosity to a high degree: naturally, Chopin and Liszt come immediately to mind in this connection; but Mendelssohn and Brahms were also outstanding pianists, and Schumann’s ambition in this direction was only stymied by an early hand injury. The cultivation of virtuosity endowed each of the five with a rare sense of feel for what was appropriate in scoring for the piano: they knew the possibilities – and the limitations – of the instrument, and they also knew (and challenged!) the limitations of the human beings who would play their works.
Finally, as true Romantics – and despite any and all differences of a personal and stylistic nature – the music of each of the five composers performed here appeals directly to the heart. It is always highly expressive; at times, even unabashedly sentimental. And perhaps it is this combination of expressivity and sentimentally that lends the music of the Romantic Phenomenon its inique charm.
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