VOCAL MUSIC

OF ROMANTIC
PERIOD
4 QUARTER
TH
Vocal music is one of the best tools for
expressing one’s feelings. This form
of expression became more evident
during the Romantic period. The
Romantic Period’s basic quality is
emotional subjectivity. Composers
explore feelings of grandiosity,
intimacy, unpredictability, sad,
rapture and longing.
Romantic vocal forms like the art song and
operas were about fantasy, supernatural,
romance and the nature as mirror of the
human heart. Virtuoso performers are not
only instrumentalists but also singers. One
singer sometimes sounds like several
characters by use of different vocal
register. By understanding the past, we
learn to appreciate the things we enjoy
today.
Vocal music in this period require singers
to perform a greater range of tone color,
dynamics and pitch. Because of this, Opera
became an important source of musical
expressions. The birth of the opera houses
came. It was the place where all the arts
converged: not only music, but poetry,
painting, architecture and the dance as
well.
Opera became increasingly popular
during the Romantic period. It is a
musical composition having all or most
of its text set to music with arias,
recitative, choruses, duets, trios, etc.
sung to orchestral accompaniment. The
opera is usually characterized by
elaborate costumes, scenery and
choreography
LIBRETTO
The text of an opera.
Librettist and the
composer work closely
together to tell the story.
SCORE
The book that the composer and
librettist put together. The score has all
the musical notes, words and ideas to
help the performers tell the story.
Often, there are operas with overtures,
preludes, prologues, several acts,
finales and postludes.
RECITATIVE
Declamatory singing, used in the prose
parts and dialogue of opera. Different
roles in operas are created taking into
account different types of voices. Each
role requires a different type of singer,
not only able to sing a given vocal range
but also with certain voice
characteristics, color and power.
ARIA
An air or solo singing part sung
by a principal character. This
song is what the public will
remember best when leaving the
opera house. Properly and well
sung, a beautiful aria can bring
an audience to its feet and decide
the fate of an entire opera.
ACTS
Main divisions
of an opera.

SCENE
Setting or place.
 FRANZ PETER SCHUBERT
The proper name for Franz Schubert songs is actually “lieder”, which
is the German word for songs. Schubert developed lieder so that they
had a powerful dramatic impact on the listeners. He is considered the
last of the Classical composers and one of the first romantic ones.
His famous vocal music works/ Lieder were: “Gretchen am
Spinnrade”, “Erlkonig”, “Ellens Gesang III” (“Ave Maria”)
and “Schwanenge sang” (“Swan Song”). He also wrote
piano pieces, string quartets, operetta and the Symphony
No.8 in B minor (“Unfinished Symphony”) Schubert was
born on the 31st of January 1797 in Himmelpfortgrund,
Austria and died in 1828 in Vienna, Austria at the age of 31.
 GIUSEPPE VERDI
A name associated with Romantic opera is that of Verdi. His characters are
ordinary people and not those of the royal family like those found in German
operas. He insisted on a good libretto and wrote operas with political overtones
and for middle-class audience. Verdi was born in Parma, Italy on October 9, 1813.
He studied in Busseto and later went to Milan where his first opera “Oberto” was
performed in La Scala, the most important opera house at the time.
Almost all his works are serious love story with unhappy
ending. Expressive vocal melody is the soul of a Verdi opera.
He completed 25 operas throughout his career. His final opera
ends with “All the world’s a joke.” Some of his famous operas
are still being produced and performed worldwide. His much-
acclaimed works are; La Traviata, Rigoletto, Falstaff, Otello
and Aida where he wrote for the opening of the Suez Canal.
He died in Milan, Italy on January 27,1901.
This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-SA
 GIACOMO PUCCINI
Giacomo Puccini was born in a poor family on
December 22, 1858, in Lucca, Italy. He studied
at the Milan Conservatory. He belonged to a
group of composers who stressed realism;
therefore, he drew material from everyday life,
rejecting heroic themes from mythology and
history.
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Puccini’s famous and infographics
operas & images
were: by Freepik
“La Boheme”,
“Tosca”, “Madame Butterfly”, and “Turandot”.
 RICHARD WAGNER
Wilhelm Richard Wagner was born in Leipzig, Germany on May 22, 1813. Wagner
introduced new ideas in harmony and in form, including extremes of chromaticism.
He also explored the limits of the traditional tonal system that gave keys and chords
its own identity which paved the way for the rise of atonality in the 20th century.
Wagner exerted a strong influence on the operatic medium. He was an advocate of a
new form of opera which he called “music drama” where musical and dramatic
elements were fused together.
He developed a compositional style in which the orchestra has of
equal importance in dramatic roles as the singers themselves. The
expressiveness is aided by the use of “leitmotifs” or musical
sequences
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This presentation a particular
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famous
including works
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by Flaticon, and Isolde”,
and infographics “Die
& images byWalkyrie”,
Freepik “Die
Meistersinger”, “Tannhäuser”, and “Parsifal”. His work would later
influence modern film scores, including those of the Harry Potter
and Lord of the Rings film series. Wagner died of a heart attack on
February 13,1883 at age of 69.
 GEORGES BIZET
Georges Bizet was registered with the legal name Alexandre-Cesar-Leopold
Bizet but was baptized Georges Bizet and was always known by the latter
name. He was born October 25, 1838, in Paris, France. He entered the Paris
Conservatory of music at a very young age. Bizet became famous for his
operas. His most famous opera is “Carmen”.
However, when “Carmen” first opened in Paris, the reviews
were terrible. The shows were criticized in horrible ways that
resulted in poor audience attendance. During the first round
of “Carmen” performances, Bizet died (June 3, 1875). He was
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onlyicons
including 36. Four months
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and infographics & imagesopened
by Freepikin Vienna,
Austria, and was a smash hit. It is now one of the most
popular operas ever written. Bizet never knew that audiences
would come to consider it as his masterpiece.
 LA TRAVIATA
⮚ Music by Giuseppe Verdi (1813-1901)
⮚ Libretto in Italian by Francesco Maria Piave, based on “La
Dame aux Camélias,” play by Alexandre Dumas after his
novel by the same name. The play is known in English as
“Camille.” Premiere: Venice, March 6, 1853.
⮚ Categorized as a Romantic tragedy.
⮚ Set in Paris, France during 1850.
⮚ Originally in three acts, but present-day productions are
usually in four acts dividing the original Act II
⮚ ACT I: Violetta’s Paris salon, luxuriously furnished
⮚ ACT II: A villa near Paris
⮚ ACT III: Ballroom in Flora’s mansion
⮚ ACT IV: Violetta’s bedroom
 LA TRAVIATA’S SYNOPSIS
At one of her brilliant supper parties, the beautiful but frail
demimondaine (a woman supported by a wealthy lover), Violetta Valéry, meets
the well-born Alfredo Germont. They immediately fall in love, and she decides
to abandon her life of pleasure.
Alfredo’s father did not approve of their lifestyle in the country and
demands that Violetta renounce Alfredo. Violetta determined to make the
sacrifice, then departs and leaves only a note for Alfredo.
She appears at a ball in Flora’s house on the arm of an old admirer,
Baron Douphol which makes Alfredo angry. Alfredo challenges the Baron to
play cards where Alfredo wins consistently. Unable to persuade Violetta to go
with him, Alfredo insults her. Violetta becomes ill, and all her friends desert
her, leaving her virtually penniless.
Alfredo returns to Violetta. His father told him of the real story behind
Violetta’s departure from their country house and urged him to seek her
forgiveness. Overjoyed at the sight of him, Violetta attempts to rise but falls
into Alfredo’s arms. Germont and the doctor enter as Violetta dies.
 MADAME BUTTERFLY
⮚Music by Giacomo Puccini (1858-1924).
⮚Libretto in Italian by Giuseppe Giacosa and
Luigi Ilica. From the short story by John
Luther Lung, derived from Pierre Loti’s tale
Madame Chrysantheme.
⮚Romantic tragedy. Set numbers; recitative.
Setting: Nagasaki, Japan, at the beginning
of the 20th century. Two acts; Act 2 with
two parts.
 MADAME BUTTERFLY’S SYNOPSIS
When American naval vessels frequented Japanese
seaports, American Lieutenant Benjamin Franklin Pinkerton met
Cio-Cio-San (“Butterfly”) and was captivated by her beauty.
Pinkerton rented a Japanese house and part of his rental package is
his “betrothal” to Cio-Cio-San.
Treating the marriage merely as a casual affair, Pinkerton
returns to America after the wedding leaving Cio-Cio-San loyally
waiting for his return. He marries an American woman named Kate.
When he returns to Japan three years later with his American wife,
he learns that he bore a son with Cio-Cio-San. Upon learning that
Pinkerton had married another woman, CioCio-San kills herself to
make sure that Pinkerton takes their son with him.
MALE SINGERS
1. Tenor - highest male voice
2. Baritone - Middle male
voice, lies between Bass
and Tenor voices. It is the
common male voice.
3. Bass - lowest male voice
FEMALE SINGERS
1. Soprano - highest female voice.
2. Mezzo-Soprano - most common
female voice; strong middle voice,
tone is darker or deeper than the
soprano.
3.
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presentation - lowest
template female
was created by Slidesgo, voice
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and most unique among female.
 Let’s Know More
In the Philippines, the Sarsuwela, also known as the “drama simbolico‟ was
a traditional theatre genre that dominated the Philippine theatre scene over one
hundred years. It was first introduced by Dario Cespedes. Like the Opera of the
Romantic period its storyline was commonly based on domestic issues that often
exemplified a strong sense of Filipino nationalism and anguish against the country’s
foreign imperialists.
Famous writers of sarsuwela include Benigno Zamora, Severino Reyes and
Clodualdo del Mundo. Dalagang Bukid (Country Maiden, 1919) is arguably the most
popular sarsuwela in Tagalog.
Today, singers like Maria Callas and Kirsten Chenoweth are famous because
of their performances of different operas and musical plays abroad. In the Philippines
artist like Isay Alvarez, Robert Seña, Monique Wilson, Jaime Rivera and Lea Salonga
also became famous not only in the local scene but abroad as well for their roles in
musical plays like the “Miss Saigon.” In fact, Lea Salonga won various international
awards like the Olivier, Tony, Drama Desk and Theatre World awards. She also
received the Order of Lakandula Award from Philippine president Gloria Macapagal
Arroyo in recognition of her excellence in her craft and for using her talents to benefit
Philippine society.
Our tutors
 Heralded by the French Revolution, the Romantic Period was one of
subjectivity. The music is intensely emotional, deriving its strength from
massive forces and vivid orchestration. It was also in this period that the
virtuoso emerged and performed in numerous concerts.
The Romantic Era brought further changes in the world of vocal
music. The art song (lied) became a special category of vocal music.
Composers made great strides during this time to closely associate the text or
words of a piece with its musical counterpart.
The real achievements of the Romantics in theatre were in opera.
One of the striking characteristics of the late 18th and early 19th centuries is
CREDITS: This presentation template was created by Slidesgo,
the development of the
including idea
icons of romantic
by Flaticon, love linked
and infographics to marriage.
& images by Freepik Romantic
operatic voice is trained to be full and rich, powerful enough to fill an opera
house in the days before electronic amplification.