Larghetto, etc.), and takes its form from some of the old models. It felt the influence of the Italian style and was often florid and diffuse, though as the Piano developed it gradually gained in dignity. The Minuet.-This form was frequently used for the third movement of the Sonata. It was based on the old marches which had three strains, the last being a repetition of the first. The strains might be single (8 measures) or double (16 measures). The Rondo. Sometimes a Rondo took the place of the Minuet-not such a simple Rondo as is described in Lecture I, but a piece of some pretensions, having a bright lively Theme, and Interludes of sufficient length and distinctiveness to merit the name Interlude Themes. Franz Joseph Haydn, Rohrau, Austria, 1732. Haydn sprang from the people-his father's house was on a country road in a sparsely settled district; by its side was the blacksmith shop where he earned a scant livelihood; not far away, over the river Leitha, was the borderland of Hungary, and the young blacksmith's son was brought up in familiarity with Gypsy songs, and the music of the common people. He came at just the right time (as most great men do), for music had cast aside pedantry and was striving after simplicity and genuineness. All that was needed was a man who should draw his inspiration from natural sources and could master the problem of form as applied to instrumental music. Philip Emmanuel Bach had opened the way and Haydn followed him. By diligent study but more by continual experiment, he gave a splendid organism to the Sonata, String Quartet, and Symphony. The first specimens are in three movements, (sometimes even in but two), but he finally settled on the following plan: I. Fast: in Sonata Form. II. Slow: simple Song Form, or Variation. III. Minuet: faster than the old Minuet used for dancing. IV. Fast: Rondo, or Sonata Form. Characteristics.-Haydn never lost his simplicity of character nor his ingenuousness; these traits are clearly seen in his music, which is tuneful, happy, and clear. He never lived much in cities but spent a great part of his life in the service of Prince Esterhazy on his estate, where he had a small orchestra at his disposal. Orchestra.-It had been the custom to write orchestral music with very little regard for the peculiar characteristics of the different instruments-but Haydn felt the individuality of each instrument more than his predecessors had, and we can trace in his symphonies an increasing understanding of those distinctions. It is obvious that a Sonata for orchestra would be much expanded over one written for the piano, and in a Haydn Symphony First Movement the first Theme (see Diagram) would consist of several statements of the same idea slightly differing from each other and all calculated to give adequate prominence to the chief personage in the drama. All the parts of the Movement would be correspondingly lengthened -the Transition, second Theme, etc.; it depended on the balance of the whole. This may be seen in the Sonatas as well. (Reference: Theme I, First Movement of Piano Sonata in E flat, time.) His Contemporaries.—Haydn lived until 1809; long enough to see Mozart's star rise and sink in glory; long enough even to be Beethoven's teacher. He was the connecting link with the past, for John Sebastian Bach did not die until Haydn was eighteen years old. Within the span of his life music had made great strides and the debt she owes him is hardly to be estimated. It was the dawning of the most glorious epoch in the history of music. 1732. Haydn born. CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE. 1791. Meyerbeer born. 1742. "The Messiah" produced in 1791. Mozart died. I. Give an account of the origin and development of the Sonata, treating each movement separately and paying especial attention to Sonata Form. (References: The Sonatas and Symphonies of Haydn, Mozart, and Beethoven may be had in a cheap form (paper covers) Peters' Edition. The Symphonies are arranged for two or four hands.) LECTURE IV. MOZART. Pure Classic Style. Rise of German Opera. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, In the few years intervening between Haydn's birth and Mozart's, we find conditions little changed and the main points of difference between the music of these two great composers were due largely to their training and mode of life. Haydn got his musical education from hand to mouth, being poor and homeless in his youth, so that he never lost the rustic simplicity of his early days even when old and famous. Mozart, on the contrary, was born in a city of some consequence, where there was a real Archbishop and a palace, not to mention lesser grandeurs, and he was accustomed to the formality of the time-to the short clothes and powdered wigs, the bowings and scrapings. Yet he took his place alongside Haydn in developing pure Instrumental Forms and felt the same influence working towards "Free" music (as distinguished from "strict") that Haydn felt. It was just before the dawning of Republicanism; the old régime was at its last, and the power of the nobles as against the people was waning; Mozart's whole training, however, made him of a mind to accept conditions as he found them. His success might depend on the whim of some noble, but he never thought of questioning that. He was a conservative by nature; a man surrounded by traditions inculcated by his father, and strengthened by his visit to Italy and the circumstances of his life. A conservative, that is, not so much in his acceptance of old forms and ideas in music as in not being attracted towards or interested in new notions in politics, new ideas of the relations between nobles and people; for he did much to reform Opera, as we shall see, and went boldly against the prevailing florid Italian style with its meaningless runs and trills. Classic Style.-The word "Classic" is most commonly applied to works which have come to be recognized as standards, but in distinction to "Romantic" it means simplicity of idea, coupled with perfect expression, as opposed to complexity of idea and picturesque expression. Grey's "Elegy," for example, expresses simple ideas with matchless clearness; Browning, on the other hand, is involved and makes a strong demand on the imagination. Raphael's Madonnas are Classic; the modern French school, particularly the Impressionists, so called, are far from the Classic ideal. Mozart's music, by its faultless proportions, elegance, and purity of thought, as well as by its clearness of expression, stands pre-eminent as a model of what we call Classic. It it almost god-like in its beauty and serenity; full of manly courage, brave-hearted, without a tinge of that unrest and yearning after the unattainable which is so characteristic of modern Music. (Reference: "The Elements of the Beautiful in Music." by Pauer. Novello, Ewer & Co., New York.) Pianoforte Music.-The Piano had been considerably improved over the first specimens of the Instrument made in 1710, but it was limited in compass and power compared with those of to-day. The technique of playing, also, was not advanced, and the style of Mozart's Piano Sonatas was constrained by these conditions. Chords were written well under the hand, where now we spread them out as far as possible; melodies were accompanied by guitar-like chords, and scales and appegios (broken chords) were written simply. Symphonies.-Mozart used the Haydn model (see page 12) for most of his Symphonies, but he imparted to the form a beauty and elegance which no one has equaled. All that has been said (under the heading "Classic Style ") of the characteristics of his music finds illustration in such pieces as the First Movement of the G Minor Symphony. The slow Movements show the influence of the Italian style, yet there is never a note too much; nothing is superfluous. (Reference: Slow Movement to the G Minor Symphony, or the Adagio in E flat to the Piano Sonata in C Minor.) German Opera.-Opera in the Italian style had pervaded the entire Musical world by the time Mozart began to write. It was the most popular kind of musical entertainment and the fame of great singers eclipsed that of the composers themselves. Everything was sacrificed to placate the Prima-donna and her high C: dramatic truth was little thought of. All this tended to degrade opera till it finally became merely a fashionable amusement, although it had, at first, a serious purpose. But in time a reformer came in the person of Christoph |