Classical Music

Classical Music (1750-1820)

Overview:
The SYMPHONY emerges
CHAMBER MUSIC emerges
OPERA continues & evolves
Three major composers:
BEETHOVEN - wrote for a lot of orchestral pieces
MOZART - wrote for many different pieces
HAYDN - wrote a lot of string quartets

The Classical style:

• Clarity
• Regular phrases
• Contrast becomes structural, even narrative
• Motific rather than melodic
• Motific material is "worked out"
• Motific - repeating pattern (melody)

Haydn - Symphony no. 101, mov. 3

Sonata Form:

Exposition - Development - Recapitulation

Mozart - 3rd movement from Symphony No. 40 in G minor (example of sonata form)

Key Characteristics:

MELODY: short and clearly defined musical phrases with two or more contrasting themes

RHYTHM: Very defined and regular

TEXTURE: Mostly homophonic

TUMBRE: The symphony orchestra was organized into four sections - strings, woodwind, brass and percussion. The harpsichord was  not used