An introduction to opera and concert music that focuses upon Western art music of the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries, with special emphasis on Vienna’s musical history. The various cultural offerings in Vienna during the fall of 2010 have informed the selection of works on which we will focus.
Additional student cost:
Students share the costs of attending opera and concert performances
Learning outcomes:
By the end of the course, students should have:
• developed a greater appreciation and understanding of music
• gained a general understanding of the development of musical styles in Western art music from the mid-eighteenth century to the present
• become familiar with Vienna’s unique musical culture and its wide array of musical institutions, including its opera houses, concert halls and various independent venues
Method of presentation:
Lectures, discussions, audio and audio-visual musical examples
Required work and form of assessment:
Class attendance and participation 10%
Midterm exam 25%
Event reports (2) 10%
Concert review 15%
Opera review 15%
Final exam 25%
Reading: Selected brief excerpts from the Norton History of Western Music (7th ed.; abbreviated HWM)
that focus on topics for discussion in class will be assigned each week.
Listening: Approximately one hour of listening per week – excerpts from pieces discussed in class, but not necessarily played in class – will be available for you in the library. Listening will be on the exams.
In addition, preparation is required for your concert and opera reviews: this should include background information about the composer, the historical context of the work(s) performed and consultation of an English translation of the text(s) performed. We will discuss this preparation in the first week of class.
content:
1. Introduction: Entering Vienna’s musical culture
Writing about music. Ethnography and research methods
2. “A Thumbnail Sketch” of Western Music History and Austrian History, 1700-present
3. Bach and the Baroque. Historically-informed performance practice
Vivaldi. Händel: Alcina
Reading: Selections from HWM Chapter 19
4. Mozart: Le Nozze di Figaro, Requiem
Mozart’s Symphony No. 41 (“Jupiter”). Sonata form
Reading: Selections from HWM Chapter 22
5. Haydn: Quartet No.33/2, Die Schöpfung/The Creation Beethoven: 3rd Symphony (The “Eroica”), 9th Symphony Reading: Selections from HWM Chapter 23
6. Early Romanticism: Schubert Songs and Chamber Music
Berlioz’s Symphonie Fantastique. Schumann
Reading: Selections from HWM Chapters 24 and 25
7. Mendelssohn’s Overture to A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Liszt, Chopin
Italian Opera: Rossini’s Barbiere; Verdi’s Requiem; Puccini’s Madama Butterfly
Reading: Selections from HWM Chapters 26 and 27
8. Wagner and Bayreuth. Operetta: Johann Strauss, Die Fledermaus Absolute Music: Brahms’ 4th Symphony. Bruckner. Dvorak Reading: Selections from HWM Chapters 27, 28 and 29
9. Late Romanticism: Mahler. Strauss’s Salome Modernism I: The Second Viennese School. Stravinsky Reading: Selections from HWM Chapters 30 and 31
10: Modernism II: Shostakovitch, Bartok
Modernism III: American Music. Postmodernism. Reading: Selections from HWM Chapters 33, 34 and 35
A detailed list of all reading assignments will be provided in a handout, to be presented the first day of class.
Required readings:
Burkholder, J. Peter and Claude Palisca. Norton Anthology of Western Music, 7th Edition. New York: Norton, 2006.
Recommended readings:
Buch, Esteban. Beethoven’s Ninth: A Political History. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 2003. Hanson, Alice M. Musical Life in Biedermeier Vienna. Cambridge: The University of Cambridge, 1985.
Heartz, Daniel. Haydn, Mozart and the Viennese School 1740-1780. New York: Norton, 1995.
Heartz, Daniel. Mozart, Haydn and Early Beethoven, 1781-1802. New York: Norton, 2009. Rickett, Richard. Music and Musicians in Vienna. Wien: Georg Prachner, 1981.
Schumann, Robert. Schumann on Music: A Selection from the Writings. Ed. and trans. Henry Pleasants.
New York: Dover, 1965.
Schorske, Carl E. Fin-de-siècle Vienna: Politics and Culture. New York: Vintage Books, 1980. Weiss, Piero and Richard Taruskin, eds. Music in the Western World: A History in Documents.
New York: Schirmer Books, 1984.
Brief Biography of Instructor:
Erik Leidal earned a Master’s in Musicology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. His teaching experience includes courses in Music History and Cultural Studies at UCLA. He is both a former IES Abroad student and a Fulbright Scholar to Austria, and has degrees in English Literature and Music History from Rice University. He has worked in Vienna as a singer and independent artist since 2002.
An introduction to opera and concert music that focuses upon Western art music of the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries, with special emphasis on Vienna’s musical history. The various cultural offerings in Vienna during the fall of 2010 have informed the selection of works on which we will focus.
Students share the costs of attending opera and concert performances
By the end of the course, students should have:
• developed a greater appreciation and understanding of music
• gained a general understanding of the development of musical styles in Western art music from the mid-eighteenth century to the present
• become familiar with Vienna’s unique musical culture and its wide array of musical institutions, including its opera houses, concert halls and various independent venues
Lectures, discussions, audio and audio-visual musical examples
Reading: Selected brief excerpts from the Norton History of Western Music (7th ed.; abbreviated HWM)
that focus on topics for discussion in class will be assigned each week.
Listening: Approximately one hour of listening per week – excerpts from pieces discussed in class, but not necessarily played in class – will be available for you in the library. Listening will be on the exams.
In addition, preparation is required for your concert and opera reviews: this should include background information about the composer, the historical context of the work(s) performed and consultation of an English translation of the text(s) performed. We will discuss this preparation in the first week of class.
1. Introduction: Entering Vienna’s musical culture
Writing about music. Ethnography and research methods
2. “A Thumbnail Sketch” of Western Music History and Austrian History, 1700-present
3. Bach and the Baroque. Historically-informed performance practice
Vivaldi. Händel: Alcina
Reading: Selections from HWM Chapter 19
4. Mozart: Le Nozze di Figaro, Requiem
Mozart’s Symphony No. 41 (“Jupiter”). Sonata form
Reading: Selections from HWM Chapter 22
5. Haydn: Quartet No.33/2, Die Schöpfung/The Creation Beethoven: 3rd Symphony (The “Eroica”), 9th Symphony Reading: Selections from HWM Chapter 23
6. Early Romanticism: Schubert Songs and Chamber Music
Berlioz’s Symphonie Fantastique. Schumann
Reading: Selections from HWM Chapters 24 and 25
7. Mendelssohn’s Overture to A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Liszt, Chopin
Italian Opera: Rossini’s Barbiere; Verdi’s Requiem; Puccini’s Madama Butterfly
Reading: Selections from HWM Chapters 26 and 27
8. Wagner and Bayreuth. Operetta: Johann Strauss, Die Fledermaus Absolute Music: Brahms’ 4th Symphony. Bruckner. Dvorak Reading: Selections from HWM Chapters 27, 28 and 29
9. Late Romanticism: Mahler. Strauss’s Salome Modernism I: The Second Viennese School. Stravinsky Reading: Selections from HWM Chapters 30 and 31
10: Modernism II: Shostakovitch, Bartok
Modernism III: American Music. Postmodernism. Reading: Selections from HWM Chapters 33, 34 and 35
A detailed list of all reading assignments will be provided in a handout, to be presented the first day of class.
Burkholder, J. Peter and Claude Palisca. Norton Anthology of Western Music, 7th Edition. New York: Norton, 2006.
Buch, Esteban. Beethoven’s Ninth: A Political History. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 2003. Hanson, Alice M. Musical Life in Biedermeier Vienna. Cambridge: The University of Cambridge, 1985.
Heartz, Daniel. Haydn, Mozart and the Viennese School 1740-1780. New York: Norton, 1995.
Heartz, Daniel. Mozart, Haydn and Early Beethoven, 1781-1802. New York: Norton, 2009. Rickett, Richard. Music and Musicians in Vienna. Wien: Georg Prachner, 1981.
Schumann, Robert. Schumann on Music: A Selection from the Writings. Ed. and trans. Henry Pleasants.
New York: Dover, 1965.
Schorske, Carl E. Fin-de-siècle Vienna: Politics and Culture. New York: Vintage Books, 1980. Weiss, Piero and Richard Taruskin, eds. Music in the Western World: A History in Documents.
New York: Schirmer Books, 1984.
Erik Leidal earned a Master’s in Musicology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. His teaching experience includes courses in Music History and Cultural Studies at UCLA. He is both a former IES Abroad student and a Fulbright Scholar to Austria, and has degrees in English Literature and Music History from Rice University. He has worked in Vienna as a singer and independent artist since 2002.