LIBERAL ARTS COLLEGE FALL 2017 LBCL 392. History of Music in Western Civilization: Classical to Modern

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1 LIBERAL ARTS COLLEGE FALL 2017 LBCL 392 History of Music in Western Civilization: Classical to Modern Section A: Tuesday 6:00-8:15 p.m. Professor: Geoffrey Fidler The Music seminars cover the European/Western musical traditions from classical antiquity through the twentieth century. LBCL 392 focuses on the Classical, Romantic, and Modern eras in musical history, covering broadly the later eighteenth through the twentieth centuries. The course will enable you: a) to learn to listen to music with an understanding of how it is put together, and of its forms and idioms; b) to learn to recognize the musical forms and characteristics, together with the major composers and compositions, of these diverse but distinctive periods in the Western/European tradition; c) to learn something about the wider context, and aesthetics, of music in Western society and culture. The course will put a strong emphasis on exposure (listening, viewing) to music and will, in this respect, introduce you to many of the world s finest recorded performances, as well as to the rich concert resources of Montreal. All of this will help you to engage with and enjoy music more. Textbook: Explorations: Music History 1: An Overview, by J. Lopinski, J. Ringhofer, and P. Zarins (The Frederick Harris Music Co. Ltd., Ontario, 2010). This text is published in association with the Royal Conservatory of Music, Toronto. Its contents include those of the course, with many examples and suggestions for web-based listening. (It is essentially a guide/workbook. It does not stand as a substitute for class sessions, which will augment the text s contents with additional composers/compositions for the periods covered.) N. B. Websites such as YouTube enable access to vast range of classical recordings (including many of live performances) of music from each of the periods covered in the course. Suggested Additional Reading/Reference Works and Resources: The Enjoyment of Music (shorter version), by Joseph Machlis and Kristine Forney. The text is quite comprehensive, covering early as well as modern music. It is rather expensive and comes with a Four-CD set. There are several copies available (plus CD s) in the college library. A History of Music in Western Culture (vol. 2): The Classical Era Through the Present, by Mark Evans Bonds. This is a more detailed textbook (also in the college library). The Naxos Books Discover series covers the periods of the course, namely: Music of the Classical Era Music in the Romantic Era Music in the Twentieth Century (These short narrative introductions also allow access to the extensive Naxos Website. They are

2 inexpensive and worth reading.) The Grove Dictionary of Music (and New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, ed. S. Sadie) are exhaustive works of reference. The New Grove Composer Biography Series includes, among many, studies of Mozart, Haydn, Beethoven, Brahms, Verdi, Wagner, Debussy. Concordia Library has the Classical Music Library an on-line streaming-audio music and reference database, covering the medieval period to the present. See the Database Finder at There is also the Naxos Music Library, as mentioned. The Marvin Duchow Music Library at McGill (Faculty of Music) contains a rich, comprehensive collection. The Grande Bibliotheque in Montreal also enables free access to a large classical music archive. There are excellent articles in journals such as the Journal of the American Musicological Society, and in Music Notes. The Pelican History of Music (4 vols.) remains useful, along with the Harvard and the Oxford Dictionary of Music. Note also that the accompanying liners to many CD s (Hyperion, Harmonia Mundi, DG, EMI, Naxos, etc.) often contain informative commentaries on the recordings. DVD s sometimes also incorporate useful bonus options. Additionally, please note the following:- --Attendance at classes is required; much of the course content is available only in class. Remember to sign the class attendance sheet this is your individual responsibility. --Students should prepare for classes. All written work (see below) must be completed and submitted by the due dates for a passing grade to be assigned. Always keep copies of papers. --The course also requires you to attend five classical concerts/musical events. Plan ahead in order to meet this central requirement. You should access or pick up a hardcopy (free) of La Scena Musicale ( which gives quite a comprehensive listing of musical events (many free or inexpensive) across Montreal. Appears approximately each two months. Concert venues such as the Salle Bourgie, McGill s Pollack Hall, the Salle Claude Champagne (UofM), and various churches/chapels, invariably include music covering the periods of the course (as well as early and contemporary repertoires). The Music Faculties at McGill and UdM offer regular and frequent student/faculty recitals, master-classes, and operatic productions. --Please note and take account of the posted/appended College Policies regarding attendance, grading, incomplete work etc.

3 --Office hours will be announced early in the term. Required Written Work and Evaluation: (N. B. See the separate handout addressing the written assignments) Participation 5% Concert Attendance 15% Concert Report (2-3pp.) 20% 2 Music Reflections/short essays (4-5pp. each) 40% Short-answer review/exam 20% Due dates: Reflections: 17 Oct.; 14 Nov. Concert Report (+ concert tickets): 21 Nov. (Please submit your concert report with the concert entry ticket attached - program, too, if you wish.) Written work must be submitted in accordance with the given deadlines. Be aware that incomplete grades are not automatically assigned and will not be given other than in the most exceptional of circumstances, as duly documented. Class Schedule: Date Topic area Week 1 5 Sept. Introduction. The Elements & Aesthetics of Music (See also Unit One of the textbook) Week 2 12 Sept. The Classical Style: Haydn, Mozart Week 3 19 Sept. Mozart and opera Week 4 26 Sept. Beethoven Week 5 3 Oct. Romantic miniatures: Schubert and lieder Week 6 10 Oct. Romantic miniatures: Chopin (Liszt, Schumann. ) (1st Reflection due) Week 7 17 Oct. Opera 1: Italian grand opera (Bellini to Puccini)

4 Week 8 24 Oct. National styles of music (symphony, tone poem, etc.) Week 9 31 Oct.. Opera 2: Verdi, Wagner Week 10 7 Nov. Romantic to Modern: Debussy, Ravel (2nd Reflection due) Week Nov. The choral tradition (Concert Report due + concert tickets) Week Nov. Modernism: Stravinsky, Schoenberg Week Nov. Modernism, ctd. N. B. The above break-down of topic areas is approximate and selective. The units in the textbook indicate the given area (Classical, Romantic, etc.). I will also indicate ahead of each class which specific sections focus on (including the musical examples and theory sections). We will use some of the textbook examples for the given period/style, but I will always include additional selections. Briefly, the following are among the musical forms, idioms, and composers for each of the periods under review. (See Units Three to Five in the Explorations 1 text.) Other examples will also be introduced during classes:- Classical (See also Unit Two in the text on the Baroque, especially on Bach and Handel, for the origins of much in the Classical era.) Viennese School: Haydn, Mozart (also Beethoven, Schubert). Classical Style in: symphony, string quartet; concerto; sonata; suite. Opera: seria, buffa. Romantic Includes early and late phases (effectively covering the entire 19 th century). Schubert (Schumann, Brahms) and Lieder: art song (continued also in distinctive French and Russian traditions/styles); the Romantic Generation (especially associated with early 19 th century composers, including Chopin, Liszt, Mendelssohn, Schumann, and Berlioz. (In opera, Rossini, Bellini, Donizetti and bel canto, through to early Verdi). Miniature compositions, especially for piano; voice (from Schubert onwards); and chamber music. Also major developments in the symphony (from Beethoven to Mahler in the early 20 th century); choral music (Beethoven, Brahms, Mahler); and in grand opera (Verdi, Puccini; Wagner, Strauss - among outstanding figures of the 19th to early 20th centuries). Modern

5 A wide range of composers and genres. Debussy is a pivotal transitional figure in breaking down (though not destroying) the tradition of tonality; important breaks, for example in harmony and rhythm, come notably with Stravinsky and Schoenberg (and his disciples in the so-called Second Viennese School). There are also influences (seen in e.g. Ravel, Bernstein) from jazz. gcf