I. Course Description KUTZTOWN UNIVERSITY KUTZTOWN, PENNSYLVANIA DEPARTMENT OF MUSIC COLLEGE OF VISUAL AND PERFORMING ARTS MUS 318 Symphonic Literature Approved by Department: Sep. 8, 2009 This course is an in-depth examination of representative orchestral works from the eighteenth to the twenty-first century that are often too long to be studied in other survey courses. While historical and contextual background is addressed, the focus of the course is study and analysis of the form, movement structure, compositional process, performance practice, and orchestration of the works selected through score study and directed listening. Prerequisite: MUS 214 or permission of the Instructor 3 Semester hours 3 Clock hours II. Course Rationale While multi-movement symphonies have formed the basis of Western orchestral music for over two centuries, most music history and literature surveys only present selected movements of very few of these works because of time and space limitations. This course allows music students to expand their knowledge of symphonic repertoire through study of selected works in their entirety, and employ skills in analysis and criticism to better understand important works of the Western musical canon. III. Course Objectives Upon completion of this course, the student will be able to: 1. Discuss the history of the symphony from the eighteenth to the twenty-first century. 2. Demonstrate an understanding of orchestration and its changes through time. 3. Demonstrate an understanding of the movement and key structure of symphonies. 4. Identify differences in symphonies from the Classical, Romantic, and Modern style periods, and also individual characteristics of specific composers. 5. Demonstrate skills in score and listening identification.
6. Demonstrate skills in analysis and criticism. IV. Assessment Assessment of each student's level of accomplishment with reference to the course objectives will be based upon a subset of the following: 1. Periodic quizzes and examinations 2. Graded homework assignments 3. Regular listening quizzes 4. Class presentations 5. Active participation in class discussions 6. Completion of a Core Assignment 7. A Final Project and/or Examination V. Course Outline I. Origins of the Symphony mid-eighteenth century A. Baroque concerto and suite 1. Orchestration 2. Performance location and purpose B. Italian opera overture 1. 3-movement structure 2. Terminology sinfonia, overture C. Milan Giovanni Sammartini D. Mannheim Johann Stamitz E. Vienna Georg Wagenseil F. Other centers Berlin, Paris, Dresden II. The Symphony in the Late Eighteenth Century A. Changes in number and length of movements B. Changes and additions in instrumentation C. Franz Joseph Haydn 1. early works concerto elements 2. middle works work for the Esterházy princes 3. late works Paris and London symphonies D. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart E. First two symphonies of Ludwig van Beethoven
III. The early Nineteenth Century A. Ludwig van Beethoven 1. Symphonies 3-8 a. increases in orchestration b. increases in length 2. Symphony #9 a. Redefining the symphony b. Fourth-movement Chorus c. Critical reception B. Franz Schubert 1. Symphony in B minor Unfinished 2. Symphony in C The Great C. Felix Mendelssohn 1. Four symphonies 2. Symphony #4 Italian D. Robert Schumann IV. VI. The late Nineteenth century A. Johannes Brahms B. Franz Liszt 1. The symphonic poem 2. Les Preludes, Mazeppa C. Gustav Mahler 1. Nine complete symphonies, #10 unfinished 2. Symphony #2 Resurrection 3. Das Lied von der Erde D. Peter Tchaikovsky E. Anton Dvořák F. Anton Bruckner The early Twentieth Century A. Claude Debussy 1. Impressionism 2. La Mer B. Ottorino Respighi B. Gustav Holst C. Ralph Vaughan Williams VII. Middle and late 20 th and early 21 st Centuries A. Sergei Prokofiev B. Dmitri Shostakovich C. Aaron Copland D. Alan Hovhaness E. John Corigliano F. Phillip Glass
VI. Instructional Resources Bonds, Mark Evan, After Beethoven: Imperatives of Originality in the Symphony. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1996. Broder, Nathan, ed. Mozart, Symphony in G minor, K. 550. New York: Norton, 1967. Brook, Barry S., ed. The Symphony: 1720-1840. New York: Garland, 1979-1985. Brown, A. Peter. The Symphonic Repertoire, vol. 2: The First Golden Age of the Viennese Symphony: Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, and Schubert. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 2002. Brown, A. Peter. The Symphonic Repertoire, vol. 3a, The European Symphony from ca. 1800 to ca. 1930: Germany and the Nordic Countries. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 2007. Brown, A. Peter. The Symphonic Repertoire, vol. 3b, The European Symphony from ca. 1800 to ca. 1930: Great Britain, Russia, and France. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 2007. Brown, A. Peter. The Symphonic Repertoire, vol. 4, The Second Golden Age of the Viennese Symphony: Brahms, Bruckner, Dvořák, Mahler, and Selected Contemporaries. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 2003. Burkholder, J. Peter, Donald Jay Grout, and Claude Palisca. A History of Western Music, 7 th ed. New York: W. W. Norton, 2006. Cook, Nicholas. Beethoven s Ninth Symphony. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1993. Cooper, John Michael. Mendelssohn s Italian Symphony. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2003. Churgin, Bathia, ed. The Symphonies of G. B. Sammartini, vol. 1. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1968. Cuyler, Louise. The Symphony. Information Coordinators, Inc., 1995. Downes, Edward. Guide to Symphonic Music. New York: Walker and Company, 1981. Fanning, David. Nielson: Symphony No. 5. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1997. Floros, Constantin. Gustav Mahler: The Symphonies. Portland, OR: Amadeus, 1993. Frisch, Walter. Brahms: The Four Symphonies. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2003.
Greene, Richard. Holst: The Planets. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1995. Griffiths, Paul. Modern Music and After: Directions since 1945. Oxford: Oxford University Press, Inc., 1996. Haimo, Ethan. Haydn s Symphonic Forms: Essays in Compositional Logic. Oxford: Clarendon, 1995. Heffer, Simon. Vaughan Williams. London: Northeastern, 2001. Heartz, Daniel. Haydn, Mozart, and the Viennese School, 1740-1780. New York: W. W. Norton, 1995. Hepokoski, James. Sebelius: Symphony No. 5. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1993. Holoman, D. Kern. The Nineteenth-Century Symphony. New York: Schirmer, 1997. Horton, Julian. Bruckner s Symphonies: Analysis, Reception, and Cultural Politics. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2004. Jackson, Timothy L. Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 6 (Pathétique). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1999. Johns, Keith Thomas. The Symphonic Poems of Franz Liszt. Stuyvesant, NY: Pendragon, 1997. Jones, David Wyn. Beethoven: The Pastoral Symphony. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1996. Kinderman, William. Beethoven. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1995. Knapp, Raymond. Brahms and the Challenge of the Symphony. Stuyvesant, NY: Pendragon, 1997. Korstvedt, Benjamin. Bruckner: Symphony No. 8. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000. Landon, H. C. Robbins. Haydn: Chronicle and Works, 5 vols. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1976-1984. Landon, H. C. Robbins. (Joseph) Haydn: A Documentary Study. New York: Rizzoli International Pub, 1984. LaRue, Jan. A Catalogue of Eighteenth-Century Symphonies. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1988.
Layton, Robert, ed. A Companion to the Symphony. London: Simon and Schuster, 1993. Layton, Robert. A Guide to the Symphony. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1995. Levy, David Benjamin. Beethoven: The Ninth Symphony, rev. ed. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2003. Morgan, Robert P., ed. Anthology of Twentieth-Century Music. New York: W.W. Norton, 1992. Newbould, Brian. Schubert and the Symphony: A New Perspective. Surbiton, UK: Toccata, 1992. Pauly, Reinhard G. Music in the Classic Period, 4 th ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice-Hall, 2000. Peyser, Joan, ed. The Orchestra: Origins and Transformations. New York: Scribner, 1986. Richardson, Brian. Berlioz: Symphonie fantastique. Leeds: Mayflower, 1990. Rosen, Charles. The Classical Style: Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven. NY: W.W. Norton, 1997. Rosen Charles. Sonata Forns. New York: W. W. Norton, 1980. Sadie, Stanley, ed. The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, 2 nd ed. London: Macmillan, 2001. Saint-Foix, Georges de. The Symphonies of Mozart. Translated by Leslie Orrey. New York: Dover Publications, 1968. Salzman, Eric. Twentieth-Century Music: An Introduction, 4 th ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice-Hall, 2002. Schroeder, David P. Haydn and the Enlightenment: The Late Symphonies and Their Audience. Oxford: Clarendon, 1997. Sisman, Elaine. Mozart: The Jupiter Symphony. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1993. Stedman, Preston. The Symphony: A Research and Information Guide. New York: Garland Publishing, 1990. Treitler, Leo. Strunk s Source Readings in Music History, rev. ed. New York: W. W. Norton, 1998.
Webster, James. Haydn s Farewell Symphony and the Idea of Classical Style: Through-Composition and Cyclic Integration in his Instrumental Music. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1991. Will, Richard. The Characteristic Symphony in the Age of Haydn and Beethoven. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002. Wolf, Eugene K. The Symphonies of Joseph Stamitz: A Study in the Formation of the Classic Style. Boston: Martinus Nijhoff, 1981. Wright, Craig and Bryan Simms. Music in Western Civilization. Belmont, CA: Thomson Schirmer, 2006. Zaslaw, Neal, ed. The Classical Era: From the 1740s to the End of the 18 th Century. London: MacMillan, 1989. Zaslaw, Neil. Mozart s Symphonies: Context, Performance Practice, Reception. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1989. Zychowicz, James L. Mahler s Fourth Symphony. New York: Oxford University Press, 2000.