Questions: The Romantic Period: Emotion, Expression, and Expansion

Question 1

Which of the following best defines 'program music' as practiced in the Romantic period?

• A. Music composed for theatrical productions and opera
• B. Instrumental music intended to depict a specific narrative, scene, or extra-musical idea
• C. Music that follows a strict Classical formal structure such as sonata form
• D. Music composed according to a government-sponsored national program

Answer: (B)

Program music is instrumental music with a stated extra-musical subject — a poem, a landscape, a legend. Berlioz's Symphonie fantastique (depicting an artist's opium dream) and Liszt's symphonic poems are canonical examples. It contrasts with absolute music, which has no such program. Options A, C, and D confuse the term with unrelated meanings of 'program.'

Question 2

In the musical debates of the Romantic period, Brahms was considered a radical progressive who pushed harmonic language well beyond Classical boundaries.

• T. True
• F. False

Answer: False

Brahms was widely regarded as the conservative voice in the so-called 'War of the Romantics.' He maintained Classical forms (symphony, sonata, chamber music) and cleaner tonal language, while Wagner and Liszt represented the progressive 'New German School' that championed program music and chromatic harmony. The Brahms–Wagner divide was one of the defining cultural debates of the era.

Question 3

Name two ways in which the Romantic orchestra differed structurally from the Classical orchestra.

Model answer: The Romantic orchestra was significantly larger — more string players, expanded brass sections (adding tuba, third trombone), and larger woodwind and percussion sections — and it used a far wider dynamic and expressive range than its Classical counterpart.

Beethoven's later symphonies began this expansion; by Mahler and Bruckner, orchestras exceeded 100 players. New instruments like the tuba (added around 1835) and valved brass allowed sustained melodic lines in brass parts. The conductor's role also became more prominent as coordinating larger forces required clearer direction.