30143 - History of Music (LM)

Learning outcomes

By the end of this course students will:- know the major composers of the 19^th century and their works;- know genres, styles and musical techniques of the History of 19^th century music; - recognize, by listening, structure, form, functions, historical-cultural significance of the musical works in the syllabus;- contextualize music knowledge in the philosophical and literary culture and in its historical-social context.

Course contents

Knowledge and comprehension of the History Music implies three different levels:

(1) listening;

(2) reading a score;

(3) contextualizing the musical art work from an aesthetic and historical point of view.

This course provides a didactic articulation conforming to the student’s different levels of competence. For the purposes of simplicity, they can be summarised as follows:

(A) students specializing in Music;

(B) students of other specializations.

A) students are expected to govern levels 1, 2, and 3; (B) students are expected to govern levels 1 and 3. (B) students who wish to specialize in Music shall accordingly govern level 2 as well: this implies an additional examination to verify the ability of reading a score.

This course’s lectures will treat, in summary, the following topics: Ludwig van Beethoven; Romantic music; German music in the firts half of Nineteenth century and Franz Schubert; Hector Berlioz; first German opera and Carl Maria von Weber; Felix Mendelssohn; Robert Schumann; Frédéric Chopin; Gioachino Rossini; Vincenzo Bellini and Gaetano Donizetti; Giuseppe Verdi; Giacomo Meyerbeer and the grand opéra, Georges Bizet; Richard Wagner; Franz Liszt; Johannes Brahms and Vienna at the end of century; nationalism and cosmopolitanism, Pyotr Il′yich Tchaikovsky, Claude Debussy.

Readings/Bibliography

The following bibliography is for all students.

For a general survey:

- R. Mellace, Il racconto della musica europea. Da Bach a Debussy, Roma, Carocci, 2017, pp. pp. 181-199, 239-422, 498-502 (Hugo Wolf), pp. 502-507 (Gustav Mahler).

On the Teaching Materials website ("Teaching resources on Virtuale"):

1) a selection of scores and librettos;

2) Lecture Notes with the following specific bibliography will be availaible .

A list of audio files of all the pieces can be easily downloadable from youtube.

On L.v. Beethoven's, Sonata op. 13 “Patetica”:

- G. Bietti, Ascoltare Beethoven, Bari, Laterza, 2016, pp. 237-243;

- https://www.raiplayradio.it/audio/2013/12/Ludwig-van-Beethoven-le-prime-dieci-Sonate-per-pianoforte---n8-in-do-minore-op13-patetica-927d9673-7923-48f3-b7dd-45a517add765.html

On L.v. Beethoven's, Sinfonie nn. 5 op. 67 e 9 op. 125:

- L. Lockwood, Le sinfonie di Beethoven. Una visione artistica, Torino, EDT, 2016, pp. 3-16, 93-115, 177-207, 209-217;

- G. Pestelli, Il genio di Beethoven. Viaggio attraverso le nove sinfonie. Roma, Donzelli, 2016, pp. 5-17 e 97-116;

- https://www.raiplayradio.it/audio/2012/01/Ludwig-van-Beethoven-La-Sinfonia-n5-4d4bdde3-8a06-44fa-b8bd-128149be8423.html

https://www.raiplayradio.it/audio/2013/01/L-van-Beethoven-Sinfonia-n9-op125-seconda-parte-fd611b4f-7821-43e0-a651-0dc69b073db1.html

On F. Schubert's, Lieder:

- M. Carrozzo – C. Cimagalli, Storia della musica occidentale, Roma, Armando, 1999, III, pp. 73-84;

http://www.flaminioonline.it/Guide/Schubert/Schubert-Winterreise.html

On H. Berlioz's, Symphonie fantastique op. 14:

- M. Carrozzo – C. Cimagalli, Storia della musica occidentale, Roma, Armando, 1999, III, pp. 151-159;

On Fr. Chopin's, Sonata op. 35, Valzer op. 42, Preludes nn. 2, 14, 15 op. 24:

- G. Belotti, Chopin, Torino, EDT, 1984, pp. 147-156, 327-336, 343-346, 435-438, 445-448;

On F. Liszt, Mazeppa:

https://www.flaminioonline.it/Guide/Liszt/Liszt-Studitrascendentali139.html

https://www.flaminioonline.it/Guide/Liszt/Liszt-Mazeppa100.html

On R. Schumann's, Dichterliebe op. 48, nn. 1 e 16 e Papillons op. 2:

- E. Sams, I Lieder di Robert Schumann, Asti, Analogon, 2010, pp. 1-10, 118-120, 135-137;

- E. Ferrari, La maschera e il labirinto. Saggio su “Papillons” op. 2 di Robert Schumann,Milano, CUEM, 2002, pp. 5-27;

On J. Brahms's, Sinfonia n. 4, fourth movement, and on Schicksalslied op. 54:

- M. Carrozzo – C. Cimagalli, Storia della musica occidentale, Roma, Armando, 1999, III, pp. 266-268)

- G. Pestelli, Canti del destino. Studi su Brahms, Torino, Einaudi, 2000, pp. 71-107 (cap. III, on Schicksalslied op. 54);

On P. I. Čajkovskij's, Symphony n. 4:

- D. Brown, Čajkovskij. Guida alla vita e all’ascolto, Milano, il Saggiatore, 2012, pp. 145-153;

On G. Mahler's, Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen and Lieder aus Des Knaben Wunderhorn (Wo die schönen Trompeten blasen and Urlicht):

- E. Fava, Voci di un mondo perduto. Mahler e il “Corno magico del fanciullo”, Alessandria, Edizioni dell’Orso, 2012, pp. 1-5, 228-252;

On G. Rossini's, Il barbiere di Siviglia, cavatina «Largo al factotum», act I:

- S. Lamacchia, Il vero Figaro o sia il falso factotum. Riesame del “Barbiere” di Rossini, Torino, EDT, 2008, pp. pp. 116-120 (par. 3.4.3.1), 191-202;

- F. d’Amico, Forma divina. Saggi sull’opera lirica e sul balletto, Firenze, Olschki, 2012, I, pp. 72-81;

On G. Rossini's, Guillaume Tell, air «Asile héréditaire» and act IV finale

- F. d’Amico, Forma divina cit., pp. 92-104;

On G. Donizetti's, Lucia di Lammermoor, act II finale «Per te d’immenso giubilo»:

- F. d’Amico, Forma divina cit., pp. 125-131;

On G. Verdi's, Rigoletto, Quartetto act III «Un dì se ben rammentomi»:

- F. d’Amico, Forma divina cit., pp. 171-180;

On G. Verdi's, La traviata, Duetto act III «Colpevol sono... so tutto, o cara»

- F. d’Amico, Forma divina cit., pp. 188-200;

On R. Wagner's, Tristan und Isolde, Prelude to first act and Isolde's "Death and Transfiguration" (end of act III):

- F. d’Amico, Forma divina cit., pp. 228-236;

On R. Wagner's, Der Ring des Nibelungen:

- M. Carrozzo – C. Cimagalli, Storia della musica occidentale, Roma, Armando, 1999, III, pp. 211-243;

- M. Giani, Melodia orchestrale e gesto scenico nella “Walkiria”, in La sublime illusione. Sul teatro di Richard Wagner, Napoli-Salerno, Orthotes, 2017, pp. 61-69;

On G. Bizet's, Carmen, Séguedille et duo act I, «Près des remparts de Séville»

- F. d’Amico, Forma divina cit., pp. 263-268;

- S. McClary, Georges Bizet: Carmen, Milano, Rugginenti, 2007, pp. 35-55, 57-80, 112-114;

On G. Verdi's, Messa da Requiem, «Libera me»:

- D. Rosen, Da Rossini a Manzoni: storia di un Requiem, in G. Verdi, Messa da Requiem, a cura di G. Gavazzeni, Bologna, Pendragon, 2008, pp. 45-67.

Students are expected to study in detail the following essays, availables on-line:

- M. Beghelli, Morfologia dell’opera italiana da Rossini a Puccini, in Enciclopedia della musica, diretta da J.-J. Nattiez, vol. IV (Storia della musica europea), Torino, Einaudi, 2004, pp. 895-921.

- C. Dahlhaus, Le strutture temporali nel teatro d’opera, in La drammaturgia musicale, a cura di L. Bianconi, Bologna, il Mulino, 1986, pp. 183-193 (on the Teaching Materials website).

Basic notions of the Italian versification are required:

- M. Beghelli. Guida alla identificazione metrica dei versi italiani (on the Teaching Materials website).

Students are required to be prepared on all the volumes and essays above.

Teaching methods

Lectures, laboratories based on listening

Assessment methods

The exam consists of an oral examination. A students (specializing in Music) are expected to have acquired a detailed knowledge of the author and composition, which they will analyse from a formal-stylistic point of view; B students (other specializations) are expected to make a general-historical outline of the author and composition.

Students are expected to:

- demonstrate their knowledge of the topics treated in the bibliography;

- to demonstrate a knowledge of the fundamentals of the Italian versification;

N.B. (i): Students who need to make up for exams and who choose 19^th century music, are required to follow this syllabus.

N.B. (ii): DAMS students of other specializations who chose Music shall integrate their final examination with an additional interview based on the Lecture Notes a.y. 2020/21 and on the Teaching Materials website.

N.B. (iii): Students from other Degree courses or Universities, whose previous exams in History of Music have been validated, shall nevertheless take an additional interview on a syllabus agreed with the teacher.

N.B. (iv): Students of the Degree course in Foreign Languages and Literature who have included in their study plan History of Music with less than 12 credits shall agree a syllabus with the teachers.

N.B. (v): In order to request validation of History of Music exams taken in other universities (for instance during an Erasmus exchange programme), students shall first submit the syllabus to the teacher.

It will be assessed as excellent the performance of those students achieving an organic vision of the course contents, the use of a proper specific language, a structural and historical-contextual understanding of the pieces studied, the originality of the reflection as well as the familiarity with the tools of analysis of the nineteenth-century History of Music. It will be assessed as discrete the performance of those students showing mostly mechanical or mnemonic knowledge of the subject, not articulated synthesis and analysis capabilities, a correct but not always appropriate language, as well as a scholastic study of the nineteenth-century History of Music. It will be assessed as barely sufficient the performance of those students showing learning gaps, inappropriate language, lack of knowledge of the instruments of the nineteenth-century History of Music. It will be assessed as insufficient the performance of those students showing learning gaps, inappropriate language, no orientation within the recommended bibliography and inability to analyse the nineteenth-century History of Music.

Teaching tools

Thesis

For Students of the old system (4- or 3-years) and the new system (3 years):

Students who intend to prepare the thesis in History of Music are required to agree with the supervisor an appropriate subject. They will then prepare a short outline of the project (with bibliographic references) and submit it to the supervisor. Once the project has been approved, students will start working on the thesis and report periodically on the study progresses to the supervisor which will designate a second advisor (obligatory for the 4-year system). If the supervisor is not reported about the research within a six-months period, he/she will be free to assign the same subject to a different candidate. The 3-years thesis is different from the old one only for a smaller size (40-50 type-written pages of 30 lines per 60 characters a line).

Office hours

See the website of Saverio Lamacchia