Felix

Mendelssohn
Dr. Lara Housez
School of the Arts
McMaster University

Content
Felix Mendelssohn
Bach Revival
Overture to A Midsummer Nights Dream
Program music
Creating characters through sound

Review Test #1

Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847)

German composer
Prominent, cosmopolitan,
intellectual family
(grandfather, philosopher;
father, banker)
Well educated: in addition
to German, spoke English,
French, and Italian; read
Greek and Latin; mentored
by Goethe, 1821
Like Mozart, Felix was a
child prodigy, pianist and
composer

 Equally talented sister,

Fanny Mendelssohn
Hensel (1805-1847)
At age 10, Felix studied
traditional composition
(important conservative
musical in\luence)
Between 12-14 Felix
wrote 12 string
symphonies, 1st full-
orchestra symphony
@15, Octet @ 16, and
Overture to A
Midsummer Nights
Dream @ 17
COUNTERPOINT = GRAMMAR OF MUSIC

Bach Revival
Johann Sebastian Bachs music was largely forgotten
In 1829, Mendelssohn conducted the 1st
performance of Bachs St. Matthew Passion since
1750 (4 years earlier grandmother had given him
copy of score)
Led to revival of Bach's music in Germany and,
eventually, throughout Europe
Mendelssohn achieved widespread acclaim at the
age of 20
He traveled widely, made \irst visit to England in
1829, met Queen Victoria, Prince Albert
Led to Scottish and Italian symphonies, and
Hebrides Overture (Fingals Cave Overture)

View of Lucerne watercolour by

Mendelssohn, 1847

Mendelssohn, 1809-1847
Fingals
Cave,
Scotland

Overture to A Midsummer Nights

Dream
Originally concert piece (1826), later wrote incidental
music for play including famous Wedding March (1842)
Program music
Instrumental work associated with story, event, or idea
Invokes atmosphere and characters of Shakespeares play
Melodies associated with characters in the story
Mythological comedy involving Athenians, fairies, acting
troupe
Synopsis (in a nutshell)
Girl meets boy. Girl falls in love with boy. Girl loses boy
when mischievous fairly sprinkles love juice on boys
eyelids, making him fall for another girl. Girl wins back
boy (with help of a little fairy magic)

A Midsummer Nights Dream Mythological

comedy, written by Shakespeare (c. 1590)
Kevin Kline (Nick Bottom) and Michelle Pfeiffer
(Titania) in the 1999 \ilm version directed by
Michael Hoffman

 Sonata form used to express and structure drama

Exposition with second key area (not repeated):
Characters introduced
Development, unstable keys: Chaotic magical spirit of
forest represented in with contrasting dynamics
Recapitulation all in tonic
Word-Music Relationship Summary exposition, tonic
Theme 1: enchanted forests; wind instruments
Theme 2: kingdom of fairies; high-pitched strings
Theme 3: world of humans; loud, pompous theme
Theme 4: human lovers; secondary key area
Theme 5: Bottom, the weaver; loud, braying theme

Selected Questions from Test #1

Haydn was born in Hungary.
a. True
b. False

Minuet and trio form is a ternary form.
a. True
b. False

The Uirst section of sonata form, the exposition, never modulates to a
new key.
a. True
b. False

Basso continuo usually consists of 2 of the same instruments.

a. True
b. False

Beethoven was one of Haydns last composition students.

a. True
b. False

The shortest of the 6 periods of music history, as outlined in our

textbook, is:
a. Middle Ages
b. Renaissance
c. Baroque era
d. Classical era

Da capo means:
a. from the recapitulation
b. from the head, or from the top
c. no hats
d. for the palace

Which of the following instruments is a single-reed instrument?

a. Clarinet
b. Oboe
c. Bassoon
d. Flute

Operas by Mozart include all of the following EXCEPT:
a. The Magic Flute
b. Don Giovanni
c. The Long Farewell
d. Cos fan Tutte

HAYDNs 102: Identify the form:

a. Symphony
b. Minuet and trio
c. Sonata form
d. Rondo
MOZARTS PIANO CONCERTO: Identify the genre:
a. Chamber music
b. Concerto
c. Concerto grosso
d. Symphony

MYSTERY: The fourth recorded example is written for 4 instruments.
Identify which instruments are playing:
a. 1 violin, 1 viola, 1 cello, 1 double bass
b. 1 violin, 1 viola, 1 cello, 1 harpsichord
c. 2 violins, 1 viola, 1 cello
d. 2 violins, 1 cello, 1 double bass

For the fourth recorded example, identify the genre:

a. Homophony
b. Symphony
c. Chamber orchestra
d. String quartet

The fourth recorded example contains more than 1 cadence. Identify
where the cadences generally take place in this example:
a. At the beginnings of phrases
b. At the ends of phrases
c. In the middle of phrases
d. Only at the very end of the recorded example

For the fourth recorded example, identify the term that best
describes the texture:
a. Polyphony
b. Homophony (melody plus accompaniment)
c. Complicated
d. Homorhythmic, hymn-like

For the fourth recorded example, identify the country where this
piece was most likely composed:
a. England
b. France
c. Germany
d. Hungary

For Wednesday
Read: pp. 261-266
Listen: CD 3, track 10 (Hector Berlioz,
Symphonie fantastique, 4th mvt. (March to
the Scaffold)