CLASSICAL I : SONATA FORM AND THE CLASSIC PERIOD

During the late 18^th century there was a shift from traditional Christian theology toward a morality based on social equality, combined with a shift from absolute/divine rule in government toward greater independence and freedom of thought and behavior resulting in many social reforms and enlightened monarchies. Austria and Germany became centers of musical activity due to changes in "patronage" within the Church and the courts of those countries. In contrast, the courts of France and England maintained a single centralized authority for the life of the court.

The individual developed more faith in applied experimental knowledge and faith in common natural feelings: secular, skeptical, empirical, practical, liberal, equalitarian, and progressive. Remember, this is the era of the American and French Revolutions and of people like Rousseau, Voltaire, Locke, Hume, Franklin, Louis the XVI, Frederick the Great. One will also encounter writers like Pope and Swift, and composers including Mozart, Haydn, Gluck, and Beethoven.

Urban life in Europe became very cosmopolitan as "popularization of art and learning swept through Europe. The individual reveled in his/her own life. Public concerts became more common as the concert hall and opera houses established themselves as cultural institutions, making it possible for all social classes to enjoy music of the times. To a certain extent music became the universal language of Europe since music was considered to reflect order and symmetry, and balance and proportion. Music of the Classic Period also can be described as universal, empirical, entertaining, natural, expressive, elegant, graceful, and refined. Important musical forms and genres of the era include the Sonata, the Symphony, the Concerto, the String Quartet, Opera and many other Chamber music (small ensemble) forms.

Liberty, certainly it was the basis on which the Enlightenment had been founded, the freedom of opportunity due every man, irrespective of class to realize himself and make a better life. But equality and fraternity were something else again; they signaled as a logical conclusion the eradication of class, a notion that simply could not form part of the orderly process envisioned in Enlightenment theory. If these socio-political concerns seem to have little to do with musical imagery, their relevance to the ethos of rustic pastoral should not be underestimated. The reliance of rustic pastoral on the distinction between classes was absolute. Practically speaking, the vanishing of a peasant class would have meant the dissolution of the European economy, if not the total unraveling of society. On a somewhat less apocalyptic note, with the disappearance of the peasantry would have also disappeared the central myth of the honest laborer and the spiritual superiority of country life: rustic pastoral would have lost it's reason for being. Franz Joseph Haydn was a case in point. He was a man risen from the peasantry to become one of Europe's most illustrious figures.

Orchestral music as such, that is music conceived with the sound of a specific and fairly large group of instruments in mind, was a development of the Baroque era. The main line of development in Classic music, then, took place in the instrumental field, and within that field the Symphony saw it's greatest growth. We might ask why the symphony? Composers found in it, both as a whole and it's parts, a framework for organizing their musical ideas which was also aesthetically pleasing. We should not think of "musical form" as a preexisting concept to which a composer feels forced to adapt his/her expression; rather, symphonic form was created and recreated in so many works that composers found it liberating rather than a confining formal concept. The Symphony in the Classic period became an increasingly complex structure showing, within general observed conventions, remarkable freedom and originality. Great variety of expression involved all elements of music: melody, harmony, tone color.

A Symphony is a multi-movement work played by an orchestra. The earliest symphonies were short and were written for a small number of instruments. The Italian opera Overture, consisting of three sections in fast-slow-fast order was the model upon which they were based. Classic period composers expanded the sections and generally added a fourth section, organizing each movement according to the principles of a chosen instrumental form.

When it is applied to music, form is the way we organize sound in our mind. Just as we can see shapes of objects with our eyes, we can hear shapes of music with our ears.  When we hear patterns of sound in music, we are beginning to understand form. 

When shapes are put together in different ways, they create different forms.   These forms can create images like tress, houses and people.  A composer does the same thing.  He uses pieces of music and puts them together in different ways to create different musical forms. 

Here's a few vocabulary terms to be aware of when discussing Form:

Sonata Form  

(also called ABA Form, in three sections)

In general, the first movement of a Classic symphony embodies these qualities to a higher degree than other movements; it often has more formal complexity and ingenuity. The term Sonata Form has been applied to the organization of a typical first movement. Furthermore, sonata form is found in movements from other forms such as symphonies, sonatas, concertos , and string quartets. Due to its frequent occurrence in the first movement, which usually is in an Allegro tempo, the term Sonata Allegro form and First Movement form are frequently encountered. Musical themes are better defined, existing as complete musical sentences or themes that can better understood by the listener. The concept of one or several clearly defined themes, coupled with certain principles of harmonic progression and contrast, is essential to sonata form. Such a theme will allow for modifications and contrasts of many kinds without losing its identity; it may be fragmented, it's melodic line or its harmonization may be varied; it may be played by different instruments or combinations of instruments. These and many other ways of giving variety to a theme, and hence to a movement as a whole are referred to as "development".- another concept essential to "sonata allegro form. Most movements in sonata allegro form have at least two clearly defined themes, or groups of themes, frequently of contrasting character and different keys. To set off themes effectively from each other, a non-thematic transition or "bridge section" is interpolated in the middle ending in a decisive cadence and complete rest before second theme is heard. More non-thematic material may follow, bringing the first section or Exposition to a close. Thematic developments may occur anywhere in the movement, but generally these ideas are emphasized after the principle theme (s) have been exposed. Development through modulation became increasingly important during the Classic period, traveling through remote harmonic regions brought about the most effective way to contrast with the last section: Recapitulation: this is the sensation that the listener gets when they return to familiar territory: the original theme restated again, in the tonic key. The term Sonata Allegro refers to the basic form of the Sonata of the Baroque period (i.e. Exposition - Development- Recapitulation)

The Minuet & Trio, generally the middle movement of a symphony or concerto, was a stately 17th century dance of the court of Louis XIV. It is in triple meter, with a moderate tempo and rather heavy accents which gave it a dignified robust character. The m & t is actually a set of two minuets, played in the order "a-b-a". The second dance or trio (b) is lighter and more lyrical than the first, which is played by the full orchestra. The last movement of a Classic period Symphony was typically a Rondo- derived from an early French piece Rondeau) - it usually has a fast tempo and a merry mood, and generally took the form - A-B-A-C-A.

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