Romantic Period Music Topics for Discussion

Romantic Period Music Topics for Discussion

1. How did Robert Schumann’s marriage influence his compositions?
2. How did Romantic composers expand the expressive qualities of music?
3. How does the 19th-century orchestra differ from the 18th-century orchestra?
4. In what ways is the music of the Romantic period similar to other art forms of the period?
5. In what ways were the artists of the Romantic period fascinated with the supernatural and the macabre?
6. What are some characteristics of the Romantic “miniature” compositions? For which instruments were these compositions usually written?
7. What are some of Richard Wagner’s innovations? What were some of the effects of these innovations on later composers and music in general?
8. What are the characteristics and theme of Romantic music as opposed to music created during the Enlightenment?
9. What are the differences between Wagner’s operas and Verdi’s operas?
10. What are the similarities between Classical and Romantic music? What are the differences?
11. What is nationalism in music? What are some examples of how nationalism can be used in music?
12. What is program music? How is it different from absolute music?
13. What physical problem afflicted Beethoven by about the age of thirty? How did he cope with this problem? How did it change his career?
14. Who are two Romantic composers? What are some of their contributions to music?