Vienna Classical Music
Classical music mainly refers to the mainstream music in Europe during the period from 173 to 182, also known as Vienna Classical Music School.
Vienna Classical Music School refers to a music school formed in Vienna in the second half of the 18th century and the beginning of the 19th century, also known as "Vienna Classical Music School". Haydn (1732-189), Mozart (1756-1791) and Beethoven (177-1827) are the representatives. Its characteristics are: the high unity of reason and emotion, profound ideological content and perfect artistic form. In terms of creative techniques, he inherited the achievements of traditional European polyphony and melody music, and established the structure of modern sonata forms and the genres and forms of symphonies, concertos and various chamber music, which had a far-reaching impact on the development of western music.
Musical change
The change of musical language is mainly due to the emergence of a new ideological trend, namely the Enlightenment. In the early 18th century, this great change appeared in philosophy and the awakening of scientific discoveries like Newton in Britain and Descartes in France. The views of reason and humanity were valued, and mystery and superstition gradually faded. One of the goals of the Enlightenment is to popularize literature and art among ordinary men and women, so that the middle class can also share things that only nobles could enjoy in the past. Art should enrich and enrich people's lives. Therefore, we found that in the early 18th century, the form of opera was not only for private houses and only in Italian, but also open to the public and used the national languages of various countries. Opera comique appeared in France, with songs and dialogues interspersed, and the story is what happened in the daily life of ordinary people. In the 172s, comic operas were performed in the Paris market. Compared with the palace opera, its content is more suitable for the tastes of the people. In Britain, since the 173s, the nobles were still enjoying Italian operas, but the middle class liked light operas with dialogue and simple and beautiful tunes. This happened not only in London, but also all over the country. This type of opera was translated into German in the mid-18th century and staged in Berlin, Hamburg and other places in Germany, which promoted the emergence of this kind of opera in Germany's own national form, that is, singing spiel. It is in Italy, the hometown of opera, that comic operas in local languages appeared in the early 18th century, such as in Venice and Naples. The themes used in this kind of opera are close to people's daily life, and the tunes are beautiful; In contrast, it is difficult to understand stories and characters from ancient times or myths, and its music is also boring.
spread of musical instruments
Opera is not the only genre that shows the development of culture and art. At the same time, the printing and publishing industry of music has been established, people can buy music scores to sing or play at home, and the musical instrument manufacturing industry is booming due to the development of new technologies. It is an important symbol of education that young girls can play harpsichord or piano. Men play flute, violin or other amateur instruments. In the eighteenth century, there were many teaching materials for playing musical instruments for family use. Composers also create music for family use. Although they are simple and easy to master in playing techniques, they are still beautiful and interesting to play. This is the reason for the above-mentioned style change, turning to a more regular and melodic style. People try to sing songs they heard in public entertainment places at home, and the publication of "pop songs" came into being. These songs are selected from operas (also sung in famous amusement parks in London), and they are fresh to music lovers.
Concert popularity
Concert activities had already started in the 18th century. In the past, instrumental music was mainly performed in the families of court or upper-class figures. At that time, a brand-new situation appeared. People (usually both music lovers and professional musicians) gathered together to hold concerts, entertain themselves (some of them depended on it for a living) and entertain the audience. There are many professionals engaged in music in big cities. London and Paris first set up regular orchestra concerts, and other cities soon followed suit. Court bands also often hold concerts selling tickets. Especially in the late 18th century, concert activities developed rapidly. Outstanding performers toured from city to city. Famous local artists also hold annual "charity" concerts (actors can still get paid). The orchestra is a group organization, and it was a new thing to open the concert to the public.
The birth of a new generation of composers
In order to meet this need, the composition techniques need to be updated, and the music is required to have a more logical and clear form to attract the attention and interest of the audience. To meet the requirements of this era, a new generation of composers emerged. The three most famous composers of this school are Franz Joseph Haydn, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and ludwig van beethoven. This is the so-called Vienna Classical Music School.
Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven all lived in Vienna from the 188s to the 182s, and they had mutual influence. They are all masters in the form of sonatas, and have written immortal masterpieces of sonatas, symphonies and quartets. They are also committed to the development of the theme and the use of tonal configuration to inject subtle expressions into abstract forms.
Although all three have written operas, only Mozart really left a brilliant masterpiece in the opera, and there really is no classical opera style. It was mainly the instrumental music of these great composers that had a great influence on that time and the whole nineteenth century. Except for Beethoven's later works, their works are profound and easy to understand, which also promotes the music from this period to the world. Bach and Handel's works are still only circulated in central Germany and Britain, while Haydn's works are not only played in the aristocratic mansion where he was employed, but also heard in Vienna, Paris and London. Mozart roamed all over Europe as a performer, playing his own works; Beethoven's works have been heard everywhere in Europe since 185.
Classical music inherits the development of Baroque music and is a musical style or an era in the history of European music. In this era, symphonies, solo concertos, string quartets, multi-movement sonatas and other genres have appeared. Sonata form and Rondo form became the most common forms in classical and romantic periods, which had a far-reaching influence until the twentieth century. Compared with the Baroque period, the establishment of the orchestra has increased, and the orchestra led by the conductor has gradually become a routine. The predecessor of the piano (Fortepiano) appeared in the classical period, gradually replacing the position of the harpsichord.
the main representative
rene descartes's rationalism (1596-165) is the philosophical basis of classicism. His Methodology of Correctly Applying Reason and Pursuing Truth in Science (1637) is the first important philosophical and scientific work in France and also an important work in the history of European philosophy. Descartes proposed to use "pure natural reason". He divided human thinking into four stages: revealing truth through intuition and reasoning; Use analysis to find universal truth through complex things; Reconstruct complex things from isolated factors; Use verification to make up for what may be forgotten. He elaborated in this way: "The first principle is to absolutely accept only what I obviously think is true;" That is to say, we should be careful to avoid rushing into things and preconceived ideas, and only understand the following judgments: things that are so clear and clearly presented in my mind that I have no time to doubt them. The second principle is to separate the difficulties one by one and examine each part as carefully as possible so as to solve them best. The third principle is to start with the simplest and easiest things to understand, guide my thoughts in an orderly way, gradually and step by step to the most complicated understanding, and even imagine the order of those things that were originally in no particular order. The last principle is to make a complete calculation and general inspection in all aspects, so that I am confident that there is nothing missing. " Descartes' famous saying is "I think, therefore I am". He thinks that feeling is unreliable, and reason is an innate cognitive ability, which is the root of all knowledge. People know the truth of everything by reason and judge right from wrong. He also believes that the beauty of all things lies in truth, which exists in order, unity, uniformity, balance, symmetry, clarity and conciseness, and people can only know this truth by reason. In addition, his Theory of Mind and Emotion (1649) advocates that will can directly change people's emotions. Descartes' theory directly guides the creation of classical writers.
the ideological characteristics of classical literature are: first. Under the direct intervention of kingship, he advocated national unity in political thought, opposed feudal separatism, praised the wise king, and combined literature with real politics very closely. Classical works mostly describe the conflict between the hero's feelings and family responsibilities or state obligations, and show the theme that feelings obey responsibilities and individuals obey obligations. Many works directly praise the wisdom of the king, or the king acts as the arbiter and mediator of contradictions. Sharp attacks on illegal activities that are not conducive to social stability show a strong political tendency to support the central kingship. Second. Promote rationality and demand restraint of personal lust. Boileau pointed out: "First of all, you must love reason: May your article always gain value and light only by reason." We should deal with the contradiction between individual and national interests, family obligations and honor concepts rationally, so love or lust can only be put in the second place. Some writers regard meanness, hypocrisy, lewdness, etc. as an unreasonable cross-flow of lust, and strive to be ironic. Third. Sharp attack on the luxury, extravagance, corruption and depravity of the nobility, but also criticize the stupidity, artiness and desire to become a nobleman of the bourgeoisie. Classical writers dare to expose the bad habits and abuses in society and give a merciless blow to criminals and groups who carry out criminal activities under the cloak of religion. Comedy, in particular, advocates changing customs in laughter. Fourth. Classical tragedies are mostly based on the secrets of emperors and generals and palaces, and inherit the tradition of ancient Greek tragedies. This is a reflection of the life of the court and the upper class of the nobility. Among them, Gao Naiyi's tragedy excluded the soul of ancient tragedy-the concept of fate. The hero in his works is the creator of his own destiny, and he will no longer succumb to the power of superman. Although this kind of character can't help but throw himself into unexpected events, he can draw the necessary strength from himself and overcome great difficulties. Classical comedies, fables and essays come into contact with the third grade, which has a broader literary vision and more democratic spirit. Compared with tragedy, comedy, fable and prose reflect a much broader life and more active thinking. Comedy describes the bourgeoisie, civilians, scholars, doctors, actors, servants, chefs and so on; Fables not only describe people with animals, but also touch as many people.
jean racine
The second representative of classical tragedy is jean racine (1639-1699). Andromache (1667), written by him, shows the heroine's efforts to save her son's life, shows the characters who disregard the national interests and obligations to satisfy their passions, and condemns the lust of the aristocratic class. Andromache, the wife of hector, a Trojan hero, became a slave of Epirus, the Greek king of Epicurus, after the fall of the polis. Belius fell in love with her, threatened to kill her son, forced her to yield, and actually delayed the wedding date with the Spartan princess. The princess ordered her suitor, the Greek envoy, to kill Peleus, and then committed suicide because of regret. In the play, the king ignored the national interests in order to satisfy his lust, the princess went beyond the boundaries of revenge in order to vent her resentment, and the Greek envoys disobeyed their mission in order to cater to the wishes of the right person, and even became killers. They all lacked rationality. Only Andromache is determined to preserve the roots of revenge, witty, brave and highly rational. The heroine of Fidel (1677), as a queen, fell in love with the son of the king's ex-wife. When she found out that the prince had another love, she harmed him and finally committed suicide with remorse. She is also a lustful and irrational person. Racine's later works include Estelle (1689) and Attali (1691). Racine is good at depicting the development process of women's psychology and thoughts: Andromache first wanted to lead an honest and clean life, and then felt that he could not have it both ways, so he tried to sacrifice himself, save his son and pretend to promise to marry the king; Federer kept his feelings tight-lipped at first. Once the time was right, he blurted it out. After being rejected, he felt ashamed. When the king returned, he couldn't wait to put the blame on others. Finally, the prince was killed, knowing that he was responsible, and finally confessed. The psychological development process of the characters is carefully written. Racine applied the "three unifications" to a superb level and developed the classical tragic art to a peak. There are no unnecessary scenes and episodes in his script. More importantly, from the beginning of the script, contradictions have developed into explosive fields. Andromache chooses the moment when all kinds of contradictions are in sharp conflict, and omits the development process of contradictions. "Fidel" begins when the heroine confides her true feelings, so there is no need to repeat the previous stories. In this way, the total contradiction suddenly broke out and it was logical to lead to tragedy in one day. In addition, Racine follows the concept of fate in ancient Greek tragedy, and thinks that fate dominates the actions of characters like a demon, which leads to tragic beauty, so his plays always describe the inevitable process that leads to tragedy, unlike Gao Naiyi's plays, which need to create some obstacles for the characters, so Racine's plays are more tragic.
Jean de La Fontaine
Jean de La Fontaine (1621-1695)' s Fable Poetry (1668-1694) tries to reflect the French society in the second half of the 17th century. It is "a giant comedy with hundreds of acts, with the universe as its stage, people, gods and animals. La Fontaine dared to expose the dark corruption of the feudal dynasty, the tyrannical hypocrisy of the lion king, the flattery of ministers, the corruption and rape of officials, and the innocence and slaughter of Wang, all of which were vividly reproduced. Structurally, La Fontaine strives to write fables into a compressed script with an opening, a development and an ending. The dialogue is lively and natural, showing the personality of the characters. The rhythm is ever-changing, and the poems are free and catchy. He raised fable creation to an unprecedented height. Nicolas boileaudespreaux nicolas boileaudespreaux (1636-1711) was a classical theorist. The Art of Poetry (1674) put forward the aesthetic principles of classicism and became the artistic code of classicism. He stipulated that rationality is the basic principle of literary creation and must imitate nature, which refers to court and city life; The creative experience of ancient Greek and Roman writers is the highest criterion and must abide by the "three unifications"; There are high and low literary genres. From the Renaissance to Baroque, to Rococo, and finally to realism.
neoclassicism
Classical art under the banner of reviving ancient Greek and Roman art appeared in France as early as the 17th century. Before the French Revolution and its political and social reforms, there was a pure artistic revolution, which was the neoclassical art movement. French art in the 18th century is neither the reappearance of ancient Greek and Roman art nor the repetition of French classicism in the 17th century. It is necessary to adapt to the bourgeois revolutionary situation in art