Chapter 33: Musical Reading: Schubert and the Early Romantic Lied
MULTIPLE CHOICE
1. The German term for the art song is:
a. Gesang. c. durchkomponiert.
b. Lied. d. chorale.
2. A song whose text is a short lyric poem in German with piano accompaniment is called a:
a. sonata. c. Lied.
b. ballad. d. chant.
3. Important composers of nineteenth-century Lieder included:
a. Franz Schubert c. Fanny Mendelssohn Hensel
b. Robert Schumann d. all of the answers shown here
4. The favorite Romantic poets of the composers of Lieder were:
a. Goethe and Heine. c. Shelley and Twain.
b. Wordsworth and Shakespeare. d. Hugo and Marlowe.
5. The favorite subjects of the Romantic poets were:
a. comedy and farce.
b. love, longing, and nature.
c. homage to the Virgin Mary and other religious subjects.
d. historical events.
6. A group of Lieder unified by a narrative thread or by a descriptive or expressive theme is called:
a. a song cycle. c. an opera.
b. a ballad cycle. d. a cantata.
7. A song form in which the same melody is repeated with every stanza of text is called:
a. through-composed. c. rondo.
b. strophic. d. sonta-allegro.
8. A song that is composed from beginning to end without repetition of whole sections is called:
a. strophic. c. through-composed.
b. modified strophic. d. theme and variations.
9. A song form in which the main melody is repeated for two or three stanzas but introduces new or
significantly varied material when the text requires it is called:
a. strophic. c. modified strophic.
b. through-composed. d. ternary.
10. Schubert was born in:
a. Bonn. c. Vienna.
b. Salzburg. d. Leipzig.
11. Schubert and his friends organized evening gatherings of artists, writers, and musicians, called:
a. Abendmusiken. c. Schubertiads.
b. soirées. d. all of the answers shown here
12. Schubert lived a tragically short life but was a remarkably prolific composer of:
a. Lieder. c. piano music.
b. chamber music. d. all of the answers shown here
13. Approximately how many Lieder did Schubert compose?
a. 300–400 c. 500–600
b. 400–500 d. more than 600
14. Schubert’s song Elfking is a setting of a ballad written by:
a. Müller. c. Heine.
b. Schiller. d. Goethe.
15. Schubert’s Lied Elfking is in _________ form.
a. binary c. strophic
b. ternary d. through-composed
16. Which of the following is true of Schubert’s Elfking?
a. He wrote the work as a teenager.
b. It is based on a legend that whoever is touched by the king of the elves must die.
c. It presents four characters who are differentiated in the music.
d. all of the answers shown here
17. In Schubert’s Elfking, the obsessive triplet rhythm of the piano accompaniment represents:
a. the wind. c. the galloping of the horse.
b. the terror in the boy’s mind. d. all of the answers shown here
18. Which musical devices does Schubert use to portray the child’s terror in Elfking?
a. lilting melody in major mode c. low range and consonant harmony
b. high range and dissonance d. medium range in minor mode
19. The poem’s four characters are sung by _______ vocalist(s).
a. one c. three
b. two d. four
TRUE/FALSE
1. The art song can be described as a union of poetry and music.
2. Goethe and Heine were two of the leading nineteenth-century writers whose poetry was set by
Lieder composers.
3. The rise of the piano as a household instrument influenced the popularity of the Lied.
4. A song that is composed from beginning to end without repetitions of whole sections is in
modified strophic form.
5. A song in which the same melody is repeated with every stanza of the text is in strophic form.
6. The song form that combines features of strophic and through-composed forms is called modified
strophic.
7. Franz Schubert was a thoroughly Romantic composer who abandoned the forms and stylistic
principles of Classicism.
8. Schubert’s prolific output includes works in every major genre.
9. Schubert composed over 600 Lieder.
10. The poem Elfking was written by Heinrich Heine.
11. Schubert’s Lied Elfking is through-composed.
12. Schubert composed Elfking just before he died.
13. The Elfking requires four vocalists to sing the parts of the four characters.
14. The Elfking is based on a legend that whoever is touched by the king of the elves must die.
ESSAY
1. Compare the different types of song structures used by Lieder composers.
ANS:
Answers will vary.
PTS: 1 DIF: 2 REF: Essentials: p. 186
TOP: Romantic Song MSC: Applied
2. Describe how Schubert uses the piano and voice to depict the characters and action of Elfking.
ANS:
Answers will vary.
PTS: 1 DIF: 2 REF: Essentials: pp. 186–188
TOP: Schubert Song MSC: Applied
3. Discuss how Schubert created a unity of expression in the Elfking between text and music that
enhanced the words of Goethe’s poem.
ANS:
Answers will vary.
PTS: 1 DIF: 3 REF: Essentials: pp. 186–188
TOP: Schubert Song MSC: Applied