978-0393639032 Chapter 36

133

3. verse 3: trombone solo, bass solo

a. Tuba mirum (“A trumpet with an astonishing

sound”)

4. verse 4: tenor solo, homophonic orchestra

5. verse 5: tenor solo continues

6. verse 6: alto solo with orchestra

7. verse 7: soprano solo with orchestra; last line

repeated, solo quartet

8. verse 8: full chorus setting, dramatic

a. Rex tremendae majestatis! (“King of tremen-

dous majesty”): dotted rhythms, syncopated

chords

b. Salva me, fons pietatis! (“Save me, fount of

piety”): last line sung softly

OVERVIEW

Mozart’s setting of the Dies irae in his Requiem illustrates

the state of sacred music at the end of the Classical era. This

dramatic and power ful choral masterpiece has had a profound

impact on audiences ever since.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

1. To understand sacred music at the end of the Classical

era as marked by expanded orchestral and choral forces,

with a focus on the oratorio and the Mass, typified by

the Dies irae from Mozart’s Requiem

2. To understand the unique biographical and apocryphal

circumstances surrounding the composition and recep–

tion of Mozart’s Requiem

OUTLINE

I. Sacred Music in the Classical Era

A. Choral music: sacred music genres of later 1700s

1. Mass, Requiem Mass (Mass for the Dead),

oratorio

2. Baroque era: performed in Church

3. Classical era: moved to concert hall

B. Mozart’s Requiem

1. Mozart’s last large- scale composition

a. symbolic of the tragedy of his premature

death

b. left unfinished: sketches for later movements

completed by Mozart’s pupil, Franz Xaver

Süssmayr

c. grand style of Catholic music in Vienna

d. rumors surround commission, premonition of

Mozart’s death

2. four vocal soloists, four- part chorus, and

orchestra

a. extended use of low winds and brass

3. Dies irae (“Day of Wrath”)

a. thirteenth- century rhymed Latin poem

b. vision of Judgment Day

4. widely recognized

a. performed at President JohnF. Kennedy’s

funeral, 1963

b. global per for mance, September11 one- year

anniversary, 2002

C. LG 26: Mozart: Dies irae, from Requiem (1791)

1. verse 1: full chorus and orchestra, homophonic

2. verse 2: chorus and orchestra, polyphonic

a. Quantus tremor est futurus (“How great a

tremor there will be”): word- painting

CHAPTERfi36 Mourning a Hero: Mozart and the Requiem

134 | Chapterfi36

SUPPLEMENTAL REPERTORY

SUPPLEMENTAL BIBLIOGRAPHY

Robbins Landon, H. C. 1791: Mozart’s Last Year. New York:

Schirmer Books, 1988. Robbins Landon places the Requiem in

context with Mozart’s other works of 1791, his illness, his death,

and subsequent my thol ogy.

Wolff, Christoph. Mozart’s Requiem: Historical and Analytical

YOUR TURN TO EXPLORE

Find examples of music designed to memorialize tragic

events (for example, the 9/11 terrorist attacks, the AIDS epi-

MODEL RESPONSE

the victims and as a musical narrative that recounts the

events of that day and its aftermath. Adams’s incorporation

of both real sounds and musical ones blends the real with

the imagined. There is an arc to this piece that begins and

LECTURE SUGGESTIONS

between these two choral works. Students should iden-

tify the larger number of performers, the lack of polyph–

ony, and the absence of cantus flrmus technique in the

Dies irae. Emphasize these differences as representative

of the shift from Baroque to Classical choral music.

2. Before playing the entire Dies irae, have the students

form small groups and instruct them to note how

ASSIGNMENT SUGGESTIONS

1. As the textbook notes, the events surrounding Mozart’s

Alexander Pushkin turned this legend into a short play

in 1830. The play was followed by other spinoffs, most

notably the 1984 movie based on Peter Shaffer’s play

cumstances involved? Do you think Mozart’s historical

reputation would be dif fer ent if had he lived to old age?

Do you think that Mozart is remembered more for the

dramatized version of the end of his short life than for

PART 4: MUSIC IN WORDS

Haydn, String Quartet in C Major, Op. 76, No.fi3, II

1. Create a simple listening outline.

What to Listen For

MELODY: lyrical, mostly conjunct melody with repeated phrases*

RHYTHM/METER: regular qua dru ple meter in a slow tempo

HARMONY: consonant, major key, some chromaticism in variation 3**

3:46 third variation: viola has the theme, some syncopation in one of the violins, some chromaticism

5:04 fourth variation: theme played by violin in polyphonic texture

6:18 brief coda

RUBRIC

• Student’s descriptions should reflect terminology for the ele ments of music learned in Part I, as well as a familiarity with

the ele ments of music typical to the Classical style (see “Reviewing Eighteenth- Century Classical Style” on p.214).

• student should provide a brief description of each variation and other features using timings (as shown above).

2. Consider how you might describe this work to a friend . . .

This string quartet movement features a main melody (theme) that is then varied four times. The theme is very singable and

tuneful, with easy– to– remember phrases, some of which are repeated. The string quartet (consisting of two violins, viola, and

cello) hands off the theme to dif fer ent instruments, depending on the variation. After one of the violins plays the theme, with

136 | Part 4

Music in Words | 137

RUBRIC

• Student is free to use subjective language (“tuneful,” “ simple,” “easy– to– remember”). Note that Chapter13 (Putting

3. Short paragraph describing the work as you might for a concert report . . .

The second movement of Joseph Haydn’s String Quartet, Op. 76, No.3 (Emperor) is an excellent example of theme and

variations form, typical of a slow movement in the multimovement cycle. Unlike the theme used in the second movement of

Haydn’s Symphony No.94, this theme is not in two parts, but instead features repeated phrases (a- a- b– c- c). In each of the

four variations one of the instruments of the quartet plays the theme in a straightforward manner, but Haydn varies the role

of the remaining instruments. The first variation is in fact a duet between the two violins, with the theme in one and sprightly,

RUBRIC

• Student should synthesize responses to questions 1 and 2, using some terminology (in bold) and writing expressively.

Student should vary sentence structure in describing each of the variations.

138 | Part 4

PART 4: CLASSROOM- READY ACTIVITY 1

Activity Description

Instructions

Have the class form groups of three to five students and hand out the accompanying worksheets. Before playing Act I, scene

2 of Don Giovanni, review the characters and the scenario and ask the class to take note of the stylistic differences in the

Student Worksheet | 139

STUDENT WORKSHEET

Name: ________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Rhythm (meter, tempo)/dynamics:

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Harmony (major, minor)/texture:

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Relationship to character/comic and serious ele ments:

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Don Giovanni:

Melody (contour, range):

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Rhythm (meter, tempo)/dynamics:

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Harmony (major, minor)/texture:

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Relationship to character/comic and serious ele ments:

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Leporello:

Melody (contour, range):

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Rhythm (meter, tempo)/dynamics:

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Harmony (major, minor)/texture:

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Relationship to character/comic and serious ele ments:

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Orchestra:

Timbre/instruments:

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Rhythm (meter, tempo)/dynamics:

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Harmony (major, minor)/texture:

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

140 | Part 4

Student Worksheet | 141

Relationship to scene/comic and serious ele ments:

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Rhythm (meter, tempo)/dynamics:

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Harmony (major, minor)/texture:

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Relationship to character/comic and serious ele ments:

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Don Giovanni:

Melody (contour, range):

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Rhythm (meter, tempo)/dynamics:

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Harmony (major, minor)/texture:

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Relationship to character/comic and serious ele ments:

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Leporello:

Melody (contour, range):

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Rhythm (meter, tempo)/dynamics:

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Harmony (major, minor)/texture:

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Relationship to character/comic and serious ele ments:

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Orchestra:

Timbre/instruments:

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Rhythm (meter, tempo)/dynamics:

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Harmony (major, minor)/texture:

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Relationship to scene/comic and serious ele ments:

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

142 | Part 4

PART 4: CLASSROOM- READY ACTIVITY 2

Activity Description

Instructions

Distribute the worksheet and have students work in pairs to fill out the information. They should have their textbooks or lis-

tening guides in view while you play the examples. Play each of the movements from Mozart’s Eine kleine Nachtmusik and

144 | Part 4

PART 4: LISTENING QUIZ

Name: _______________________________________________

1. Haydn: String Quartet, Op. 33, No.2 (Joke) (0:00–1:09)

What is the genre of this piece?

2. Mozart: Eine kleine Nachtmusik, I (0:00–0:53)

Where in the form does this excerpt stop?

3. Mozart: Don Giovanni, Act I, scene 2: “Madamina!” (6:12–7:05)

Which describes the musical character of this excerpt?

4. Mozart: Eine kleine Nachtmusik, III (complete)

What is the form of this movement?

5. Mozart: Piano Concerto in G Major, K. 453, I (8:23– end)

In this concerto movement by Mozart, what signals the arrival at the end of the recapitulation section?

6. Beethoven: Symphony No.5, IV (5:28–6:01)

What does the opening of this excerpt signal?

7. Mozart: Requiem, Dies irae (0:00–1:45)

This excerpt comes from _______________________________________.

146 | Part 4

8. Beethoven: Symphony No.5, II (0:00–0:52)

Given the tempo and form of this symphony excerpt, in which movement would you expect to encounter this music?

9. Haydn: Symphony No.94in G Major (Surprise), II (0:00–0:33)

This symphony’s nickname (Surprise) comes from an abrupt change in _________________.

10. B eeth oven : Moonlight Sonata, I (0:00–0:41)

Which best describes the musical character of this excerpt?

Part 5: The Nineteenth Century