Malcolm Rivera
Program music, also known as programmatic music, is a type of instrumental music that aims to musically interpret or depict an extramusical narrative or theme. The term was coined in the 19th century by Franz Liszt, who composed a significant amount of program music himself. However, as Liszt acknowledged, program music had been composed long before his time. For example, Ludwig van Beethoven's Sixth Symphony portrays a trip to the countryside, evoking a cheerful arrival, a serene moment by a brook, an encounter with dancing peasants, a thunderstorm, and the peasants' song of thanksgiving after the storm. The debate surrounding the purpose of music and the distinction between program music and absolute music emerged in the 19th century, particularly in Germany, where composers like Beethoven were influential. This discussion centred on whether music should relate to external stories, ideas, or arts, or if it exists solely for its own sake. Program music encompasses various genres and is designed to tell a story or create a mental image for the listener.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Type | Instrumental music |
| Purpose | To musically render an extramusical narrative or description |
| Notes | Convey meaning of what is portrayed |
| Composition | Any instrumental genre could be composed to tell a story or paint a picture |
| Movements | Likely to be multiple movements, usually four or five |
| Structure | Traditional forms are of less concern, form influenced by subject matter being depicted |
| Examples | Beethoven's Sixth Symphony, Berlioz’s Symphonie fantastique, Richard Strauss's symphonic works |
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What You'll Learn
- Program music is instrumental music with an extramusical meaning
- It is contrasted with absolute or abstract music
- The term was invented by Franz Liszt in the 19th century
- Ludwig van Beethoven's Sixth Symphony is an example of program music
- Hector Berlioz’s Symphony fantastique is another well-known example
Program music is instrumental music with an extramusical meaning
Program music is a type of instrumental music that aims to musically interpret an extramusical narrative or description of some aspect of the world. The term was coined in the 19th century by Franz Liszt, who composed a significant amount of program music himself. However, Liszt acknowledged that program music had been composed for centuries before his time. For example, Ludwig van Beethoven's Sixth Symphony depicts a visit to the countryside, portraying a happy arrival, a peaceful moment by a brook, a dance with peasants, a thunderstorm, and the peasants' song of thanksgiving after the storm.
Program music often uses notes to convey the meaning of what is portrayed. For instance, Beethoven's symphony includes loud timpani strokes and shrill piccolo music to represent thunder and shrieking winds, respectively. The concept of program music is not limited to a specific genre but can be found in varying degrees in different musical works. It is present in both program and absolute music, with the latter being more focused on abstract constructions in sound.
A well-known example of program music is Hector Berlioz's Symphonie Fantastique, which tells a story of unrequited love, murder, execution, and the torments of Hell. Berlioz provided his own program notes for each movement of the work, inviting the audience to make imaginative correlations with the music. Another example is Tchaikovsky's Romeo and Juliet, which uses different instruments to represent different characters and keys to reflect different moods and experiences.
Program music composers often employed various techniques to convey their narratives. These included assigning specific instruments to different characters, using tone painting to create sounds that represent the text, and adding lyrics or text to help tell the story. While the genre of program music declined after Richard Strauss, it continues to influence film music, especially in drawing upon the techniques of late romantic music.
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It is contrasted with absolute or abstract music
Program music is a type of instrumental music that musically illustrates an extramusical narrative or description of some aspect of the world. It is often written so that the notes themselves convey the meaning of what is being portrayed. For example, Ludwig van Beethoven's Sixth Symphony narrates a visit to the countryside, portraying a happy arrival, a quiet moment by a brook, an encounter with dancing peasants, a thunderstorm, and the peasants' song of thanksgiving once the storm is over.
Program music is contrasted with absolute or abstract music, in which artistic interest is supposedly confined to abstract constructions in sound. Absolute music is non-representational and is not explicitly "about" anything. The idea of absolute music developed at the end of the 18th century in the writings of early German Romantics such as Wilhelm Heinrich Wackenroder, Ludwig Tieck, and E. T. A. Hoffmann. The term was first used by Richard Wagner in a programme to Beethoven's Ninth Symphony.
The concept of absolute music is based on the idea of "spiritual absolutism", where instrumental music transcends other arts and languages to become the discourse of a 'higher realm'. Proponents of this idea, such as Johann Gottfried Herder, Johann Wolfgang Goethe, Jean Paul Richter, and E.T.A. Hoffmann, believed that music could be more emotionally powerful and stimulating without words. Richter argued that music would eventually 'outlast' words.
Formalism, a concept associated with absolute music, refers to the idea that music's 'meaning' is entirely in its form, and that it has no extra-musical meaning. Music critic Eduard Hanslick supported this view, stating that music could be enjoyed purely for its sound and form, without needing any extra-musical elements. However, critics such as Susan McClary have argued against the notion of absolute music, claiming that all music contains implicit programs that reflect the composer's tastes, politics, aesthetic philosophies, and social attitudes.
While program music aims to tell a story or paint a picture through its musical narrative, absolute or abstract music focuses solely on the abstract constructions of sound, form, and technical construction, without any explicit meaning or programmatic imagery.
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The term was invented by Franz Liszt in the 19th century
Program music, also known as programmatic music, is a type of instrumental music that attempts to musically render an extramusical narrative or description of some aspect of the world. The term was coined in the 19th century by Franz Liszt, who composed a significant amount of program music himself. However, Liszt acknowledged that program music had been composed for centuries before his time. For example, Ludwig van Beethoven's Sixth Symphony depicts a visit to the countryside, portraying a happy arrival, a peaceful moment by a brook, an encounter with dancing peasants, a thunderstorm, and the peasants' song of thanksgiving after the storm.
The 19th century witnessed a shift in composers' conception of musical form, with program music playing a pivotal role. Composers of the preceding century often relied on well-defined formal patterns of composition, notably the sonata form. With the emergence of program music, the program itself could become the primary or sole basis for the organisation of a musical composition. Liszt recognised the potential for conflict between the idea of exalting the narrative associations of music and the adherence to traditional symphonic forms.
During the Romantic period of the 19th century, single-movement orchestral pieces of program music flourished and were often referred to as symphonic poems or tone poems. Liszt is credited with introducing the term "symphonic poem" to the musical lexicon. His works, such as the Faust Symphony and some of his symphonic poems, are considered quintessential examples of program music. Liszt's innovative approach to composition extended beyond programmatic music, as he also coined the terms "transcription" and "paraphrase" to describe different types of reinterpretations of existing works.
The influence of Liszt's programmatic compositions extended beyond his lifetime, impacting composers across Europe well into the 1920s. Composers such as Saint-Saëns, Smetana, Franck, d'Indy, Dvořák, Debussy, and Sibelius all wrote symphonic poems under the influence of Liszt's pioneering works. Richard Strauss's collection of tone poems, including his depictions of Don Quixote and Till Eulenspiegel, also bears the imprint of Liszt's influence.
While the era following Liszt saw a decline in the prominence of program music, it continued to exert influence on film music, particularly in the realm of late Romantic works. Film scores influenced by composers like Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, Ottorino Respighi, and Richard Strauss embraced the tenets of programmatic music, further cementing its legacy in the realm of cinematic storytelling.
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Ludwig van Beethoven's Sixth Symphony is an example of program music
Ludwig van Beethoven's Sixth Symphony, also known as the Pastoral Symphony, is an example of program music. Completed in 1808, it is one of Beethoven's few works containing explicitly programmatic content. The symphony is dominated by the aesthetic of Beauty, conveying feelings of pleasure and repose rather than overwhelming the listener. Beethoven, a lover of nature, spent a great deal of time on walks in the country and frequently worked in rural locations.
The symphony is programmatic in that it musically renders an extramusical narrative. It tells the story of a visit to the countryside, portraying a happy arrival, a quiet moment by a brook, an encounter with dancing peasants, a thunderstorm, and the peasants' song of thanksgiving when the storm is over. Beethoven wrote a programmatic title at the beginning of each movement, providing a literary guide to its meaning.
The first movement, "Scene by the Brook," depicts the motion of a flowing river with rippling string patterns. The second movement depicts the composer's feelings as he arrives in the country, with a placid and cheerful tone. The third movement, a scherzo, depicts country folk dancing and revelling, with a faster tempo conveying a riotous atmosphere.
The fourth movement, in F minor, is the most instrumented part of the piece and depicts a violent thunderstorm with painstaking realism. It builds from distant thunder and a few drops of rain to a great climax with loud thunder, lightning, high winds, and heavy downpours of rain. The storm eventually passes, with an occasional peal of thunder still heard in the distance, and an ascending scale passage on the solo flute represents a rainbow.
The final movement, marked pianissimo, sotto voce, conveys a fervent coda suggestive of prayer. Beethoven's Sixth Symphony is an excellent example of program music, using instrumental music to convey an extramusical narrative and provide a literary guide to its meaning.
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Hector Berlioz’s Symphony fantastique is another well-known example
Hector Berlioz's Symphony Fantastique is another well-known example of program music. Completed in April 1830, the symphony premiered at the Paris Conservatoire on 5 December 1830. The composer himself provided semi-autobiographical programme notes for the piece, which tell the story of a gifted artist driven to the brink of suicide by a failed love affair. The artist's reveries take him to a ball and to a pastoral scene in a field, which is interrupted by a hallucinatory march to the scaffold, leading to a grotesque satanic dance (Witches' Sabbath).
Berlioz's Symphony Fantastique is remarkable for its use of the idée fixe, which surfaces in every movement and unites the entire work. The recurring theme is essentially the tune of the beloved, representing in its varying moods the woman's ever-changing image in her lover's eye. Berlioz's Symphony Fantastique paved the way for the development of similar compositional devices in the mid-19th century, including the thematic transformations associated with the works of Franz Liszt and the leitmotifs of Richard Wagner's operas.
The work is also notable for its expanded orchestration, grander than usual for the early 19th century. It constitutes the largest-scale symphony composed by that time, with its five movements spanning nearly an hour and a dauntingly large orchestra that employed new wind instruments—such as the ophicleide (predecessor of the tuba) and the valve trumpet—as well as doubling on the harp and timpani parts.
The premiere of the Symphony Fantastique was a huge success, contrary to what might be expected of a work so eccentric and forward-looking. There were dissenting voices, such as that of conservative author Wilhelm Heinrich Riehl, who regarded the work as an abomination. However, it was generally well-received, with François-Joseph Fétis, founder of the influential Revue musicale, writing approvingly of it. Robert Schumann published a broadly supportive analysis of the piece in 1835, concluding that "in spite of an apparent formlessness, there is an inherent correct symmetrical order corresponding to the great dimensions of the work – and this besides the inner connection of thought".
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Frequently asked questions
Program music is a type of instrumental music that attempts to musically depict an extramusical scene or narrative.
The term was invented in the 19th century by Franz Liszt, who himself composed a great deal of program music.
Ludwig van Beethoven's Sixth Symphony and Hector Berlioz’s Symphonie fantastique are well-known examples of program music.
Program music attempts to convey an extramusical narrative or description, whereas absolute music, also known as abstract music, focuses on abstract constructions in sound.
