The Music and Orchestra of The Romantic Period

When attending an orchestra, it has a very serious tone on how you must dress and behave. It is not a rock or hip hop concert where it is more casual and most of the time loud as well. Attending an orchestra can actually be intimidating to someone who has never attended one before. The first time I ever was in a huge theatre watching a performance I was in fourth grade. I remember how quiet everyone was during the entire performance and everyone’s attention was on the show. When attending an orchestra, it is just known that it is a more serious and upscale environment with rules and expectations. It is almost hard to believe that it hasn’t always been that way. Before the Romantic Period, concerts weren’t as uptight and serious as they are now.

The Romantic Period began in 1800 which was right after the French Revolution. The French Revolution brought social and political stress. It created contradictions between capitalism and socialism, freedom and oppression, logic and emotion, science and religion. This made people think differently, especially artists. It was a time of dramatic thought and action. People no longer wanted to deal with the rules and restraints of Classicism, so music revolted against it. The new goal was to be different and embrace individualism. The Romantic composer reflected their own feelings and emotions in their compositions in order for the listener to embrace emotion and imagination.

When ruling monarchy of France fell because of the French Revolution the bourgeoisie become more in control of musical life, imposing a new conception of how concerts should be presented. Eventually the practice of crowding around, talking, and applauding during the music. Attending concerts became a performance in itself, where people behaved in a polite way that they normally would not. However the Romantic period did more than just make concerts as serious as possible. Romanticism was looking to separate itself from classical music and its old social ways. Beethoven proudly represented all those who wanted basic human liberties, and the music itself demanded a change. Beethoven was going against the norms of his time, and creating a new world in which the audience would await the music in an eager hush. Soon enough, that world came into being and still continues.

Before the 1800’s attending a concert was a social event and demonstrative during performances. There was no right or wrong time to applaud and the audiences at time would participate with the performance. After the 1840’s concerts were now quiet, and sought a purifying and uplifting artistic experience. The French Revolution had a big impact on the Romantic era and created new ideologies especially among artists. When attending a concert, artists and composers are given respect for their art and people are to embrace the emotions they put into it.

Many people might find that the behavior of the audiences is now serious and boring, but really it is so that distraction is not occurring so that the music's not being appreciated and understood.