Music 442/543

Early Romanticism
Midterm
Please find 3 topics below. Graduate students will answer all three, while the undergraduates will answer
the first question and pick one of the two remaining. Please write short (2 pages or so) essays that will be
cohesive, logical, and contain a complete discussion of the topics. The midterm will be due (in either
printed form or pdf sent to me by email) on Thursday, May 16.

1. Please find attached the following article by Sylvia Bowden on Beethoven and bird song (with
references to the 6th symphony. Comment on her argument and discuss the salient points, coming
to a conclusion on whether her view are reasonable or logical.

2. Discuss why Beethoven’s last period was sparse in terms of the music he composed; be sure to
include his own sense of musical direction and where he anticipated his work would lead.

3. You have been reading Maynard Solomon’s biography on Beethoven throughout this first half.
Much of what he postulates is based upon his view of the composer’s psychological profile.
Discuss the biography and Solomon’s conclusions, noting where they seem cogent and logical
and where they could be subject to debate (or even controversy).