Note that this list is purely chronological, and includes a substantial number of composers, especially those born after 1860, whose works cannot be conveniently classified as "Romantic", or those whose early compositions did begin in the Romantic style but later developed beyond it in the 20th century.
Ludwig van Beethovencomposer and pianist, regarded by many as the first Romantic-era composer, most famous for Symphony No. 5 and Für Elise among others
Anton Reichacomposer who experimented with irregular time signatures in his keyboard fugues, composed a large number of significant works for wind quintet
Prince Louis Ferdinand of Prussia member of the Prussian royal family, soldier, and composer. At the time of his premature death in the Battle of Saalfeld, he left behind 13 published works, many of which are imbued with a greater expressive depth than the Classical style which was then still prevalent
Niccolò Paganinicomposer and virtuoso violinist, wrote the 24 Caprices for violin, five concerti for violin, string quartets and works for violin and guitar
Franz Lisztcomposer and virtuoso pianist, one of the most influential and distinguished piano composers of the Romantic era and the rival of Robert Schumann and Clara Schumann, wrote a number of symphonic poems and extended piano technique, best known for his Hungarian Rhapsodies and other solo piano works
Johannes Brahmscomposer, one of the leading musicians of the Romantic period, best known for his four symphonies, Violin Concerto, two piano concertos, and A German Requiem
composer, virtuoso mandolinist and teacher, known for his performances and two dances, La cigale polka pour (The Grasshopper Polka) and L'éventail polka-mazurka (The Range Mazurka)
Carlo Curti composer, conductor and instrumentalist on xylophone and mandolin, wrote mandolin method. Also, he conducted the first Mexican Typical Orchestra (Orquesta Típica Mexicana)
Gustav Mahlercomposer, one of the most important late-Romantic/early-Modernist composers, his works include ten innovative large-scale and sometimes programmatic symphonies and many lieder
Claude Debussycomposer, one of the most prominent figures working within the field of Impressionist music, best known for Clair de Lune from Suite bergamasque
Zacharia Paliashvili composer, known for the eclectic fusion of Georgian folk songs and stories with 19th century Romantic classical themes. He was the founder of the Georgian Philharmonic Society and later, the head of the Tbilisi State Conservatoire
Alexander Scriabincomposer and pianist, known for his harmonically adventurous piano sonatas and theatrically orchestral works, characteristic period compositions include his Op. 1 to Op. 30 works
Arnold Schoenbergcomposer, whose early works (e.g. Verklärte Nacht) are influenced by Richard Wagner, but subsequently developed atonalism and serialism with such watershed works as Moses und Aron
Mykola Leontovychcomposer, choral conductor and teacher, known for his arrangement of the carol "Shchedryk", known in English as "Carol of the Bells" or as "Ring Christmas Bells"
Frank Bridgecomposer, best known as the teacher of Benjamin Britten, characteristic period compositions include Suite for String Orchestra and his Capriccio Nos. 1 and 2
Maximilian Steinbergcomposer, whose musical language was influenced by Glazunov and Rimsky-Korsakov's late Romanticism before developing into socialist realism by the late 1920s, characteristic period compositions include his Symphonies Nos. 1 and 2 and his Fantaisie dramatique
Sergei Prokofievcomposer, pianist and conductor, best known for his ballet, Romeo and Juliet, his characteristic Romantic works include his Piano Sonata No. 1 in F Minor and his 4 Etudes
Leo Ornsteincomposer and pianist, though had a reputation as an avant-garde composer during his youth, he has composed characteristic Romantic-period works including Scherzino in B Minor, the piano suite Seeing Russia with Teacher, and 9 Miniatures
Mischa Levitzkicomposer and pianist of Romantic-style works
Timeline
Related Research Articles
The Classical Period was an era of classical music between roughly 1750 and 1820.
Music is the arrangement of sound to create some combination of form, harmony, melody, rhythm, or otherwise expressive content. Music is generally agreed to be a cultural universal that is present in all human societies. Definitions of music vary widely in substance and approach. While scholars agree that music is defined by a small number of specific elements, there is no consensus as to what these necessary elements are. Music is often characterized as a highly versatile medium for expressing human creativity. Diverse activities are involved in the creation of music, and are often divided into categories of composition, improvisation, and performance. Music may be performed using a wide variety of musical instruments, including the human voice. It can also be composed, sequenced, or otherwise produced to be indirectly played mechanically or electronically, such as via a music box, barrel organ, or digital audio workstation software on a computer.
Romantic music is a stylistic movement in Western Classical music associated with the period of the 19th century commonly referred to as the Romantic era. It is closely related to the broader concept of Romanticism—the intellectual, artistic, and literary movement that became prominent in Western culture from about 1798 until 1837.
A symphony is an extended musical composition in Western classical music, most often for orchestra. Although the term has had many meanings from its origins in the ancient Greek era, by the late 18th century the word had taken on the meaning common today: a work usually consisting of multiple distinct sections or movements, often four, with the first movement in sonata form. Symphonies are almost always scored for an orchestra consisting of a string section, brass, woodwind, and percussion instruments which altogether number about 30 to 100 musicians. Symphonies are notated in a musical score, which contains all the instrument parts. Orchestral musicians play from parts which contain just the notated music for their own instrument. Some symphonies also contain vocal parts.
A concerto is, from the late Baroque era, mostly understood as an instrumental composition, written for one or more soloists accompanied by an orchestra or other ensemble. The typical three(music)|movement]] structure, a slow movement preceded and followed by fast movements, became a standard from the early 18th century.
Sonata, in music, literally means a piece played as opposed to a cantata, a piece sung. The term evolved through the history of music, designating a variety of forms until the Classical era, when it took on increasing importance. Sonata is a vague term, with varying meanings depending on the context and time period. By the early 19th century, it came to represent a principle of composing large-scale works. It was applied to most instrumental genres and regarded—alongside the fugue—as one of two fundamental methods of organizing, interpreting and analyzing concert music. Though the musical style of sonatas has changed since the Classical era, most 20th- and 21st-century sonatas still maintain the same structure.
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The transition from the classical period of European Art music, which lasted around 1750 to 1820, to Romantic music, which lasted around 1800 to 1910.
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