Exam preparation reading, translating, retelling. Учебное пособие по английскому языку для студентов музыкальных вузов

form. It was used to build up the first movement of most large-scale works, but also other movements and single pieces (such as overtures).

Exercise 1. Give English equivalents to the following phrases:

в обиходном смысле, считаться романтическим композитором, менее сложный, в основном одноголосная, привычный, выйти из употребления, ранняя фортепианная музыка, первая часть.

Exercise 2. Give Russian equivalents to the following phrases:

fall between, a transitional figure, variety and contrast, frequent changes of mood, increased in size and range, a self-contained section, more sonorous, large-scale works.

Exercise 3. Fill in the missing words:

commonplace, harpsichord, importance, transition, clear-cut texture, accompaniment, dates, colloquial

1.The __________of the Classical period in music are generally accepted as being between 1750 and 1820.

2.The term classical music is sometimes used in a __________________

sense.

3.Ludwig van Beethoven is regarded as a composer who was part of the ________________ to the Romantic.

4.Classical music had a lighter, clearer ____________than Baroque music.

5.Variety of keys, melodies, rhythms and dynamics, along with frequent changes of mood and timbre were more _____________________in the Classical period than they had been in the Baroque.

6.Melodies tended to be shorter than those of Baroque music, with

____________ phrases and clearly marked cadences.

7.As a solo instrument, the ________________was replaced by the piano.

8.Early piano music was light in texture, often with Alberti bass

_____________.

9.______________________ was given to instrumental music.

Exercise 4. Fill in the missing phrases:

a)within a piece

b)sometimes referred to

c)above chordal accompaniment

d)other notable names include

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e)something of a transitional

f)a self-contained section

g)developed and became

h)falls between

1.The Classical period _______________the Baroque and the Romantic periods.

2._______________________________Luigi Boccherini, Muzio Clementi, Antonio Salieri and others.

3.Franz Schubert is also ____________________figure.

4.The period is _________________as the era of Viennese Classic or Classicism.

5.Classical music was mainly homophonic — melody ______________

____________________.

6.Variety and contrast _______________became more pronounced than before.

7.The harpsichord continuo fell out of use, and the woodwind became___________________________________.

8.Sonata form _____________________the most important form.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Exercise 1. Fill in the missing fragments to complete the text:

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was born in Salzburg, Austria in 1756. His father was a great violinist and composer. Wolfgang showed an interest in music from a very early age. Leonard encouraged him to learn the harpsichord and from the first day, A ________. His sister Maria Anna was also a fine musician. In 1765 Leopold took his two children on a performance tour of Munich and Vienna. Mozart soon became well-known in all Austria.

Everywhere, B ________. He could play the piano and violin as well as the harpsichord. At the age of 11 he was writing keyboard pieces, oratories, symphonies and operas. His first major work was performed in Milan in 1770, when he was still only 14. He was a great hero for young people, who whistled the tunes from The Marriage of Figaro, C ________.

The Archbishop of Salzburg heard about the young Mozart and invited him to be his orchestra Konzertmeister when he was still only fifteen. The world was at Mozart’s feet. He was writing a huge amount of music and D ________. He worked in Salzburg for nearly ten years

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but he didn’t like the archbishop. The composer was restless and needed a change.

In 1781 he left his post and moved to Vienna. He loved Vienna and E ________. Other composers asked him to teach them. His first opera, The Abduction from the Seraglio, was a hit. His fame spread.

In 1782 he met Constance Weber and asked her to marry him. Life wasn’t easy after their marriage. Mozart was a poor businessman, and he never had enough money. For the next ten years, his music was not always popular, and he became poorer and poorer. In 1788 he stopped performing in public but continued to compose. A nobleman asked him to compose a requiem. His financial problems were over but he was already a very sick man and he died F ________.

When he died in 1791 at the age of thirty-five, he was buried in a pauper’s grave.

1.was in great demand as a performer and a composer

2.before he could finish the piece

3.each piece of music was superb

4.the boy showed incredible talent

5.people were astonished by his musical talent

6.when they walked down the streets

Exercise 2. Complete the phrases with the missing words:

whistle, over, age, piece, public, performance, sick, interest, incredible, poor

1)showed an ______ in music

2)from a very early ____________

3)on a _______________tour

4)____________the tunes

5)a ___________businessman

6)each __________of music was superb

7)show _____________talent

8)stop performing in _______________

9)financial problems were _____

10)a very __________man

Exercise 3. Give the derivatives to the words in brackets: a great (violin) __________ and (compose) _______________

a fine (music) ________________

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a (perform) __________________ tour

the composer was (rest) _________________

after their (marry) _______________

a poor (business) _________________________

his (finance) ______________________ problems

Exercise 4. Answer the following questions:

1.Where and when was Mozart born?

2.Was he the only musician in the family?

3.When did the boy show his interest in music?

4.Who taught him to play the harpsichord?

5.Where did the father take him in 1765?

6.What music did he compose?

7.Why was he the young people’s hero?

8.How old was Mozart when he started working in Salzburg?

9.How long did Mozart work in Salzburg and why did he leave?

10.What was his life in Vienna like?

11.How did Mozart’s life change after his marriage? Why?

12.Why did he become poorer and poorer?

13.Who asked him to compose a requiem?

14.Why didn’t he finish the piece?

15.Where was Mozart buried?

Exercise 5. Retell the text about Mozart.

Requiem

Requiem in D Minor is a requiem mass by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, left incomplete at his death on December 5, 1791. Until the late 20th century the work was most often heard as it had been completed by Mozart’s student Franz Xaver Süssmayr.

According to a contract that Mozart signed the requiem was commissioned by the Count Franz von Walsegg-Stuppach. The count pretended to have some compositional ability and liked to pass off the works of others as his own. The new requiem, intended as a tribute to the count’s wife, was part of that game. Therefore, he insisted that Mozart was neither to make copies of the score nor to reveal his involvement in it and that the first performance was reserved for the man who commissioned the piece.

At the time, Mozart was deeply engaged with the writing of two operas: The Magic Flute and «The Clemency of Titus». Together the

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three assignments were too much for a man suffering from a succession of fevers. Most of his failing strength went into the operas, both of which were completed and staged. As for the requiem, he worked on it when strength permitted, and several friends came to his apartment to sing through the score-in-progress. Yet his condition worsened, and, by the time of Mozart’s death early the next morning, he had finished only the «Introit». The «Kyrie», «Sequence», and «Offertorium» were sketched out. The last three movements—«Benedictus», «Agnus Dei», and «Communio» — remained unwritten, and nearly all the orchestration was incomplete.

In those portions of the requiem that are mostly from Mozart’s own mind, the orchestra most often focuses on the strings, with woodwinds featured when greater poignancy is needed and brass and timpani largely relied on for forceful moments. Particularly in the vocal writing, Mozart’s intricate contrapuntal layers show the influence of the Baroque masters J. S. Bach and George Frideric Handel. Especially in the «Sequence», Mozart underlines the power of the text by setting prominent trombone passages against the voices: chorus in the «Dies Irae» and soprano, alto, tenor, and bass soloists in the «Tuba Mirum». It is the most prominent use of the trombone in Mozart’s entire catalogue.

Exercise 1. Fill in the missing prepositions:

a)a requiem mass _______ Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

b)left incomplete a_______ his death

c)____________ _____ a contract

d)intended as a tribute _____ the count’s wife

e)to make copies _____ the score

f)reveal his involvement _____ it

g)reserved ________ the man who commissioned the piece

h)deeply engaged ___________ the writing _____ two operas

i)too much ______ a man suffering __________ a succession _____ fevers

j)______ the time ____ Mozart’s death

k)mostly ____________ Mozart’s own mind

l)the orchestra most often focuses _______ the strings

m)particularly _____ the vocal writing

n)the influence _____ the Baroque masters

o)underlines the power _____ the text

p)the most prominent use _____ the trombone

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Exercise 2. Give English equivalents to the following phrases:

подписать контракт, заказать, способности к сочинению музыки, выдавать чужие работы за свои, раскрыть свою причастность, глубоко погружен, когда позволяли силы, состояние ухудшилось, оркестровка была не завершена, сосредоточиться на струнных, подчеркнуть силу текста

Exercise 3. Mark the following statements true or false:

1.Requiem in D Minor was completed by the composer himself.

2.Requiem was commissioned by a nobleman.

3.The count pretended to have written the Requiem.

4.The count ordered it for his son.

5.Mozart could make copies of the requiem.

6.The first performance was reserved for the man who commissioned the piece.

7.At the time, Mozart was engaged with the writing of two concertos.

8.The three assignments were too much for a sick man.

9.Only one of the operas was completed and staged.

10.Mozart worked on the requiem when strength permitted.

11.The last four movements of the requiem remained unfinished.

12.Mozart’s vocal scores show the influence of the Baroque masters.

Exercise 4. Give the description of another work by Mozart or any Classical piece of music.

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UNIT 3

The Romantic period

The Romantic Era hit its stride in the middle 1800s, encompassing all the arts popular at that time.

At its core, composers of the Romantic Era saw music as a means of individual and emotional expression. Indeed, they considered music the art form most capable of expressing the full range of human emotion. As a result, romantic composers broadened the scope of emotional content. Music was expected to communicate to the audience, often by using a narrative form that told distinct stories.

Romantic composers didn’t reject or break with the musical language developed during the Classical Period. They used its forms as a foundation for their work but felt unconstrained by them.

Beethoven was the originator of this approach. He lived and worked during the transition from the Classical to the Romantic Period, and was an inspiration to the Romantic composers who came after him.

Much of Romantic Era art, including music, also reflected the tension and nationalism of war and revolution that swept across Europe starting from the French Revolution. These events, ideas, and atmosphere directly contributed to the four primary artistic trends seen in Romantic compositions:

•  conveying extreme emotional states, whether auto-biographi- cal, taken from a literary character or situation or just a representation of being human;

•  exploring nature, particularly its wilder aspects, such as using musical techniques to imitate the sounds of storms or evoke the atmosphere of a dense, mysterious forest;

•  fascination with the supernatural as a reaction to scientific advances, that both demystified old beliefs and created uncertainty about where science might take humanity;

•  incorporating folk music or stories as a means to proclaim or reclaim national pride.

Romantic composers were often more than just composers. They were likely to also be performers and/or conductors. The virtuoso had both extraordinary technical proficiency and widespread acclaim. Paganini, Liszt, and Brahms are all excellent examples of the Romantic virtuoso.

Composers of the time had more personal, creative freedom because they no longer worked under the noble patronage system that

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defined the Baroque and Classical Eras. Composers and musicians no longer worked at the pleasure of a duke or prince. They followed the people, performing at festivals and other public concerts. The arts centers moved away from the castles in the countryside to the cities. So, Romantic composers could find popular and financial success by composing audience-pleasing works.

Exercise 1. Give Russian equivalents to the following:

at its core, а full range, broaden the scope, unconstrained, extreme emotional states, fascination with the supernatural, under the noble patronage system, at the pleasure of.

Exercise 2. Give English equivalents to the following:

средство индивидуальной и эмоциональной выразительности, эмоциональное содержание, повествовательная форма, вдохновение, воссоздать атмосферу, внедрение народной музыки, свобода творчества, широкое признание, популярность и финансовое благополучие.

Exercise 3. Fill in the missing words:

extreme, away, approach, audience-pleasing, techniques, national communicate, musical, capable, arts, reflected, scope, proficiency

1)encompassing all the ________

2)most __________of expressing

3)broadened the ______________

4)_________________ to the audience

5)break with the __________language

6)originator of this ____________

7)_______________the tension

8)conveying ___________emotional states

9)proclaim ______________ pride

10)using musical _____________

11)extraordinary technical _______

12)moved ________ from the castles

13)by composing ____________ works

Exercise 4. Fill in the missing fragments:

a)likely to also be

b)the virtuoso

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c)an inspiration to the Romantic

d)no longer worked

e)reject or break with

f)directly contributed to

g)followed the people

h)foundation for their work

i)hit its stride

j)at its core

1.The Romantic Era _______________ in the middle 1800s.

2._________________, composers of the Romantic Era saw music as a means of individual and emotional expression.

3.Romantic composers didn’t ___________________the musical language developed during the Classical Period.

4.They used its forms as a _________________________but felt unconstrained by them.

5.Beethoven was ________________________composers who came after him.

6.These events, ideas, and atmosphere ________________________

the four primary artistic trends seen in Romantic compositions.

7.They were _________________ performers and / or conductors.

8.____________________had both extraordinary technical proficiency and widespread acclaim.

9.Composers and musicians ______________ at the pleasure of a duke or prince.

10.They __________________, performing at festivals and other public concerts.

Frederic Chopin

Frederic Chopin was born on March 1, 1810 near Warsaw. He was a Polish French composer and pianist of the Romantic period, best known for his solo pieces for piano and his piano concerti.

All the family had artistic leanings, and even in infancy Chopin was always strangely moved when listening to his mother or eldest sister playing the piano. By the age of six he was already trying to reproduce what he heard or to make up new tunes. The following year he started piano lessons and already at an early age Chopin found himself invited to play at private parties, and at eight he made his first public appearance at a charity concert.

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Playing was not alone responsible for his growing reputation as a child prodigy. At seven he wrote a Polonaise in G Minor, which was printed, and soon other polonaises, mazurkas, variations and a rondo followed, with the result that, when he was 16, his family enrolled him at the newly formed Warsaw Conservatory of Music.

At the conservatory he was put through a solid course of instruction in harmony and composition; in piano playing he was allowed to develop a high degree of individuality.

Despite the lively musical life in Warsaw, Chopin urgently needed wider musical experience, and so his devoted parents found the money to send him off to Vienna. Chopin made his performance debut there in 1829. A second concert confirmed his success, and on his return home he prepared himself for further achievements abroad by writing his Piano Concerto No. 2 in F Minor (1829) and his Piano Concerto No. 1 in E Minor (1830), as well as other works for piano and orchestra. His first études were also written at this time to enable him and others to master the technical difficulties in his new style of piano playing.

After his Paris concert debut in February 1832, Chopin found himself a favourite in the great houses of Paris, both as a recitalist and as a teacher. His new piano works at this time included many pieces, among them mazurkas and polonaises inspired by Chopin’s strong nationalist feeling.

Meanwhile, Chopin began suffering from health problems, and the slow decline in his health ended with his death from tuberculosis 10 years later. He made his last public appearance on a concert platform at the Guildhall in London on November 16, 1848. By that time he was already unable to compose due to the lack of strength. Some time later he returned to Paris where he died the following year.

Exercise 1. Give the derivatives to the words in brackets:

1.He was a (Polnd) _________ (France) ________ (compose)

__________ and (piano) ___________of the Romantic period.

2.All the family had (art) _________ (lean) ___________.

3.The (follow) ___________ year he started piano lessons.

4.At the age of eight he made his first public (appear) _______________

at a charity concert.

5.His family enrolled him at the (new) __________ (form) ______ Warsaw Conservatory of Music.

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