Bass Clarinet: A new timbre for new times

Music in the Romantic Era began to deviate from Classical conventions within all elements of music including tempo, dynamics, key and time signatures, and instrumental timbres. Varying timbre, in particular, was crucial for expressing the full range of emotions composers creatively sought to convey. A need for depth inspired the creation of new instruments, such as the bass clarinet. Originally deemed Gilles Lot's "basse-tube" in Paris 1772, the bass clarinet helped provide a richer, 3-octave sound that other reed instruments could not quite evoke. There were other variations created over the next 20 years bearing likenesses to a bassoon or saxophone, but the man credited for the most modern rendition is Adolphe Sax in the 1830's (patented in 1846). It was then that this instrument found its way into orchestral pieces-- scored solo by Giacomo Meyerbeer, then greatly popularized by composers Franz Liszt and Richard Wagner. The bass clarinet remains a versatile staple to major arranged works today, as its range is broader than any other non-percussion instrument.

French Revolution

The French Revolution occurred from 5 May 1789 to 9-10 November 1799. Image: Jean-Jacques-François Le Barbier, Representation of The Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen of 26 August 1789 (c. 1789). This work is in the public domain in the United States.

On 5 May 1789, the Estates-General, representing the nobility, the clergy, and the common people, held a meeting at the request of the King to address France’s financial difficulties. At this meeting, the Third Estate (the commoners) protested the merely symbolic double representation that they had been granted by the King. This protest resulted in a fracture among the three estates and precipitated the French Revolution. On 17 June, members of the Third Estate designated themselves the National Assembly and claimed to represent the people of the nation, thus preparing the way for the foundation of the republic. Several pivotal events followed in quick succession: the storming of the Bastille (14 July), the approval of the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen (26 August), and the march on Versailles that led to the enforced relocation of the royal family to Paris (5-6 October). These revolutionary acts fired the imagination of many regarding the political future of France, and, indeed, all of Europe. The republican period of the revolution continued in various phases until 9-10 November 1799 when Napoleon Bonaparte supplanted the government.

Articles

Diane Piccitto, "On 1793 and the Aftermath of the French Revolution"

"Vindication of the Rights of Woman" is Published

Mary Wollstonecraft's A Vindication of the Rights of Woman is considered a “trailblazing” work for feminism (Britannica). In the piece, Wollstonecraft addresses womanhood of the middle class and criticizes what was considered a female education at the time. While men receive an education of the mind and body, women are taught to act weak, to dedicate their time to finery and fashion. Neglecting to teach women anything other than how to be attractive on the “marriage market”, will only leave them without profession, without money, and without honor or promise of redemption if they are left or divorced by their husbands. Wollstonecraft believed that women could contribute more to society than just a wife and mother. 

She writes, “I attribute to a false system of education, gathered from the books written on this subject by men who, considering females rather as women than human creatures ...are only anxious to inspire love, when they ought to cherish a nobler ambition, and by their abilities and virtues exact respect”. The thinking at this time was that women’s obsession with marriage and delicacy was natural, but Wollstonecraft uses her work to demonstrate that this is a result of women’s artificial education. She argues that if men and women are raised with the same aspirations, than the differences between them will/can be considered more natural. She suggests a total education — one that shapes the whole person —  of both sexes. This, she argues, will benefit all of society. 

Although Wollstonecraft’s work was well-received within within her own intellectual circle, the rest of society’s reaction was negative. The ideas expressed in A Vindication of the Rights of Woman were very radical for her time, but would later provide a solid platform for Romantic feminists who worked to improve the lives of women. 

To learn more about the reactions to Wollstonecraft’s work, click here.

To learn more about Romantic Feminism, click here.

To learn more about Mary Wollstonecraft, click here.

Sources:

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Mary-Wollstonecraft

http://web.utk.edu/~gerard/romanticpolitics/feminism.html

https://www.bl.uk/collection-items/mary-wollstonecraft-a-vindication-of-the-rights-of-woman

http://www.josephpriestleyhouse.org/wp-content/uploads/Joseph-Johnson-Priestleys-Publisher-and-Bookseller.pdf

http://shelleysghost.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/godwin-meets-mary-wollstonecraft#Description

Execution of King Louis XVI

On January 21, 1793, King Louis XVI of France was executed. Image: Isidore-Stanislas Helman, The Death of King Louis (1794), Bibliothèque nationale de France. This work is in the public domain in the United States.

1793 was a key juncture in the revolution, beginning with this execution on 21 January. The increasing violence prompted Britain to cut its ties to France, leading to declarations of war by the two countries. Violence peaked during the Reign of Terror (5 September 1793 – 27 July 1794), which resulted in the execution of the Queen (16 October) as well as of many suspects of treason and members of the Girondins, the more moderate faction that the radical Jacobins brought down on 2 June 1793

Articles

Diane Piccitto, "On 1793 and the Aftermath of the French Revolution"

Reign of Terror

A period of violence that occurred a few years after the start of the French Revolution. Image: Anonymous, Portrait of Maximilien de Robespierre (c. 1790), Carnavalet Museum. This image is in the public domain in the United States because its copyright has expired.

On 5 September 1793, the National Convention, France’s ruling body from 1793 to 1795, officially put into effect terror measures in order to subdue opposition to and punish insufficient support for the revolution and the new regime. From the autumn of 1793 until the summer of 1794, thousands of people across the country were imprisoned and executed (including the Queen) under the ruthless leadership of Maximilien Robespierre. The guillotine, particularly the one in Paris’s Place de la Révolution, served as the bloody emblem of the fear tactics that began to manifest themselves first in the formation of the Committee of Public Safety (6 April 1793) and subsequently in the implementation of the Law of Suspects (17 September 1793). The Terror ended on 27 July 1794 with the overthrow of Robespierre, who was guillotined the next day.

Articles

Diane Piccitto, "On 1793 and the Aftermath of the French Revolution"

Friedrich Wilhelm Joseph Schelling is born

Friedrich Wilhelm Joseph Schelling, one of the famous German idealists, was born in Leonberg, Germany on January 27, 1797.  He is best known for his literature concerning the philosophy of the natural world, and was a key figure of the Romantic period. Naturphilosophie, the German name for his school of thought, emphasizes the importance of harmony with the natural world. This symbolizes a departure from the Enlightenment era, which prioritized science and objective explanations of natural phenomena. As its name suggests, Romanticism shifted to focus on the sentiments attached to physical phenomena. Instead of studying the science behind nature, Romanticists focused on the impact of nature on the human experience. Schelling explored the connection between human spirituality and the natural world in a way that was not typical before the onset of Romaticism.

Schelling was a prominent member of the German philosophical community until his death in 1854. His peers included Immanuel Kant, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe and Friedrich Engels. His other notable publications on the topic of naturphilosophie include Über die Möglichkeit einer Form der Philosophie Überhaupt and Philosophical Inquiries Concerning the Nature of Human Freedom. He was a professor of philosophy at the University of Jena as well as the University of Würzberg. 

Death of Wollstonecraft

Death of Mary Wollstonecraft on 10 September 1797. Mary Shelley, Wollstonecraft’s second daughter, was born on August 30th, after which complications from childbirth set in. Wollstonecraft developed a fever, and died on September 10th. She was buried at St. Pancras Churchyard. Image: William Blake's frontispiece to the 1791 edition of Mary Wollstonecraft's Original Stories from Real Life. This image is in the public domain in the United States because its copyright has expired.

Articles

Ghislaine McDayter, "On the Publication of William Godwin’s Memoirs of the Author of A Vindication of the Rights of Woman, 1798"

Anne K. Mellor, "On the Publication of A Vindication of the Rights of Woman"

Napoleonic Wars

These are actually a set of individual wars that sometimes overlap, succeed, or run parallel to each other. Image: Jacques-Louis David, Napoleon Crossing the Alps (1800), Kunsthistorisches Museum. The work of art depicted in this image and the reproduction thereof are in the public domain worldwide. The reproduction is part of a collection of reproductions compiled by The Yorck Project (DVD-ROM, 2002). The compilation copyright is held by Zenodot Verlagsgesellschaft mbH and licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License.

Historians do not agree on the exact beginning or end of the wars. November 9, 1799 is an early candidate since that is when Napoleon seized power in France. Hoping to ease the difficulty, historians date by isolated wars. They disarticulate the Napoleonic Wars in a linear series:

• War of the Second Coalition 1798-1802
• War of the Third Coalition 1805
• War of the Fourth Coalition 1806-7
• War of the Fifth Coalition 1809
• War of the Sixth Coalition 1812-14
• War of the Seventh Coalition 1815

The successive numerical coordinates for the Coalitions offer regularity, but that regularity is undercut by the shifting make-up of that Coalition (sometimes Prussia was in, sometimes not; sometimes Russia, sometimes not) and by the discontinuity and ambiguity of the dates.

Articles

Mary Favret, "The Napoleonic Wars"

Napoleon Bonaparte's Coronation

Napoleon Bonaparte was coronated in Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris on December 2, 1804 as Emperor of the French. Bonaparte was a notorious war general who establish dominance of France through a coup. Napoleon wanted power and wanted to ensure that his reign would be taken seriously. When Napoleon staged the coup in 1799, it led to the end of the French Revolution.  This period of time serves as a buffer between the pre-romantic and romantic eras. Napoleon had a senate that he chose entirely himself. This led to the senate votes going in Napoleon's favor by a landslide. His senate is who gave him the title of Emperor of the French. Napoleon essentially threatened Pope Pius VII into officiating his coronation. He wanted the Pope to officiate the coronation, so that it was different, and in terms better, than the coronations of the Kings of France. It was French tradition is that the monarchs ruled by divine right: God's will. Bonaparte knew the significance of ruling by divine right, and insisted that he gets the same treatment. Napoleon also crowning his wife Josephine as Empress, which is a title not used by the French at this point in a very long time.

Kingdom of Italy founded

On 17 March 1805, the Kingdom of Italy is founded, with Napoleon Bonaparte as King. Image: The Iron Crown of Lombardy, from Cesare Cantù Grande illustrazione del Lombardo-Veneto ossia storia delle città, dei borghi, comuni, castelli, ecc. fino ai tempi moderni Milano, Corona e Caimi Editori, 1858. This image is in the public domain in the United States because its copyright has expired.

This crowning of Napoleon as King of Italy is a result of the French conquest of Italy. Napoleon was crowned King of Italy with the iron crown of Lombardy on 26 May 1805 (crown pictured above). His full title was "Emperor of the French and King of Italy."

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Alison Chapman, "On Il Risorgimento"

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Life of Edgar Allan Poe

Engraving illustration of scene from 'The Raven'

       REPOST AFTER DISCOVERY THAT I PUT IT IN THE WRONG PLACE           

                 One of the most famous authors of American Romanticism and its subset movement of Gothic Literature, Edgar Allan Poe lived from 1809 to 1849. Renowned for his skill with dark and twisted subject matter and his handling of gloomy, forbidden moods, Poe's short stories and poetry had a lasting influence on other Romantic writers of his time as well as modern horror, mystery, and gothic writing. Poe explored death and loss through his works as a sort of catharsis for the tragedy that occured throughout his life, refusing to shy away from difficult or disturbing subject matter. He was also an outspoken supporter of the "art for art's sake" movement and the mechanics of how writers improve their craft. The French Symbolists were greatly influenced by his work, taking inspiration on how to better convey personal emotion in their works and continuing the trend of emphasis on the individual and their experiences/desires, rather than those of a deity. He would also go on to influence authors such as Charles Baudelaire and Fyodor Dostoyevsky. Poe retains popularity today both in modern culture and in literature circles, and his work is still widely celebrated. His most famous works included: The Raven, The Cask of Amontillado, The Black Cat, The Tell-Tale Heart, and Annabelle Lee; 

                 NOTE:   can't find how to make this stupid thing display the map like everyone else's, so I'm leaving a link to the map here:     https://editions.covecollective.org/content/romanticism-class-map

                               my entry was 'New York, The New York Mirror Publishing House', about the publication of the Raven

                  PICTURE 1:      Portrait shot of Edgar Allan Poe

                  PICTURE 2:        One of a series of steel-plate engravings made in tribute for 'The Raven' by artist Gustave Dore, released in 1884. Dore used heavy shadows to capture the gloomy/depressed mood of the piece, as well as a lot of religious imagery (particularly angels) throughout the series to represent death and the souls of the dead. Dore also did illustrations for authors like Lord Byron, Milton, Tennyson, and Dante. Scene pictured is the narrator of the Raven flinging open his window to try and see what was knocking, accidentlaly letting in the raven.                                                 

Sources:     https://www.brainpickings.org/2015/08/05/gustav-dore-poe-the-raven/

                     https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/edgar-allan-poe

                     https://www.biography.com/writer/edgar-allan-poe

                     https://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/post-tribune/ct-ptb-potempa-column-st-0110-20180109-story.html

                     https://www.britannica.com/art/Symbolism-literary-and-artistic-movement

                     https://www.poemuseum.org/poes-biography

        Secondary note:     If I find that I've forgotten something before the deadline, I'll come back and add it. I believe it's done, but I've forgotten stupid things before, and I can't find any option to save it as a draft.

Battle of Toulouse

The Battle of Toulouse occurred on 10 April 1814. The Duke of Wellington and Allied troops defeated the French at Toulouse on this day, the final battle of the Peninsular War. The Allied victory forces Napoleon Bonaparte to abdicate and accept exile to Elba and restores the Bourbons to the French throne. Image: British infantry exchanging fire with the French during the battle of Toulouse in 1814. Print after Henri Dupray (c. 1890). This image is in the public domain in the United States because its copyright has expired.

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Sean Grass, “On the Death of the Duke of Wellington, 14 September 1852″

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The Brighton Royal Pavilion

The Royal Pavilion in Brighton was originally built in 1787 as a vacation home for King George IV. The palace, located beside the beach on the southern English coastline, was initially constructed and decorated in the neoclassical style. In 1815, the royal family commissioned architect John Nash to expand the Pavilion. Nash, one of the most influential British architects, worked almost exclusively in the neoclassical style. However, his expansion of the palace, which survives today, is boldly Indo-Indian in design. Specifically, the palace draws heavily from the Mughal style of architecture, the most famous example of which is the Taj Mahal. The palace is topped with numerous tapered bulbs, which stick out above the rest of the town. The curves, domes, and spires on the new palace would have seemed wildly out of place in comparison to any other new architectural designs of the time. In fact, only a few years after the completion of the Pavilion, Nash began his design of Buckingham Palace – one of the most recognizable neoclassically-designed buildings in England. As soon as Nash’s expansion was complete in 1822, the Pavilion became a major public attraction due to its splendor and distinct foreignness.

The interior was designed in a similarly exotic fashion. The walls and ceilings of many of the various halls are painted with murals depicting scenes from India and, especially, China. Though George IV had not visited the Far East, the British trading empire had extensive contact with the region, and it was through the return of Chinese and Indian luxuries to England that George IV developed his affinity for these cultures. Because of this indirect connection between the Far East, decorators, and George IV, Pavilion historians say that these original decorations were more Western interpretations of Eastern ideas than they were true to the actual Eastern designs.

Shortly after George IV’s death in 1830, the royal family moved away from the Pavilion in favor of a new, more isolated retreat. The Pavilion was sold to the town of Brighton and remains a public attraction to this day, with many original artworks and pieces of furniture on display.

Battle of Waterloo

On 18 June 1815, Wellington led Allied troops to a final victory over Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo, ending Napoleon’s “Hundred Days” of rule after his escape from Elba on 26 February. The war is officially ended by the 1815 Treaty of Paris, and Napoleon is sentenced to permanent imprisonment at St. Helena, where he dies in 1821. Image: Richard Knötel, Print of English Life Guards (left) and Horse Guards (right) of 1815 charging (Band IV, Tafel 4, Uniformenkunde, Lose Blätter zur Geschichte der Entwicklung der militärischen Tracht, Berlin, 1890). This image is in the public domain in the United States because its copyright has expired.

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Sean Grass, “On the Death of the Duke of Wellington, 14 September 1852″

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Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus

Mary Shelley releases the first edition of Frankenstein. The more popular modern version was released on October 31, 1831, which includes the introduction that explains the novel's origins at Villa Diodati. Frankenstein follows many tenets of Romanticism and takes much influence from Milton's Paradise Lost, which is quoted to open to novel and is read by Frankenstein's monster during the events that take place. The novel focuses on a number of themes, one of the most prominent of which is the idea of "nature against nurture" (itself a key idea of Shelley's mother Mary Wollstonecraft's Vindication of the Rights of Women). Contrary to thinking in oral or even medieval societies, Romanticism, where characters are unchanging, readers are encouraged to ask the question on what would have happened to the monster had Frankenstein not screamed and ran away from it. The monster shows the ability to be a monster, but it also shows the ability to show empathy and care. The scientist Frankenstein himself worries constantly about the wholly unnatural creature that he has brought into the natural world and what should happen if he gives the monster what it wants - someone to love. Much like the thought of Romanticism that perhaps Satan was the party in the right during Paradise Lost, the monster's growth mentally and emotionally with his own deeply flawed Maker in Frankenstein invites to question the rights of the individual. The vivid descriptions of nature and the thought-provoking themes of the novel make it a standout of the Romantic era and a phenomenal story to this day.

Ashton-under-Lyne meeting

On 14 June 1819, Joseph Harrison presided at a meeting of 12,000–15,000 at Ashton-under-Lyne; this was typical of a spate of June meetings at Oldham, Bolton, Royton, Bury, Heywood, Stockport, Failsworth, Gee Cross, Lees, Middleton, Rochdale, Todmorden, Barnsley, Holmfirth, Leeds, and other towns that were unrepresented in Parliament.

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James Chandler, “On Peterloo, 16 August 1819″

Death of Napoleon

Horace Vernet, Napoleon on his Death Bed (1826)

Napoleon Bonaparte died on 5 May 1821 while in Exile on the island of Saint Helena. Image: Horace Vernet, Napoleon on his Death Bed (1826).

Stock market crash

On April 1825, the British stock market began to crash. After the speculative bubble reached its peak, falling Bank of England gold reserves and a collapse in stock prices lead to panic by the end of the year.

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Benjamin Robert Haydon paints portrait of Napoleon at sunset

Benjamin Robert Haydon, Napoleon Musing at St Helena

in 1829, Benjamin Robert Haydon painted a first version of Napoleon Musing after Sunset, which was exhibited at the Western Exchange in 1830.  Haydon later painted 23 versions and replics of this work, including the one pictured here.  The later full-length version was titled Napoleon Musing at St. Helena.  In 1831, William Wordsworth wrote of this painting, "If I can command my thoughts I will write something about your Picture, in prose for the Muse has forsaken me - being scared away by the villainous aspect of the Times."  Image:  Benjamin Robert Haydon, Napoleon Musing at St Helena.  This work is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the author's life plus 100 years or less.

July Revolution (Second French Revolution)

The July Revolution, also known as the Second French Revolution was a revolution that occurred over three days in July, also known as the Three Glorious Days.

The Revolution rose out of discontent for the reigning monarch- King Charles X. His pandering to the Catholic Church and offering of compensations for losses occurred during the French Revolution went against the 1814 Charter and went against the principles of equality. This drew the ire of the people. When he attempted to alter the Charter of 1814 by decree, suspending the liberty of the press and excluding the middle-class from future elections, revolution broke out.

In general, there was much less fighting, bloodshed, chaos, and looting in the July Revolution compared to the French Revolution, and the whole affair was over in three days. As a result of the revolution, King Charles X abdicated the throne and a new constitutional monarchy took his place, with Louis Philippe as the constitutional monarch. 

Opening of Liverpool & Manchester Railway

On 15 September 1830, the world’s first major passenger railway opened with a huge celebration—and an unforgettable tragedy. The Liverpool and Manchester Railway stages a grand public opening with dignitaries including then-prime-minster Duke of Wellington. But, before the inaugural trains reach their destination, a fatal accident occurs to MP William Huskisson and, in Manchester, the cheering crowds give way to angry political protests. Image: The Remains of Stephenson's 'Rocket', 1829. Used with permission. Copyright (c) National Railway Museum / Science & Society Picture Library.

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Paul Fyfe, “On the Opening of the Liverpool and Manchester Railway, 1830″

Darwin's voyage on the Beagle

From October 1831 to October 1836, Charles Darwin circumnavigated the world as ship’s naturalist on board the H.M.S. Beagle; he later published his first book based on the journal of his experiences and observations during the voyage. Image: Henry Maull and John Fox, Photograph of Charles Darwin (c. 1854). This image is in the public domain in the United States because its copyright has expired.

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Nancy Armstrong, “On Charles Darwin’s The Descent of Man, 24 February 1871″

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Cannon Schmitt, “On the Publication of Charles Darwin’s On the Origin of Species, 1859″

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Reform Act

The Great Reform Act of 1832 was passed in June 1832 after long discussion, with King William IV giving the royal asses on 7 June 1832. This followed a failed attempt on September 1831 that was vetoed by the House of Lords. A second draft was passed after the King intervened. The Bill eliminated many rotten boroughs and created a new class of eligible voters, providing a model by which non-landowners might claim representation in Parliament. Image: First page of the Reform Act, from the British government's national archives. This image is in the public domain in the United States because its copyright has expired.

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Carolyn Vellenga Berman, “On the Reform Act of 1832″

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Haydon paints portrait of Wellington

Benjamin Robert Haydon portrait of Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington

Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, posed twice in 1839 for Benjamin Robert Haydon so that Haydon could paint a portrait of him (exact dates not known).  The resulting painting shows Wellington at sunrise overlooking the field of Waterloo, where Napoleon Bonaparte was defeated for the last time.  This painting is a companion to Haydon's portrait of Napoleon on St. Helena gazing across the sea at sunset.  Image:  Benjamin Robert Haydon, Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington (National Portrait Gallery).  This work is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the author's life plus 100 years or less.