The Letchworth Settlement:  User Groups

Many of the most famous composers lived during the 'Romantic' period (the nineteenth century) for this was the period of Mendelssohn, Schumann, Wagner, Brahms, Tchaikovsky, Dvorak, Chopin, Liszt and many others.   How did they follow the ideas of Beethoven?  Musicians were no longer servants, obedient to royalty or to the Church, but how did they cope with this?  How would audiences respond to new music, new instruments and who would push the boundaries?   Some composers flourished while others died in poverty.   Some achieved great success in their lifetimes but are now mere names in history books.   This course will consider works in a variety of genres - orchestral, instrumental, choral and operatic - and musical examples will be played on CD with opportunity for discussion, and with the chance to suggest further music that might be played.