Classical Era Continued 2 Ms. Ruiz: Humanities

Prodigy A young person who exhibits talent in a subject, in this case music. Your own Definition Antonyms: regular or untalented

Pg. 79 Guided Reading (CD 2 Track 8) Who is Mozart and where was he born? What instruments could Mozart play by age 6? What did Mozart write at ages 8 and 12? Which symphony are we listening to? Is it his first or his last? What are we listening for in this symphony? Did you hear the things we were supposed to be listening for?

Fun Facts about Mozart Mozart could write music before he could write words. He wrote half the number of symphonies he would write in total between ages 8-19. His nickname was “Wolfie.” Eddie van Halen named his son Wolfgang van Halen in honor of Mozart. Mozart could listen to music once and then write it down without any mistakes. Mozart died at age 36, at the peak of his musical power, with no money. He wrote more music in his short career than most composers did in a lifetime.

Guided Reading Pg. 80 (CD 2 Track 9) What was Haydn’s first name and where was he born? How was Haydn’s life when he was young? What did he do to get by? Hayden was hired by whom and how long did he work there? How many symphonies did he compose? Who did he teach and what did his students call him? How did each student feel about lessons from Haydn? What is theme and variation? Why is Haydn’s symphony called the “Surprise Symphony?”

Fun Facts about Haydn The young Haydn's singing voice was so impressive that he was asked to join the Choir School of St Stephen's Cathedral in Vienna when he was just five years old. However at 16 he was fired from the choir because his voice changed and he cut off the pigtail of another choir student. It was suggested that Hayden go through surgery so his voice wouldn’t break by the choirmaster. Haydn’s father said that wasn’t happening. Symphony No. 96 was called the “Miracle Symphony” because a large chandelier fell in the audience and it was a miracle no one was hurt.

Guided Reading Pg. 81 (CD 2 Track 10) Beethoven represents what level of musical genius? Where was Beethoven born? What did Mozart say about Beethoven? How old was Haydn when Beethoven took lessons from him? What was Beethoven’s temper like? Did Beethoven express more emotion in music because he was going deaf? What was Beethoven’s worst subject? What are we listening for in Symphony No. 5? What is a motive?

Fun Facts about Beethoven Beethoven was actually the third Ludwig van Beethoven in his family. Beethoven’s father noticed early on the boy’s penchant for playing. He set his sights on creating a prodigy as Mozart was just years before, and Johann beat music into Ludwig, forcing him to practice day and night to reach the same level of genius. Neighbors of Beethoven remembered the small boy standing on a bench to reach the keyboard, crying, his father looming over him. Beethoven was known for his improvising (before he lost his hearing). One contemporary of his, composer Johann Baptist Cramer, told his students that if you haven’t heard Beethoven improvise, you haven’t heard improvisation.