One musical innovation of the Romantic Period was Romantic program music.

According to Kristine Forney and Joseph Machlis, “Music often evokes visual images or ideas.

When these associations are provided by the composer, they are known as program music, or

instrumental music that has literary or pictorial associations” (Forney et al. 2008, 204). King

Lear is a title that suggests specific events and specific characters whereas Fleeting Pieces

simply labels the character or labels the mood of the work (Forney et al. 2008, 204). Program

music “is distinguished from absolute, or pure, music, which consists of musical patterns that

have no literary or pictorial meanings” (Forney et al. 2008, 204).

According to Kristine Forney and Joseph Machlis, program music was important

especially back during the nineteenth century Romantic Period, “when musicians became sharply

conscious of the connection between their art and the world around them. Adding a

programmatic title brought music closer to poetry and painting, and helped composers relate

their own work to the moral and political issues of their time” (2008, 204). Program music

continues to be important today because there are musicians today who still relate their own

music to the political and moral issues today. The Virginia Symphony Orchestra uses program

music when it performs Christian music.

Program music became so popular that it occupied and took over the symphony (Forney

et al. 2008, 205). The symphony is “usually a form of absolute music” (Forney et al. 2008, 205).

The program symphony is “a multimovement orchestral work” (Forney et al. 2008, 205).

Program music used in symphony orchestras continues to be important today because it is used

in a lot of symphonies. The Virginia Symphony uses program music.

Works Cited

Forney, Kristine, and Joseph Machlis. The Enjoyment of

Music Essential Listening Edition. New York, NY: W. W. Norton & Company, Inc.,

2008. (accessed January 10, 2013).