Folklore and Nationalism in Music

Front

What growing nineteenth-century interest encouraged composers to explore legends and traditional songs?

Back

A growing interest in folklore encouraged composers to explore legends and traditional songs.

Front

Why did folklore and legends appeal to people living in increasingly industrialised societies?

Back

They seemed to express a simpler, more natural way of life that felt very different from the rapidly industrialised society emerging at the time.

Front

How did the interest in folklore contribute to the rise of nationalism?

Back

It encouraged people to think about their shared history, identity and cultural traditions, which strengthened the idea of a nation and its people as politically and personally important.

Front

Name three composers from Eastern Europe whose works explored nationalist ideals.

Back

Liszt (Hungary), Chopin (Poland), and the Russian group known as 'The Five.'

Front

Who were 'The Five,' and which country were they associated with?

Back

Balakirev, Cui, Mussorgsky, Rimsky-Korsakov and Borodin, all associated with Russia.

Front

In which year was Bedřich Smetana born, and in which region of Europe?

Back

He was born in 1824 in Bohemia, which is now part of the Czech Republic.

Front

Which empire controlled Bohemia for many years before Smetana’s lifetime?

Back

The Habsburg Empire.

Front

How had Czech language and culture been treated during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries?

Back

They had been suppressed; Czech traditions and language were discouraged.

Front

What effect did cultural suppression have on Bohemian composers before the nineteenth century?

Back

Many significant Bohemian composers left to work in Germany or Austria instead of staying in their homeland.

Front

How did Prague’s culture appear during this period of suppression?

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Prague’s culture had become almost entirely Germanic.