The Romantic Period - Harmony
1. It was an important vehicle for Romantic expression
2. Dissonance was more extensive and more freely treated; 7th and 9th chords appeared more frequently.
3. Chromaticism and modulation played important roles.
4. The expansion of harmonic idiom of chord structure and progression, toward a richer harmonic.
The Romantic Period--Melody
1. It has qualities of warmth and expressiveness, a more lyric style, and more flexible phrase structure.
2. It often has a searching, seeking, restless quality.
The Romantic Period--Music Harmony at That Time
1. It was an important vehicle for Romantic Expression
2. Dissonance was more extensive and more freely treated; 7th and 9th chords appeared more frequently.
3. Chormaticism and modulation played important roles.
4. The expansion of harmonic idiom of chord structure and progression, toward a richer harmonic element.
The Romantic Period--Musical Form
1. Conventional musical form was generally less prominent than content and subjective expressions.
2. Sectional structures were freer, more variable and often less distinct than in the Classical ear.
The Romantic Period--Texture
1. They were basically homophonic like in the Classical period.
2. 19th-century sonority was important due to a marked augmentation in richness and density in sound.
3. Counterpoint was of secondary importance.
The Romantic-Dramatic Oratorio
Beethoven started the Romantic-dramatic oratorio with his Missa Solemnis (Solemn Mass). It was probably written in response to Beethoven's yearning of a higher spirit after being crippled by stone deafness. Also, the chorus in Symphony no. 9, the Ode to Joy, is considered a secular type of oratorio, although it tells of von Schiller's point of music being the higher power - the music which can be able to break cultural barriers across the earth.