How do I recognise something from the Romantic Era?

It's generally pretty simple to recognise when something is Baroque, because it's likely to sound quite old fashioned to a modern listener. It might have a harpsichord, it's very unlikely to have any brass, and it's mainly going to be all about the strings. Telling the difference between Classical and Romantic period music is trickier. Overall, if it's an orchestral piece try to listen out for how much the brass is dominating the orchestra, and how many solos or really difficult sounding parts there are - the more there are, the more Romantic it sounds. If it's a piece for a solo instrument, Romantic music is often very virtuosic, or hard, because the composers in the Romantic era were often composing for themselves to perform, so they'd be showing off whatever particular skills they had.

FA
Answered by Florence A. Music tutor

5290 Views

See similar Music GCSE tutors

Related Music GCSE answers

All answers ▸

Name a composer from the Baroque period


What was the importance of harpsichord in the Baroque era?


What should I say when asked to talk about the dynamics of a piece?


What is the difference between a perfect cadence and a plagal cadence?


We're here to help

contact us iconContact ustelephone icon+44 (0) 203 773 6020
Facebook logoInstagram logoLinkedIn logo

MyTutor is part of the IXL family of brands:

© 2026 by IXL Learning