Unity of the Classical–Romantic Era?: On the Weaknesses of a Certain Paradigm in Music History

One significant proposal in the periodisation of music history was the concept of the unity of the Classical–Romantic era, presented in similar form by Zofia Lissa and Friedrich Blume in the 1960s. Both authors proposed combining musical Classicism and Romanticism— two periods previously treated separately—into one coherent period lasting almost a century and a half (c. 1770–c. 1910).

Although this type of periodisation survived until the end of the twentieth century and was regarded as broadly authoritative, discussion of this approach to music history seems necessary in the twenty-first century. Extensive research into early music has shown that the fundamental traits of the Classical style were formed well before 1770. In turn, recent interpretations of the styles and trends of nineteenth-century music have led researchers to question whether it is appropriate to treat musical Romanticism as a phenomenon extending into the second half of the century. All this necessitates a re-examination of Lissa and Blume’s position, which, from a source-historical perspective, appears oversimplified and outdated.