Belle Epoque
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- This article is about a period in France´s history, for the 1992 Spanish film see Belle Epoque (film)
Occurring at the midpoint of the Third Republic, the Belle Époque was considered a golden time of beauty, innovation, and peace between France and its European neighbors. New inventions made life easier at all social levels, the cultural scene thrived, cabaret, cancan, and the cinema were born, and art took new forms with Impressionism and Art Nouveau. Art and architecture in the style of this era in other nations is also sometimes called "Belle Époque" style. Mexico was especially known for adopting the Belle Époque style during the Porfiriato, and as a result, many constructions followed the Art Nouveau trend, such as the central kiosk at the Arms Square in Guadalajara, and the Lafayette Ave., a boulevard in the same city, known nowadays as the Chapultepec Ave., and styled after the French boulevards from that time.
Social movements
While art and innovation flourished, this time period also saw the rise of working-class militancy and organized socialist movements. These conflicts as well as various political scandals furthered a national division between the "Left" and the "Right." Regardless, this time period is remembered in France as a golden time of the past that was shattered by the outbreak of World War I.
Music
Musically, the Belle Époque was characterized by salon music. This was not "serious" music but, rather, short pieces (some happy, some sad, but all accessible). In addition to pieces for piano solo, violin and piano, etc., the Belle Époque was famous for its large repertory of songs (mélodies, romanze, etc.). Unlike serious German Lieder, these were songs that tugged at the heart strings. The Italians were the greatest proponents of this type of song, its greatest champion being Francesco Paolo Tosti. Though Tosti's songs never fully left the repertoire, salon music in general fell into a period of deep obscurity. Even as encores, singers were afraid to sing them at "serious" recitals.
See also
- Fin de siècle
- Succès de scandale
- Belle Epoque (film)
- [The Belle Epoque in Europe] (in English, French, German, Italian, many pictures of Art Nouveau architecture).
- In France, the “Belle Époque” quarter in Bagnoles-de-l'Orne (Normandy) is famous for its superb bourgeois villas with polychrome façades, bow windows and unique roofing that are typical of the turn-of-the-century architecture.
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