Editing Incidental music (section)

==History==

The phrase "incidental music" is from the German ''Inzidenzmusik'', which is defined in the ''Methuen Drama Dictionary of the Theatre'' as "music that is specifically written for a play but does not form an integral part of the work".<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Broad |first=Leah |date=2022 |title=Approaching Incidental Music: 'Reflexive Performance' and Meaning in Till Damaskus (III) |url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S0269040322000202/type/journal_article |journal=Journal of the Royal Musical Association |language=en |volume=147 |issue=2 |pages=495–532 |doi=10.1017/rma.2022.20 |issn=0269-0403}}</ref>  The use of incidental music dates back to ancient [[Greek literature|Greek drama]] and possibly before the Greeks.<ref>Bezuidenhout, Stephanus Abraham. (2017, March). ''Transposing from screen to stage: Creating and implementing an analitical framework for incidental music during a theatre production'' [Master's thesis, University of Stellenbosch].</ref> A number of [[european classical music|classical]] [[composer]]s have written incidental music for various plays, with the more famous examples including [[Henry Purcell]]'s [[Abdelazer|''Abdelazer'' music]], [[George Frideric Handel]]'s [[The Alchemist (Handel)|''The Alchemist'' music]], [[Joseph Haydn]]'s [[Symphony No. 60 (Haydn)|''Il distratto'' music]],{{cn|date=December 2021}} [[Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart]]'s [[Thamos, King of Egypt|''Thamos, King of Egypt'' music]], [[Ludwig van Beethoven]]'s [[Egmont (Beethoven)|''Egmont'' music]],<ref name=lamothe142/> [[Carl Maria von Weber]]'s [[Preciosa (Weber)|''Preciosa'' music]],{{cn|date=December 2021}} [[Franz Schubert]]'s [[Rosamunde|''Rosamunde'' music]],<ref>{{harvtxt|Lubbock|1957|p=130}}</ref> [[Felix Mendelssohn]]'s [[A Midsummer Night's Dream (Mendelssohn)|''A Midsummer Night's Dream'' music]], [[Robert Schumann]]'s [[Manfred (Schumann)|''Manfred'' music]],<ref name=lamothe142>{{harvtxt|Lamothe|2008|p=142}}</ref> [[Georges Bizet]]'s [[L'Arlésienne (Bizet)|''L'Arlésienne'' music]],<ref>{{harvtxt|Lamothe|2008|p=1}}</ref> and [[Edvard Grieg]]'s [[Peer Gynt (Grieg)|''Peer Gynt'' music]].<ref>{{cite encyclopedia|url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Peer-Gynt-by-Grieg|title=Peer Gynt|first=Betsy|last=Schwarm|access-date=4 December 2021|encyclopedia=[[Encyclopædia Britannica]]}}</ref> Parts of all of these are often performed in concerts outside the context of the play. Vocal incidental music, which is included in the classical scores mentioned above, should not be confused with the score of a [[Broadway musical|Broadway]] or [[film musical]], in which the songs often reveal character and further the storyline. Since the score of a Broadway or film musical is what actually makes the work a ''musical'', it is far more essential to the work than mere incidental music, which nearly always amounts to little more than a background score; indeed, many plays have no incidental music whatsoever.

Some early examples of what were later called incidental music are also described as [[semi-opera]]s, quasi-operas, [[masque]]s, [[vaudeville]]s{{cn|date=December 2021}} and [[melodrama]]s.<ref>{{harvtxt|Lubbock|1957|p=128}}</ref>

The genre of incidental music does not extend to pieces designed for concert performance, such as overtures named after a play, for example, Beethoven's ''[[Coriolan Overture]]'' (written for [[Heinrich Joseph von Collin]]'s tragedy), or [[Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky|Tchaikovsky]]'s ''[[Romeo and Juliet (Tchaikovsky)|Romeo and Juliet]]'' fantasy-overture.

Incidental music is also found in religious ceremony, often when officiants are walking from place to place.  (This is distinguished from hymns, where the music is the focus of worship.)  Incidental music is also used extensively in comedy shows for a similar purpose: providing mild entertainment during a dull transition.  Famous comedy incidental musicians include [[Paul Shaffer|Paul Schaffer]], [[Max Weinberg]], and [[Jon Batiste]].

Modern composers of incidental music include [[Pierre Boulez]], [[Lorenzo Ferrero]], [[Irmin Schmidt]], [[Ilona Sekacz]], [[John White (composer)|John White]], and [[Iannis Xenakis]].