Nationalism in music

Nationalism in music, something that prospered in the late 1800's. Musical nationalism refers to the use of musical ideas that are identified with a specific countries, regions, or ethnicities, and such. Most nationalist music stems from folk tunes and melodies, rhythms, and harmonies inspired by their country or region. Musical nationalism can also include the use of folklore as a basis for works including opera.

            Although some evidence of the nationalist styles can be seen as early as the late 18th century, nationalism as music is generally understood to have emerged part way into the romantic period, beginning around the mid-19th century and continuing well into the twentieth. It initially began as a reaction against the dominance of "German" music. That and later developed alongside the growing movements for national liberation and self-determination that characterized much of the 19th century. Countries or regions most commonly linked to musical nationalism include Russia, Czechoslovakia, Poland, Romania, Scandinavia, Spain, UK, Latin America and the United States.
            Until the 19th century, Russian music had been dominated by foreign musicians. Peter the Great had begun this trend by bringing foreign musicians to his kingdom. As a result, very few Russian compositions in the western European art music tradition exist before Glinka. In Great Britain, nationalist music was more prominent in Scotland, Ireland and Wales than in England. These countries have always had a strong connection to their heritage, and Romantic composers incorporated elements of British folk music into their works.
            Nationalist music was also present Norway, Finland, Sweden, Spain, Mexico, People’s Republic of China, Italy, and Czechoslovakia. Czechoslovakia was a country formed in 1918 by the combination of the Bohemian, Moravian, and Slovakian territories. These territories had been under the control of the Habsburg Empire. As a result, the imperial language, German, and the imperial religion, Catholicism, had become a way of life for the Czech people. These factors all contributed to the Czech nationalist style of music.
            Nationalism was a movement that effected government and music from the late 1800;s to the early 1900’s, and its effects are still apparent in today’s world.