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A term applied to bourgeois life and art in German-speaking and other European countries from about 1815 to 1848. The psychological foundation of the Biedermeier era is a simplification of classic forms and a retreat from romantic pathos into middle-class quietude, modesty, and simplicity. Composers increasingly wrote salon and house music, usually pieces of small dimensions and of a poetic, lyrical character bearing such titles as "Albumblatt," "Bagatelle," "Impromptu," etc. One of the finest forms of Biedermeier musical art was the Lied with piano accompaniment. In the concert hall, the Biedermeier music lover favored brilliant virtuosity in the service of poetic expression and large-scale dramatic symphonies found less general acceptance. (New Grove; Lang)