"Romantic music reflected the profound changes that were taking place in the nineteenth century at every level of human existence" (Machlis & Forney 309). Style characteristics emphasized much of the same as other disciplines, including emotional expression and unfulfilled longing. Romantic composers utilized a variety of musical styles. Some pushed forward into the future, while others stylistically adhered to past periods. For many composers, music became personalized and, in some cases, autobiographical. In all instances, each composer sought to achieve a personal style, and the view of music became "the inner language of unconscious emotional experience" (Kerman 221).

Typical structural forms, along with instruments and orchestras, grew in size and quality. Instrumental music developed into program music, a genre based on poetic or extramusical subjects that tell a story. "Poets wanted their poetry to be musical, and musicians wanted their music to be poetic" (Kamien 300). Hector Berlioz (1803-1869) with the Symphonie Fantastique, and Franz Liszt (1811-1886) were important figures in program music, as well as Modest Mussorgsky (1839-1881) with Pictures at an Exhibition. Many varieties and branches of program music also developed. The program symphony is an orchestral work divided into movements. The symphonic poem, however, is a composition of one movement with many contrasts (also called a tone poem). Concert overtures (one movement) and incidental music (written for a play) fall into this category as well, and are smaller works that were performed with other musical and nonmusical events. Because compositions were developed on a larger scale than in past eras, composers tended to write fewer symphonies. Schubert's Symphony No. 8 in B minor ("Unfinished") is often regarded as the first truly Romantic symphony (Grout 568).

Another element of the Romantic era is nationalism in music, making use of symbolism, history, folk songs and themes from one’s own country, and exotic elements. "All over Europe, people were becoming more conscious of their history and destiny, their national character, and their artistic heritage" (Kerman 27). Composers strove to achieve musical independence in Italy, Czechoslovakia, Poland, and Norway. Antonín Dvorák (1841-1904) wrote Slavonic Dances. Russian Ballet came to prominence with Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893). The most important group of promoters for nationalism was "The Mighty Five" from the Russian national school (Alexander Borodin, Modest Musorgsky, Mily Balakirev, César Cui, and Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov). A native of Poland, Frédéric Chopin (1810-1849) composed native dance music in the form of the polonaise and mazurka.

Combining music and literature, novels as well as political and historical subjects served as a foundation for operatic storylines. Composers were concerned with the extramusical meanings of operas. Romantic opera reflected national styles in France, Germany, and Italy, where opera in this era was first centered. In Paris, there was grand opera, based on historical storylines and created for nonroyalty. Opéra comique is opera on a smaller scale with spoken dialogue, and lyric opera is a combination of the first two. This type is characteristically melodic and uses Romantic subjects as themes. In Germany, an early form of opera is the airy Singspiel. Richard Wagner (1813-1883) became the greatest composer of German opera, inventing music drama that linked these two disciplines. With this development, "the function of music was to serve the ends of dramatic expression" (Grout 641). Italy remained attached to earlier styles, but Giuseppe Verdi (1813-1901) introduced a new national style.

Other elements of musical style include singing melodies; prominent dissonance, or the clashing of tones together; and effective harmonies. Harmony was expanded to include chromatic tones, notes outside the given key of a composition. Harmony "could contribute potently to those mysterious, ethereal, rapturous, or sultry moods that were so greatly enjoyed at the time" (Kerman 223). With melody, composers made their tunes intimate, passionate, and dreamy, runnning a gamut of emotions. Romanticism also introduced a great variety of dynamic levels and variance in tempo and register, with much more contrast than in previous eras. Rhythm was to be free, flowing, and expressive, often speeding up and slowing down again. Compositions also developed into longer movements, typically linking the different sections together with repeating ideas and themes for unity.

Society improved musical instruments, and new ones developed (saxophone, tuba) that placed more demands on performers expected to create a larger sound. The piano was perhaps the most important instrument to Romanticism. Each piano was individually designed for different specifications; some focused on clarity of tone, while others emphasized dramatic effect. Many different genres exploiting the 19th-century piano include waltzes, mazurkas, polonaises, preludes, and intermezzi, and encouraged "the popularity of the Romantic art song [that] was furthered by the emergence of the piano as the universal household instrument" (Machlis & Forney 316). Solo recitals rose in number along with the use of the piano in performance at home. Most composers also performed as concert pianists. They premiered and played their own works, but the Romantic era also produced many virtuoso pianists. Franz Liszt was the most highly regarded for his grandiose pianistic displays, virtuoso effects, and dramatic use of the instrument’s resources.