Transcript Baroque Music - The International School of Penang

Baroque Music
1600 - 1750
What is baroque?
 Derived from the Portuguese barroco, or “oddly
shaped pearl,” the term “baroque” has been widely
used since the nineteenth century to describe the
period in Western European art music from
about 1600 to 1750. “Baroque” is now simply a
convenient catch-all for one of the richest and most
diverse periods in music history.
When was the baroque period?
 In addition to producing the earliest European music
familiar to most of us, including Pachelbel’s Canon in D
and Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons, the baroque era also
greatly expanded our horizons. The acceptance of Copernicus’s
16th century theory that the planets didn’t revolve around the earth made
the universe a much larger place, while Galileo’s work helped us get better
acquainted with the cosmos. Advances in technology such as the invention
of the telescope made what was believed to be finite seem infinite. Great
thinkers like Descartes, Hobbes, Spinoza and Locke tackled the big
questions of existence. Geniuses like Rubens, Rembrandt and Shakespeare
offered unique perspectives through their art. European nations grew more
and more involved with foreign trade and colonization, bringing us into
direct contact with parts of the globe that were previously unfamiliar. And
the growth of a new middle class breathed life into an artistic culture long
dependent on the whims of church and court.
Who were the major baroque composers and where were they
from?
 Many of the well known
composers from the first part
of the baroque period hail
from Italy,
including Monteverdi, Corelli
and Vivaldi. (By the mid
eighteenth century, our focus
shifts to the German
composers Bach and Handel.)
Many of the forms identified
with baroque music
originated in Italy, including
the cantata, concerto, sonata,
oratorio and opera.
 While certain countries may
seem to claim a larger piece of
our experience of baroque
music today, however, every
nation played a role. As
musicians and composers
travelled all over Europe and
heard each other’s music, the
new conventions they
encountered made subtle
impressions on them.
Well-known composers.
 Italy: Monteverdi, Frescobaldi, Corelli, Vivaldi, Domenico and Alessa
ndro Scarlatti
 France: Couperin, Lully, Charpentier and Rameau
 Germany: Praetorius, Schein, Scheidt, Schutz, Telemann, Handel
and Bach
 England: Purcell
What is the philosophy of baroque music?
 A belief in music as a potent tool
of communication.
 One of the major philosophical
currents in baroque music comes
from the Renaissance interest in
ideas from ancient Greece and
Rome. The Greeks and Romans
believed that music was a
powerful tool of communication
and could arouse any emotion in
its listeners. As a result of the
revival of these ideas, composers
became increasingly aware of
music’s potential power, and
cultivated the belief that their
own compositions could have
similar effects if they correctly
emulated ancient music.
Patronage - the position, encouragement, influence, or support of
a patron, as toward an artist, institution, etc.
 In modern times, artists frequently
earn a living producing exactly the
kind of art they are moved to
create. Throughout much of the
baroque era, however, composers
only earned a living writing music
if they were fortunate enough to be
on the payroll of a political or
religious institution. The musical
needs of that institution, therefore,
dictated the music the composer
produced. Bach wrote the number
of cantatas he did, for example, not
necessarily because he found the
form inspirational, but because of
the liturgical demands of the
Leipzig church that employed him.
When viewed in this light, baroque
music can provide a fascinating
window into history.
Characteristics of Baroque
Music
BASSO CONTINUO (FIGURED BASS),
DOCTRINE OF AFFECTIONS, STRING
IMPORTANCE, MAJOR/MINOR KEY SYSTEM,
DIFFERENT FORMS.
Basso Continuo (Figured Bass)
 Figured Bass is a sort of
musical shorthand that
provides a framework for
playing the bass line of the
piece. The bass parts were
usually played by the string
bass along with either the
harpsichord or the organ,
which also played an
improvised chord part.
While most of the orchestra
played parts that were
written out note-by-note,
the basso continuo was
simply sketched out in a
Figured Bass notation.
One Mood
 This is called the Doctrine
of Affections. Composers in
the Baroque period
attempted to communicate
pure emotion in their
music. There was nothing
autobiographical in their
compositions, meaning
that a composer never tried
to write a “happy” song
because he was happy that
day. Rather, they were
trying to write music that
perfectly expressed the
range of human emotions.
Strings
 Previously music had been
dominated by the voice.
Motets and madrigals used
strings as accompaniment
but not as a solo
instrument. Baroque
composers began giving
greater attention to the
violin, viola, cello and
string bass and wrote many
pieces that brought these
instruments to the
forefront of the orchestra.
Major/minor Key System
 Music before the baroque
period was written in
modes that did not allow
for changes from one mode
to another. If a song started
in Mode 1, it ended in
Mode 1 with no possible
way to shift to Mode 2.
With the invention of the
Major and Minor key
system, it became possible
for composers to modulate
from one key to another
related key.
Forms – Binary, Fugue, etc.
 Baroque music was a time
of experimentation and
expansion. Composers
began writing pieces in
many forms, most of which
followed some kind of fastslow-fast format. Binary
music was two forms, fast
and slow. Fugues were
complex and complicated
variations on a single
melody that build
organically from that single
melody into rich and varied
musical tapestries.
Types of Music
VOCAL - OPERA, ORATORIO, CANTATA
INSTRUMENTAL – SONATA, CONCERTO,
SUITE
Opera
 A drama that is primarily sung,
accompanied by instruments, and
presented on stage. Operas typically
alternate between recitative, speech-like
song that advances the plot, and arias,
songs in which characters express
feelings at particular points in the
action. Choruses and dances are also
frequently included. The advent of the
genre at the turn of the seventeenth
century is often associated with the
activities of a group of poets, musicians
and scholars in Florence known today as
the Florentine Camerata. The earliest
opera still performed today is Claudio
Monteverdi’s Orfeo (1607). The subjects
of the first operas are all taken from
Greek myth, reflecting the genre’s close
alliances with attempts to recreate the
music and drama of ancient cultures,
and were performed solely in
aristocratic circles for invited guests.
Examples of Baroque Opera
Purcell Dido and Aeneas
Monteverdi L'Orfeo
Rameau Hippolyte et Aricie
Handel Giulio Cesare in Egitto
Oratorio
 An oratorio is a large musical
Opera
• – Theatrical vocal and instrumental
music. – Often telling stories from
Greek and Roman mythology.
Oratorio
• – Vocal and instrumental music
performed in a normal concert
setting. - Religious
composition for orchestra, choir,
and soloists. Like an opera,
an oratorio includes the use of a
choir, soloists, an ensemble,
various distinguishable
characters, and arias.
 The word Oratorio originally
meant prayer hall, which was a
place for religious experiences
other than liturgy.
 The text is based on religious
subject matter. Much like opera
it can tell a story, however this is
not acted out on stage.
 Examples of Oratorio


Handel – Messiah
Handel – Judas Maccabeus
Cantata
 Main difference is that a
cantata is a stand alone
piece of vocal music, not
associated with a greater
work, such as an opera.
 Sacred or Secular
 Bach
Sonata
 Used to describe several types of
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

pieces in the baroque era, the term
sonata most commonly designated
a work in several movements for
one or more instruments (most
frequently violins) and basso
continuo (harpsichord).
Sonatas continue to be popular in
other periods.
Sonatas usually are ensemble
pieces where the instruments share
the same importance, all getting a
chance to play the main melodic
line. At times they can also be solo
pieces.
Corelli – Sonata de Chiesa
(Church)
Corelli – Sonata de Camera
(Chamber)
Vivaldi – Sonata for Harp and Bassoon
Concerto
 Multi-movement work for

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

instrumental soloist (or
group of soloists) and
orchestra.
Vivaldi was the most
prolific composer of
concertos.
Concertos later evolved to
be mostly for soloist and
orchestra/piano.
Vivaldi – Winter
Bach – Brandenburg
Concerto
Suite
 A series of dances in the

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same key, most or all of
them in two-part form.
For solo or orchestra – not
together.
Basic set up – Prelude
(Overature, Fantasia),
Allemande, Courante,
Sarabande, (Minuet,
Bourree, or Gavotte), and
Gigue
Bach – Cello Suite 1
Handel – Water Music
References
 Baroque Characteristics -
https://wikis.engrade.com/lamkinmuap
 Short Introduction https://files.nyu.edu/lga2/public/short%20intro%2
0to%20Baroque/baroque1.html
 Baroque History http://www.baroque.org/baroque/whatis.shtml#wh
atis
 GCSE – Baroque http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/music/
western_tradition/baroque_orchestral1.shtml