Baroque Era - Music of the Baroque (1600-1750)

Music of the Baroque (1600-1750)

The Baroque Era (1600-1750) is divided into Early Baroque (1600-1640), Middle Baroque (1640-1680) and Late Baroque (1680-1750). When you hear about the Baroque Era, most people are talking about the Late Baroque and the works associated with Vivaldi, Handel, and most importantly, J.S. Bach. For this week, our focus is on the Early and Middle time periods.

Music in the Baroque era was "made to order" by the churches and the aristocratic courts. Think of the composers as a portable radio (or MP3 player) that you have except that instead of changing the station, the composers wrote a brand new work! These demands were for new and more complicated music that did not sound like the old fashioned music of the Renaissance. Since aristocracy was such a small portion of the population, most people heard music in the church. Being a church composer was not the most glamorous job at this time, but it seemed to be where all the great minds were making music.

Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741) Henry Purcell (1659-1695) Jean-Batiste Lully (1632-1687)

Early Baroque (1600-1710) and Middle Baroque (1640-1680) Composers:

* Claudio Monteverdi - 1567-1643

* Jean-Batiste Lully - 1632-1687

* Henry Purcell - 1659-1695

* Johann Pachelbel -1653-1706

* Arcangelo Corelli - 1653-1713

* Antonio Vivaldi - 1678-1741 (early works)

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Characteristics of the Early and Middle Baroque:

Melody

Less stepwise movement, larger leaps, wider range, and more chromaticism reflect influence of virtuosic solo singing; melodic patterns idiomatic to particular musical instruments emerge; introduction of melodic sequence (a short melodic fragment repeated at different pitch levels).

Harmony

Stable, diatonic chords played by basso continuo (usually played by harpsichord) support melody; clearly defined chord progressions begin to develop; tonality reduced to major and minor keys

Rhythm

Relaxed, flexible rhythms of the Renaissance transformed into regularly repeating, driving rhythms.

Color

Musical timbre becomes enormously varied as traditional instruments are perfected (e.g., harpsichord, violin, and oboe) and new combinations of voices and instruments are explored; symphony orchestra begins to take shape; sudden shifts in dynamics (terraced dynamics) reflect dramatic quality of Baroque music.

Texture

Chordal, homophonic texture predominates; top and bottom lines are the strongest as basso continuo (harpsichord playing chords and cello playing bass line) creates a powerful support for the melody above.

Form

Arias and instrumental works often make use of basso ostinato procedure; ritornello form emerges in the concerto grosso; binary form regulates most movements of the sonata and orchestral suite

Principle Genres - motet, cantata, opera, sonata, concerto grosso, solo concerto, orchestral suite.

Let us take a look at some of the most important genres that grew during the Early and Middle Baroque Period. Please visit the following site and read a bit more about each of these genres.

VOCAL MUSIC

Opera: http://www.baroqueopera.com/

The examples in your text in Chapter 11 are from Claudio Monteverdi's opera Orfeo, which is based on a story from Greek mythology. The lead character, Orfeo is the son of Apollo who is the Greek god of the sun and music. The story of Orfeo has been used many times in operas from many different eras. In order to understand how an opera from this time period would be staged, please view this video of the arioso "Tu se' morta": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ll_u870PG8. (See the listening guide