aroque Music

What is Baroque Music?

Baroque music is usually defined as music from a particular era in European history: approximately from 1600 to around 1750.

What is Baroque Music?

Mood: Affectations (to impress the mind or move the feelings of human emotions, emotional response). The philosophy of the era is that it represents the affections of real life and in doing so, excites the listeners emotions. Music must move the listener.

Characteristics of Baroque Music

1. Unity of Mood Composers of Baroque

music generally wrote material that suited a certain mood, and that mood dominated the entire piece. If a piece started out happy, it would continue to be happy till the end; if a piece started out sad, it would continue to be sad throughout. Sometimes, if the mood did change, it was usually drastic, and the prevailing mood would last a long time before the mood switched.

Characteristics(cont. )
Prominent Rhythm This was the vehicle through which the unity of mood that Baroque composers strove for was conveyed. The rhythmic pattern at the start of a piece was usually reiterated at given points throughout the piece of music. The beat constantly drove the piece forward, rarely letting up. Also, compared to later Classical and Romantic pieces, the beat was far more distinct in Baroque music.
2.

Characteristics(cont. )
3. Continued and Ornamented Melody In order

to create that unity of mood the Baroque composers strove for, the melody of Baroque music was intended to create a feeling of continuity. An opening melody will be heard over and over again in a piece, though with several variations. Baroque melodies are also wellknown for being highly-ornamented, complex, and elaborate, even by contemporary standards.

Characteristics(cont. )
4. Terraced Dynamics Since the Baroque

composers favored a continuity of mood, mood shifts within a musical piece did not occur frequently. If they did, the initial prevailing mood would stay for some time, before shifting to another one. Usually, this shift is sudden, like taking a physical step. Like melodic ornamentation, terraced dynamics is considered one of the key characteristics of Baroque music.

Characteristics(cont. )
Polyphonic Texture Baroque music, especially in the later period, was predominantly polyphonic in texture, meaning that there were usually two or more melodic lines competing for the listeners attention. A melodic line that happens in one voice will usually happen in other voices as well, resulting in a very rich and varied texture. This, of course, was not strictly followed by all composers.
5.

Characteristics(cont. )
6. Basso Continuo and Figure Bass This is

not something one would hear in a piece, but has mostly to do with musical notation: these are little numbers at the bottom of a stave, and indicate the chords that the basso continuo must play. Usually the basso continuo in any piece is played by the cello and harpsichord.

Characteristics(cont. )
7. Virtuoso Performances Given the technical

difficulty of many Baroque compositions, it was no surprise that only talented performers could play or sing them, and as a result, virtuoso, or extremely talented, performers and performances became one of the key features of Baroque music. Even today, many Baroque pieces are so difficult that to play them is an accomplishment for the performer.

Characteristics(cont. )
8. Improvisation Despite the existence of written scores, and the prevalence of their use, the Baroque period also encouraged improvisation of the material. More often than not, performers would change certain sections of a piece to suit their mood or the mood of an audience. It is not known what the composers themselves thought of such improvisation, but given the prevalence of the practice they might not have considered it an offense to their work.

GENRES OF BAROQUE MUSIC

Genres of Baroque Music

Opera Developed in the late Renaissance, the opera as a genre flourished immensely during the Baroque period, with many renowned composers creating their own operas.

Oratorio While similar to opera in that it involves an orchestra and vocalists, the oratorio was strictly for concert performances only, and was not staged in the same way that an opera was though some oratorios were staged as well.

Genres...
Religious music The Mass and motet, which were very popular during the Renaissance, lost some of their popularity during the Baroque period. In the meantime, the cantata was immensely popular with Bach, and amongst composers with Protestant inclinations.

Instrumental music and dance suites Compared to the emphasis on religious music in periods past, secular music swiftly rose in popularity, with many composers creating pieces to be danced, or simply for the pleasure and/or instruction of the player and/or listeners.

Genres...
Concerto Defined as a three-part solo work with one solo instrument accompanied by an orchestra, it became one of the most popular instrumental pieces during the Baroque; in fact, what is understood today as a concerto was developed during the Baroque period. Keyboard works Almost every wealthy home had a harpsichord or some sort of keyboard instrument, and as a result many compositions were written to be played on or accompanied by a keyboard.

FAMOUS BAROQUE COMPOSERS

 Music was the main source of diversion in the courts of the aristocracy

Music director supervised performances and composed most of the required music including operas, church music, dinner music, and pieces for court concertsand the upkeep of the instruments.
Good & bad features: Pay and prestige were highand anything the composer wrote would be performedbut no matter how great the composer washe was still a servant who could neither quit or take a trip without the patrons permission. Musicians had to curry favor with aristocracylike everyone else in society. the

Backgroun d

The art was handed down from father to son and they had to pass a difficult examination, perform, and submit compositions as an audition for a

Famous Baroque Composers and their Works

Antonio Vivaldi Nicknamed The Red Priest, he was a Venetian priest, and Baroque composer. He was also famous for being a virtuoso violinist. His most famous composition, The Four Seasons (a series for four violin concerti) is considered one of the most challenging violin pieces to perform.

The Four Seasons Vivaldis The Four Seasons (Le quattro stagioni in Italian) is actually a set of four violin concerti, each written around four sonnets, corresponding to the four seasons of the year. While the entire set is considered one of the most popular and most enduring examples of Baroque music (not to mention one of the most challenging to perform), certain movements have also been frequently referenced in popular culture, such as the first Allegro movement of Spring, and the third Presto movement of Summer.

Famous...

Johann Sebastian Bach He was a German composer and organist whose works are said to have brought Baroque music to its full maturity. His style makes frequent use of the contrapuntal technique, thus creating a rich, robust sound that tends to be unique to his compositions, though he was considered old-fashioned even by his contemporaries at the time. He is most famous for his organ and sacred music, being an organist himself, but he also composed vocal, instrumental, and secular pieces as well.

Famous...

Toccata and Fugue in D Minor This is a piece of organ music composed by Johann Sebastian Bach, and is easily one of the most recognizable pieces of classical music ever. Its popular culture associations are mostly linked to Halloween and horror movies, due to the eerie, thunderous feel of the piece. Although it is traditionally meant to be played on organ, many other arrangements have allowed this piece to be played on, not only keyboard instruments, but stringed and wind instruments as well.

Famous...

Brandenburg Concertos These are a collection of six instrumental works composed and presented by Bach to Christian Ludwig, Margrave of Brandenburg-Schwedt. These six instrumental pieces are widely considered to be the some of the finest Bach ever produced, and among the best Baroque compositions ever. The third concerto in the set is also an easily recognizable piece, even by those who are not entirely familiar with classical music.

Famous...

Famous...

George Frideric Handel Another German composer, his name and Bachs are the two most associated with the Baroque period, since it is their compositions that have defined Baroque music as it is understood today. Whereas Bach was most known for organ music, Handel was most known for his vocal and large-scale music, such as his operas, oratorios, and concerto grossi (concerti with more than one soloist).

Famous...

Messiah One of Handels most famous works, it is also one of the most easilyrecognizable pieces for those who are not familiar with classical music. While the entirety of the oratorio is not always well-known, it is the Hallelujah chorus that will always be familiar to listeners regardless of their experience with classical music. The Hallelujah has been used frequently in popular culture, ranging from movies to television shows to cartoons.

Giuseppe Tartini A lateBaroque composer born in what is now Slovenia (though at the time considered a part of the Republic of Venice), he was most known for his virtuoso violin playing and his violin concerti. While not as famous as Vivaldi, Tartini is also known for having been a talented musician and composer.

Famous...

Devils Trill Sonata More formally known as the Violin Sonata in G Minor, it earned its more sinister name from a legend told about where Tartini got the idea to write it. Supposedly, the Devil appeared to Tartini in a dream, asking Tartini to teach him how to play the violin. At the end of their lessons, Tartini gave the Devil a violin, and the Devil started to play a piece of such virtuosity that Tartini was utterly stunned. When he woke, Tartini attempted to capture the piece as a composition. The sonata is also known for its extreme technical difficulty; even by todays standards, it is considered one of the most difficult solo violin pieces to play.

Famous...