baroque era (1600-1750) definition of “baroque” extreme ornamentation art / sculpture /...
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Baroque Era (1600-1750)
Definition of “baroque” extreme ornamentation
art / sculpture / architecture / music used to symbolize wealth and power
Scientific discoveries Galileo / Newton
Three phases of Baroque Era early - emphasis on dramatic contrast / homophonic middle - use of maj/min scales / music for certain instr. late (1680-1750) - what we will focus on
Characteristics of Baroque Music Unity of Mood Rhythmic Continuity Melodic Continuity Terraced Dynamics
organ, harpsichord, clavichord - good for this Polyphonic Texture Favored Strong Importance of Chords (Harmony)
basso continuo figured bass
Continuation of Word Painting
Baroque Music
Baroque Orchestra Nucleus
Basso Continuo - harpsichord + cello / bass / bassoon Upper Strings - 1st & 2nd violins, violas
Woodwinds / Brass / Percussion varied Baroque Trumpet - no valves
Baroque Forms movements Binary / Ternary Continuous / undivided
Music in Baroque Society
Music written to order Ruling class Opera houses / municipalities Churches The Overworked Musician How to Become a Musician … and get a job!
More Baroque Forms
Concerto Grosso tutti alternating with soloist or group 3 movements (F,S,F) Ritornello Form ritornello
Brandenburg Concerto No. 5 - J.S. Bach soloists - harpsichord, violin, flute dedicated to the margrave of Brandenburg
More Baroque Forms
Fugue a polyphonic composition based on one theme subject answer countersubject episodes pedal point variations of subject
inversion, retrograde, augmentation, diminution
“Little” organ Fugue in G minor - Bach
The Elements of Opera
opera - drama sung to orchestral accompaniment began in Italy around 1600 fusion of music, acting, poetry, dance, scenery, costumes
personnel needed to run an opera libretto serious vs. comic voice categories
coloratura, lyric soprano, dramatic soprano lyric tenor, dramatic tenor bassobuffo, basso profundo
The Elements of Opera
one to five acts subdivided into scenes aria - song for solo voice w/ orchestra recitative - vocal line that imitates speech duet ensemble
trio, quartet, quintet, etc. prompter overture / prelude Should opera be translated for an audience?
Opera in the Baroque era
the Camerata wanted to create vocal style modeled after ancient Greek
tragedy recitative homophonic / polyphony rejected
Euridice by Jacopo Peri (1600) earliest surviving opera composed for wedding of King Henri IV and Marie
de’Medici Orfeo by Claudio Monteverdi (1607)
first “great” opera
Claudio Monteverdi (1567-1643) born in Italy Career
served at the court of Mantua - 21 years singer & violist music director wrote Orfeo
1613 - music director at St. Mark’s - 30 years composed sacred and secular music - all for voices wanted to create music of emotional intensity
use of dissonance / new effects (pizzicato / tremolo)
Henry Purcell (ca.1659-1695)
born in England Career
age 10 - choirboy in Chapel Royal 1677 - (age 18) composer for king’s string orchestra 1679 - organist at Westminster Abbey 1682 - organist at Chapel Royal buried under organ at Westminster Abbey
wrote church music, secular choral music, chamber music, songs, music for the stage
used ground bass (basso ostinato)
Henry Purcell
Dido and Aeneas (1689) written for girls’ boarding school relatively short - one hour long scored for strings and harpsichord contiinuo libretto - (p.163) Dido’s Lament - from Act III
recitative with basso continuo aria with full orchestra ground bass
used to show grief and sorrow
The Baroque Sonata
sonata composition in several movements for 1-8 instruments trio sonata - 2 high instruments and basso continuo originated in Italy - spread to Germany, England, France sonata da chiesa / sonata da camera
Archangelo Corelli (1653-1713) studied in Bologna - spent most of his life in Rome friend and music director to Cardinal Ottoboni laid foundation for modern violin technique
double stops / chords wrote only instrumental music Trio Sonata in B minor, Op.3 No.4
Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741)
born in Venice / father at St. Mark’s as violinist age 25 - took holy orders / left ministry after 1 yr.
‘the red priest” teacher at music school of the Pietà virtuoso violinist and composer popularity waned / died in poverty composed 50 operas and sacred music best known for concerti grossi and solo concerti
La Primavera (Spring) from The Four Seasons
La Primavera
concerto for solo violin and string orchestra Baroque program music
1. Allegro - birds, streams, storm 2. Largo e pianissimo sempre - goatherd w/ dog 3. Danza pastorale - bagpipes, dancing nymphs and
shepherds Forms of movements
1. ritornello form 2. through-composed 3. ritornello form
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750) family of long line of musicians
J.S. had 20 children 9 survived him / 4 became well-known composers
born in Eisenach, Germany first musical training by father and cousin age 9 - both parents die / lives with oldest brother age 15 - leaves bother’s home / goes to school,
supporting himself by singing in church choir & playing organ & violin
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750) age 18 - becomes church organist at Arnstadt
conflict with church authorities “complicated” music “strange” maiden
age 23 - resolves conflict gets a better position in Mühlhausen marries the ”strange” maiden, his cousin Barbara
1708 - court organist at Weimar stayed for 9 years / became concertmaster of court orch. asked to leave when passed over for promotion jailed for one month by Duke of Weimar
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750) 1717-1723 - court conductor for Prince of Cöthen
not involved in church music conducted orchestra of 18 players wrote Brandenburg Concertos
1720 - Barbara dies / leaving 4 children marries 21-year-old singer
1723 - cantor of St. Thomas Church in Leipzig drawbacks from career move / advantages wrote extended compositions for each Sunday and holiday became director of Leipzig Collegium Musicum eminent organist and teacher
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750) 1740’s - eyesight began to deteriorate 1750 - goes blind / dies later that year
Not well-known outside Germany in his day Baroque style out-of-date in his late career
Bach’s music largely forgotten 1829 - Felix Mendelssohn presents St. Matthew
Passion Bach’s music revived ever since
Bach’s music
composed all Baroque forms except opera bulk of music - vocal - Lutheran studied Italian concertos / French dance pieces unique combination of polyphonic texture & rich
harmony use of musical symbolism music to demonstrate a specific musical form
Art of the Fugue The Well-Tempered Clavier
Bach’s music
Brandenburg Concerto No. 5 movements
instrumentation tempi form key other notable features
Mass in B Minor setting of Roman Catholic Mass 1733 - wrote Kyrie / Gloria - sent to Catholic monarch later - completed mass w/ new and re-used music
Mass in B minor
instrument parts each section subdivided into arias, duets, choruses in the “Credo”
“Crucifixus” strings, 2 flutes, chorus use of ground bass
“Et Resurrexit” full orch. (w/ oboes, trumpets, and timpani)
The Baroque Suite
set of dance-inspired movements all in same key written for solo instr. / small groups / full orch. related to specific dance types
examples allemande - moderate (Ger.) courante - fast (Fr.) gavotte - moderate (Fr.) sarabande - slow (Sp.) gigue - fast (Eng./Ire.)
usually binary form “French overture”
The Chorale and Church Cantata Lutheran Church service in Bach’s time
7 am / lasted 4 hours importance of music
orchestra: 14-21 players chorus: 12+ men & boys single composition could last 1/2 hour
use of vernacular chorale
one note per syllable / moving in steady rhythm sung by congregation harmonized by choir chorale prelude
The Chorale and Church Cantata cantata
written for chorus, vocal soloists, organ, orchestra German religious text- related to liturgy for each Sunday recitatives, arias, duets, choruses based on a chorale tune
Bach’s cantatas: wrote 295; surviving - 195 Cantata #140: Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme
7 movements mvt. 1 - Chorus w/ orch. mvt. 4 - Tenor (solo or unison) w/ strings and continuo mvt. 7 - Chorus doubled by orch.
George Frideric Handel (1685-1759) born in Halle, Germany - not in musical family father wanted him to study law age 9 - father relented to let G.F. study w/ organist age 11 - could compose and give organ lessons age 12 - father dies age 17 - studies law at Halle University age 18 - leaves university; sets out for Hamburg became violinist/harpsichordist at Hamburg
Opera House / age 20 - own opera produced
George Frideric Handel (1685-1759) man of temperament and conviction age 21 - went to Italy / established his career
wrote Italian operas 1710 - music director for Elector of Hanover (Ger.)
after 1 mo. - asked to leave for London Rinaldo
after 1 year - asked to leave again for London (1712-1759) became England’s most important composer favored by Queen Anne - gave him £200/year after death of Anne, Elector of Hanover becomes King George
I of England - Handel’s subsidy increased to £400/year
George Frideric Handel (1685-1759) 1719 - music director of the Royal Academy of
Music - open for only 9 seasons composed a number of operas for brilliant sopranos and
castrati formed his own company
impresario / composer / performer Opera of the Nobility - the opposition both companies go bankrupt / Handel has nervous
breakdown recuperates in Germany / returns to England
produces more operas and adds oratorios
George Frideric Handel (1685-1759) 1741 - stops composing opera / focuses on oratorio
oratorios criticized, yet productive played organ concertos between acts plot against Handel suffers another breakdown / recovers / composes more
oratorios 1753 - still active conducting/ giving organ concerts
almost blind / statue erected in public park 1759 - 3000 mourners at his funeral in Westminster
Abbey
The Oratorio
large scale composition for chorus, vocal soloists, and orchestra
no acting, scenery, or costumes - “concert”-style most based on Biblical stories choruses, arias, duets, recitatives, interludes chorus provides commentary / participates in story narrator longer than cantatas (sometimes over 2 hours) first appeared in early 17th century Italy -
dramatized musical settings of Biblical stories
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