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