Characteristics of

Baroque Music

• Dr. Henri Duyzend practiced

dentistry for more than 30

years before retiring in 2007.

An active patron of the

performing arts, Dr. Henri

Duyzend particularly enjoys

music from the Baroque

period.

• Baroque music, composed primarily

between 1600 and 1750 CE in

western Europe, is most notable for

its focus on artistic expression and

ornamentation. The style stems

from the increasing interest at the

time in the heritage of the classical

world, particularly that of Greece

and Rome. As the people of the

classical era believed in music as a

tool for emotional communication,

so their descendants in the

Baroque period began to

concentrate on meaning as the

purpose of composition.

• Whereas earlier music focused largely

on the effects of counterpoint and

harmony, Baroque music prioritized a

solitary musical voice supported by a

single harmonic structure. Baroque

composers believed that this structure

was most effective at communicating an

emotion, as a single orator is most

effective at communicating an idea. For

similar reasons, the style became

notable for its use of dramatic and

abrupt dynamic shifts, rhetorical

themes, and a rhythmic continuity

throughout the piece.