music of the baroque period (1600-1750) baroque historical highlights age of absolutism; kings and...

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Music of the Baroque Period (1600- 1750)

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Music of the Baroque Period

(1600-1750)

Baroque Historical Highlights

Age of Absolutism; Kings and Queens are all-powerful Known for extreme decadence and extravagance of

aristocracy (e.g. Louis XIV and his palace of Versailles)

Church Splits in Two; Europe split into Catholic countries (Italy, France, Spain) and Protestant countries (England, Germany, Netherlands, Sweden)

The Palace at Versailles

The King’s Bedroom, The Opera House

“Baroque” Defined

Baroque means exaggerated or over-ornamented; these adjectives relate to music and visual arts

Baroque Artistic Highlights

Emphasis on DRAMA (extreme and heightened emotion) in music and visual arts– Paintings by

Artemisia Gentilleschi show this emphasis on DRAMA

Baroque Musical Highlights Birth of OPERA - theatrical presentations with

music and elaborate stage spectacle New focus on instrumental music and

instrumental accompaniment to voices New emphasis on chords and use of BASSO

CONTINUO Examples:

– Henry Purcell ”Dido’s Lament " from Dido and Aeneas

– Claudio Monteverdi “Tu se’ morta” from Orfeo

Basso Continuo

Baroque accompaniment made up of a bass part usually played by two instruments– A keyboard (or other chord-generating

instrument such as the lute, organ, or harpsichord)

– Plus a low melodic instrument (such as the cello or bassoon)

Baroque Music Genres

Vocal Music Genres– Opera– Oratorio– Cantata

Instrumental Music Genres– Chamber Music– Concerto Grosso

Opera Sung theatrical work with orchestral

accompaniment– Vocal soloists and chorus

Staged with costumes and sets

Example: HENRY PURCELL "Dido's Lament" from Dido and Aeneas CD#1/69-70

Recitative

Vocal line in a opera, oratorio, or cantata that imitates the rhythms and pitch fluctuations of speech, often serving to lead into an aria

Recitative often gets across mostly plot information in the opera, while the Aria communicates the character’s emotions

Aria

Song for solo voice with orchestral accompaniment, usually expressing an emotional state through its outpouring of melody; found in operas, oratorios, and cantatas

HENRY PURCELL "Dido's Lament" from Dido and Aeneas Aria vs. Recitative Listen for Basso

continuo in Recitative Aria built on Ground

bass - a repeating bass line (dark-sounding harmony, descending in pitch)– Listen also for affect of

ground bass

Affect The one basic mood that usually lasts

throughout a single movement or piece of a Baroque composition

Emotional states expressed in music were called “affections”

Exceptions can be found in some vocal music where the affect may change if the character’s emotional changes within an aria or recitative

Thy hand, Belinda, darkness shades me,On thy bosom let me rest;More I would bet Death invades me;Death is now a welcome guest.

When I am laid, am laid in earth, may my wrongs createNo trouble, no trouble in thy breast.Remember me! But ah! Forget my fate.

Recitative

Aria

Dido tells Belinda to leave her alone, so that she can commit suicide

Dido tells us how she feels about committing suicide

Oratorio

Like opera - [Sung theatrical work with orchestral accompaniment for

vocal soloists and chorus] , but unstaged [without acting, scenery, or costumes]

Uses a religious story

Example: GEORGE FRIDERIC HANDEL’s Messiah

– "Hallelujah" CD#2/11-16

– "Ev'ry Valley Shall Be Exalted" CD#2/10

GEORGE FRIDERIC HANDEL’s Messiah "Hallelujah"

– Listen for • Changes in texture

–Hymn-like Homophony

– Imitative Polyphony

–Pedal Point• Emphasis of beat

GEORGE FRIDERIC HANDEL’s Messiah "Ev'ry Valley Shall Be

Exalted" – Listen for

• Terraced dynamics• Emphasis of beat• Ornamented melody• Continuous affect• Word painting

Terraced Dynamics

Abrupt alternation between loud and soft dynamic levels; characteristic of Baroque music

Ev’ry valley

Ev’ry valley shall be exalted,And ev’ry mountain and hill made low,The crooked straight,And the rough places plain.

Ev’ry valley shall be exalted,And ev’ry mountain and hill made low,The crooked straight,And the rough places plain.

The crooked straight,And the rough places plain.

Extremely ornamented melody

Word Painting

Cantata Like opera, but unstaged,

Usually with religious text & mostly performed in churches

The church cantata for the Lutheran service in Germany during the baroque period often includes chorales

– Chorales are hymn tunes set to a German religious text

Example: J.S. BACH Cantata No. 140: Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme (Sleepers Awake) Mvt. 4 [Tenor Chorale] CD#1/71-73 & Mvt. 7 [Chorale] CD#1/74-75

J.S. BACH Cantata No. 140: Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme (Sleepers Awake)

Mvt. 4 [Tenor Chorale] – Listen for

• Extremely ornamented melody

• Continuous affect

Mvt. 7 [Chorale]– Listen for

• Hymn-like homophony • Complete and incomplete

cadences

Chamber Music

Uses a small group of musicians, with one player to a part

Meant for smaller, more intimate performance venues

Includes music for solo instruments– J.S. Bach’s Organ Fugue in G Minor “The Little”

J.S. BACH Organ Fugue in G Minor (The "Little")

Fugue - polyphonic composition based on one main theme called a subject– Subject (Main Theme) stated in different

“voices” during Exposition (imitative)– Exposition followed by alternating

Episodes (non-imitative) and Subject Entries (imitative)

– Countersubject - countermelody that accompanies Subject in Exposition & Subject Entries

Picardy Third - major chord ending pieces in minor

Concerto Grosso Composition for several instrumental soloists

and small orchestra; common in late baroque music

Tutti vs. Soli groups– Tutti = “all,” the entire ensemble

– Soli = a small group of featured soloists (2 or 3)

Ritornello form - Ritornello (a homophonic or polyphonic block of music) alternating with Episodes (contrasting melodic, softer dynamics, virtuosic scales and arpeggios)

Examples of Baroque Concerto Grosso J.S. Bach

– Brandenburg Concerto No. 5 in D Major

– Movement 1 Antonio Vivaldi

– Concerto for Violin and String Orchestra, Op. 8, No. 1, La Primavera [Spring]

– from The Four Seasons– Movement 1

Baroque Music Style Characteristics

Timbre new emphasis on instrumental music & instrumental accompaniment to voices

Rhythm beat is emphasized; lots of forward motion

Melody elaborate, ornamented, continuously expanding, long and winding

Form one main theme repeated over and over

Dynamics sudden changes from loud to soft and soft to loud called terraced dynamics

Texture more rapid changes in texture (homophony, imitative polyphony) throughout a single movement or piece of music

Harmony new emphasis on chords; orchestra mainly consists of strings and basso continuo (bass melody instrument like cello or bassoon + chord generating instrument harpsichord, organ, or lute)

Mood the same mood throughout movement; this heightened emotional state called affect (vocal music is exception; vocal music has many changes of mood, but closely follows text)

The Palace at Versailles

The Royal Chapel, Hall of Mirrors & Royal Coach

The Royal Chapel,

The King’s Bedroom, Marie Antoinette’s Room, The Opera House

Henry Purcell

GeorgeFridericHandel

AntonioVivaldi

JohannSebastian

Bach