Music of the Baroque Period

Baroque period is when the orchestra was born, opera kicked off in a big way and the concerto gave soloists the chance to properly show off. From the period’s beginnings in the early 1600s to when the Classical period style began to take over in the mid-1700s, the sound of the Baroque period remained distinct – ordered, ornate and increasingly emotive as the period went on.

Many of the well-known personalities from the first part of the Baroque period hail from Italy, including Monteverdi, Corelli, and Vivaldi. (By the mid-eighteenth century, our focus shifts to the German composers Bach and Handel.) Many of the forms identified with Baroque music originated in Italy, including the cantata, concerto, sonata, oratorio, and opera.

Although Italy played a vital role in the development of these genres, new concepts of what it meant to be a nation increased the imperative of a “national style.” Differences between nations are often audible in music from the period, not only in the way music was composed, but also in conventions of performance; particularly obvious was the contrast between Italy and France.

While certain countries may seem to claim a larger piece of our experience of Baroque music today, however, every nation played a role. As musicians and composers traveled all over Europe and heard each other’s music, the new conventions they encountered made subtle impressions on them.

Some of the best-known composers from the period include the following:

Italy: Monteverdi, Frescobaldi, Corelli, Vivaldi, Domenico and Alessandro Scarlatti

France: Couperin, Lully, Charpentier, and Rameau

Germany: Praetorius, Schein, Scheidt, Schutz, Telemann, Handel and Bach

England: Purcell

Below is a pretty good sampling of music from the period.  The names and time stamps are listed below the video.

BAROQUE MUSIC

BACH – BRANDENBURG CONCERTO NO. 3 IN G MAJOR, BWV 1048 I. — 00:00 II. Adagio 05:55 III. Allegro 06:21 Orchestra da Camera Fiorentina conducted by Giuseppe Lanzetta VIVALDI – SINFONIA IN C MAJOR, RV 112 I. Allegro 11:06 II. Andante 13:04 III. Presto 14:56 Kaunas Chamber Orchestra conducted by Silvano Frontalini TELEMANN – VIOLA CONCERTO IN G MAJOR, TWV 51:G9 I. Largo 15:39 II. Allegro 19:12 III. Andante 22:20 IV. Presto 27:02 Giovanni Antonioni, Warmia Symphonic Orchestra conducted by Silvano Frontalini CORELLI – CONCERTO GROSSO NO. 9 IN F MAJOR, OP. 6 Preludio. Largo 30:07 II. Corrente. Vivace 32:13 III. Gavotta. Allegro 34:05 IV. Minuetto. Vivace 35:10 Kiev Camera Orchestra conducted by Liviu Buiuc VIVALDI – THE FOUR SEASONS, CONCERTO NO. 1 IN E MAJOR, RV 269 “SPRING” I. Allegro 38:25 II. Largo 41:42 III. Allegro pastorale 44:50 Christiane Edinger, Orchestra da Camera Fiorentina conducted by Giuseppe Lanzetta BACH – BRANDENBURG CONCERTO NO. 5 IN D MAJOR, BWV 1050 I. Allegro 49:07 II. Affettuoso 59:48 III. Allegro 1:05:26 Orchestra da Camera Fiorentina conducted by Giuseppe Lanzetta VIVALDI – STRINGS CONCERTO IN B-FLAT MINOR, RV 164 I. Allegro 1:10:55 II. Adagio 1:12:55 III. Allegro 1:13:53 Kaunas Chamber Orchestra conducted by Marek Tracz CORELLI – CONCERTO GROSSO NO. 10 IN C MAJOR, OP. 6 Preludio. Largo 1:15:14 II. Adagio 1:17:54 III. Allegro 1:21:44 IV. Minuetto. Vivace 1:24:42 Kiev Camera Orchestra conducted by Liviu Buiuc VIVALDI – THE FOUR SEASONS, CONCERTO NO. 4 IN F MINOR, RV 297 “WINTER” I. Allegro non molto 1:26:28 II. Largo 1:29:56 III. Allegro, Lento 1:32:08 Christiane Edinger, Orchestra da Camera Fiorentina conducted by Giuseppe Lanzetta BACH – SUITE NO. 2 IN B MINOR, BWV 1067 I. Ouverture. Lentamente 1:35:46 II. Rondeau 1:43:30 III. Sarabande 1:45:01 IV. Bourrée 1:48:00 V. Double 1:50:01 VI. Minuetto 1:53:29 VII. Badinerie 1:54:44 Andreas Blau, Orchestra da Camera Fiorentina conducted by Giuseppe Lanzetta BACH – HARPSICHORD CONCERTO NO. 1 IN D MINOR, BWV 1052 I. Allegro 1:56:05 II. Adagio 2:03:52 III. Allegro 2:09:53 Saulis Dirvanauskas, Kaunas Chamber Orchestra conducted by Silvano Frontalini BACH – DAS WOHLTEMPERIERTE KLAVIER I: PRÉLUDE & FUGUE NO. 22, BWV 867 2:17:44 Saulis Dirvanauskas (piano solo) BACH – ORCHESTRAL SUITE NO. 3 IN D MAJOR, BWV 1068: II. ARIA 2:20:31 Giovanni Umberto Battel (piano solo) BACH – DAS WOHLTEMPERIERTE KLAVIER I: PRÉLUDE & FUGUE NO. 21, BWV 866 2:26:52 Saulis Dirvanauskas (piano solo)

  

For many, the splendor of the Baroque age epitomizes grandeur and elegance. Baroque music is a great favorite for weddings and celebratory occasions, for good reason. Many pieces that have endured as our musical favorites from the Baroque period are truly magnificent and mirror the opulence of the period’s architecture and fine art. This holds true for both the sacred and secular works of the period whose majesty and guilt-edged Aornamentation still appeals.

Like every period of musical history, instrumental development took center stage. The viol, (a predecessor to the modern violin), was discarded in favor of the new more expressive and dynamic, violin.

Keyboard music became a regular part of the musical diet during the Baroque. Even though the harpsichord itself was a notoriously unreliable instrument that quickly slipped out of tune, numerous pieces were composed for it and its rival, the organ. Scarlatti and Italian composer wrote extensively for the keyboard and produced a dazzling array of (mostly one movement) sonatas. Bach’s most famous keyboard works could be thought of as his 48 Preludes and Fugues. Many of these keyboard works demonstrate the qualities that were common in the period.

A characteristic that is important to listen for in Baroque music is sequence and imitation. The word sequence refers to a certain progression of chords during a section of music that usually follows an easily recognizable pattern. It is employed for color in the music and to sometimes to seamlessly change key. Vivaldi I consider the master of this and he uses it to great effect in many of his works. Imitation in musical terms is as the word suggests; imitative, where you can hear passages of melody pass from one instrument or voice to another sometimes as a perfect copy.

Composers wrote concertos. These were pieces for orchestra and a solo instrument. Sometimes a concerto contrasted a group of soloists with the rest of the orchestra. These are called by the Italian name “Concerti Grossi. Bach’s Brandenburg Concertos are good examples.

Organs and some harpsichords had at least two manuals (keyboards). The player could change from one manual to the other, contrasting two different sounds.

Baroque music was often a melody with a bass line at the bottom. This could be, for example, a singer and a cello. There was also a harpsichord or organ that played the bass line as well and made up chords in between. Often the composer did not bother to write out all the chords (harmonies) but just showed some of the chords by figures, leaving it to the performer to decide exactly which notes to play. This is called “figured bass” or “basso continuo”. The soloist, who played or sang the melody on top, often put in lots of ornamental notes. Again: the composer did not write this all down but left it to the performer to improvise something nice around the notes he had written.

Because composers were now writing opera it was important for the audience to hear the words clearly. In the Renaissance, the groups of a choir were often singing several different words using different melodies all at once. This was called “polyphony”. Polyphony was widely used in instrumental music but was not used in opera, which needed to tell a story without being confusing

Choral music was not neglected in the Baroque period. Sacred music formed a significant part of most Baroque composer’s workload. The Mass, the Cantata and to some extent the Oratorio were fully established as cornerstones of major composers like Bach (St Mathew’s Passion and Mass in B Minor), Handel (Messiah), Vivaldi (Gloria: RV589). Henry Purcell should not be overlooked in terms of sacred Baroque music with his substantial collection of anthems and devotional songs. On the other side of Baroque vocal music, Purcell was also beginning to explore the concept of opera. “Dido and Aeneas”, by Purcell are considered by many as the first example of a full opera written in the period

 

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