Overview of baroque music
Time Period: 1600 - 1750
You might recognize some of the world’s most famous classical musicians such as J.S Bach and Handel from a time in music history called the baroque period which covered one hundred and fifty years from 1600 through 1750. This period was a rich time in music history seeing many different styles of music emerge primarily from Italy. These forms include the concerto, opera, sonata, and oratorio. Baroque music drew inspiration from ancient Greece and Rome and revived many ideas originating from these cultures. One of the ideas is that music is a tool that brings to life any emotion to those who are listening.
Style
Composers had many tools at their disposal to bring emotion and life into their music. Such as harmony, counterpoint, form, contrast and timbre. Timbre was achieved by the use of a variety of different instruments some of which were seldom used outside of the baroque period. One of these baroque exclusive instruments was the viola-de-gamba, other famous instruments used are, violin, viola, cello, double bass, recorders, flutes, oboe, bassoon, trumpets, horns, timpani, harpsicord and organ. During the period the idea of melody and harmony were truly developed as opposed to the multi-melody style of the renaissance. This blending of melody and harmony created the baroque style of basso continuo or figured bass music. Basso continuo simply means that a repetitive bassline was played throughout the piece. There was typically a keyboardist that would play a harpsicord or an organ, a lower melodic instrument such as a cello or a bassoon, and a higher melodic instrument such as a violin or flute. They also drew inspiration from the Renaissance by evolving the idea of counterpoint which is two or more melodies that are played at the same time with contrasting elements and interplay between parts.
Another tool that was used to bring music to life was drama which helped to create the Opera. The opera tells a story through the use of songs and uses singer/actors, dancers and orchestral musicians. It is often opened with an overture by the orchestra. It also uses vocalists to alternate between arias and recitatives. Arias are a solo in an Opera and recitatives are a speech like song that progress the plot. It is common to have a tenor for the male lead and a soprano for the female lead. The additional parts can be voiced by a female tenor, bass, mezzo-soprano and contralto. The use of actors and dancers allows the music to be depicted visually and creates a more enjoyable experience.
Musical Forms
Baroque composers used additional forms of music such as the oratorio, cantatas, sonatas and concertos. The oratorio was a style of musical drama with text based on a religious subject. Some of the greatest oratorios were composed by J.S Bach and George Frideric Handel. The Cantata was a large piece of music that contained a set of recitatives and arias, choruses and duets. The Sonata in the baroque period was used to describe several types of pieces. Typically the baroque sonata consisted of several movements with the use of one or more instruments typically violins and basso continuo. By the 1650s sonatas were classified into two categories sonatas da chiesa (church sonatas) and sonatas da camera (chamber sonatas). The concerto took many forms during the baroque era. The concerto consisted of and ensemble of instruments, voices, or both. The concerto could consist of large ensembles or smaller ensembles consisting of one to four voices, as well as basso continuo and solo instruments.
The baroque period ended over two hundred and fifty years ago. Whether you are a classical music aficionado or not, its influence can still be felt today. Its influence can be found in jazz, pop and even metal guitar. The baroque idea of music being a powerful force that can impact peoples lives is still very much in the mind of todays popular music culture.