What characteristic of the Baroque style is represented by Bernini's sculpture "David Slaying Goliath"?
1. It fills space with action and movement. Painters, sculptors, and architects became interested in forming a total illusion, like a stage setting.
Why was entertainment a necessity to 17th century aristocrats?
Most courtiers did no real work and tried to avoid boredom as much as possible.
Why did 17th century churches begin to use more emotional and theatrical presentations in their services?
to make worship more attractive and appealing
List 6 master composers of the baroque period:
George Frideric Handel, Johann Sebastian Bach, Claudio Monteverdi, Henry Purcell, Arcangelo Corelli, Antonio Vivaldi
What is opera?
a drama sung to orchestral accompaniment
Why did early Baroque composers favor homophonic texture?
They felt that words could be projected more clearly by using just one main melody with a chordal accompaniment.
Why did Baroque composers begin to use more dissonance?
To depict extreme emotions in their texts
T/F Like Renaissance music, Baroque music was mostly choral.
False
Mood -
A baroque piece usually expresses one basic mood: what begins joyfully will remain joyful throughout.
Rhythm -
Rhythmic patterns heard at the beginning of a piece are repeated throughout it.
Melody -
Baroque melody also creates a feeling of continuity. An opening melody will be heard again and again in the course of a baroque piece.
Dynamics -
the level of volume tends to stay fairly constant for a stretch of time.
Texture -
predominantly polyphonic in texture: two or more melodic lines compete for the listener's attention
Chords -
in the baroque period chords became significant in themselves. As composers wrote a melodic line, they thought of chords to mesh with it.
Words -
baroque composers used music to depict the meaning of specific words.
What instruments normally played the basso continuo?
harpsichord plus cello, double bass, or bassoon
When were trumpets and tympani used in the baroque orchestras?
Trumpets and timpani joined the orchestra mainly when the music was festive
How was the baroque trumpet different from modern ones?
The baroque trumpet (like the early French horn) had no valves but was given rapid, complex melodic lines to play in a high register
Define movement, as used in musical forms?
a piece that sounds fairly complete and independent but is part of a larger composition.
List 3 types of musical employees of the courts:
an orchestra, a chapel choir, and opera singers
Which eighteenth century king was a flutist and composer?
Frederick the Great
Where did the public hear the most music? Why there?
it was in church that most ordinary citizens heard music. There were few public concerts, and the populace was rarely invited to the palace.
Why did Bach complain about a "healthy wind"?
They suffered a financial pinch when a “healthy wind” blew and there were fewer funerals than usual, a situation Bach once complained about.
Where would town musicians perform?
to play in churches, in processions, in concerts for visiting dignitaries, and for university graduations.
Where were most baroque opera houses?
Italy
Why were many famous musicians orphans?
In Italy, music schools were connected with orphanages.
Why did both Bach and Handel turn down one particular job?
Bach and Handel turned down the same job because one of the conditions was marriage to the organist's daughter.
Describe the instrumentation for a concerto grosso
a small group of soloists is pitted against a larger group of players called the tutti (all). Usually, between two and four soloists play with anywhere from eight to twenty or more musicians for the tutti. The tutti consists mainly of string instruments, with a harpsichord as part of the basso continuo.
Translate "ritornello"
alternation between tutti and solo sections
Why did Bach include a harpsichord in the solo group of the Brandenburg Concerto #6?
In 1719, the prince of Cöthen bought a new harpsichord; Bach probably wanted to show off this instrument (as well as his own skill as a keyboard player), and so he gave it a solo spot.
What is the texture of a fugue?
Polyphonic; the texture of a fugue usually includes three, four, or five voices.
How do most fugues begin?
the subject is almost always presented in a single, unaccompanied voice
What is different about the "answer" in a fugue?
when the second voice presents the subject, it is in the dominant scale—five scale steps higher than the tonic—and it is then called the answer
What is the difference between inversion and retrograde in a fugue?
Inversion is when it is turned upside down; retrograde is beginning with the last note of the subject and proceeding backward to the first.
"In opera, ____________ is the drama."
The music
What does a librettist do?
The libretto, or text, of the opera is usually written by the librettist, or dramatist.
List the various people needed to produce an opera:
The creation of an opera involves the joint efforts of a composer and a dramatist.
What part of an opera might be spoken?
Spoken dialogue is used mainly in comic opera, where stage action must be performed quickly for the most humorous effect.
a song for solo voice with orchestral accompaniment.
A vocal line that imitates the patterns and fluctuations of speech is called _______________________.
Recitative
What is unique about an operatic "ensemble"?
In a duet or ensemble, the performers either face the audience or move through action that develops the plot. Each character expresses his or her own feelings.
Where does the overture appear?
In the opening
Which was the first great opera? by whom?
Euridice by Jacopo Peri is the earliest opera that has been preserved
Who were the highest paid opera singers?
Castrati
Who is Eurydice? What kills her?
She is the wife of Orpheus. She is killed by a poisonous snake
What composer was hired by the King of England at age 18?
Henry Purcell
How old was he when he wrote Dido and Aeneas?
30
Who plotted Dido's downfall?
A sorceress and two witches
How many instruments are played in a trio sonata?
4
What was Corelli famous for?
He wrote only instrumental music: sixty sonatas and twelve concertos, all for strings.
Who was the "red priest."
Antonio Vivaldi
What forms of music did Vivaldi compose?
Vivaldi composed operas and fine church music, he is best known for his 450 or so concerti grossi and solo concertos.
What is the Italian word for spring?
La primavera
What is program music?
instrumental music associated with a story, poem, idea, or scene
How often would Bach compose, rehearse and conduct a significant work while working in Leipzig?
each Sunday and holiday of the church year.
T/F Bach was not considered a great composer by his peers.
True
Which piece revived interest in Bach's music 80 years after his death.
St. Matthew Passion
How did Bach create unity in his work?
He liked to elaborate a single melodic idea in a piece, creating unity of mood by an insistent rhythmic drive.
List 5 Baroque dances and the national origin of each.
Allemande, courante, gavotte, sarabande, gigue
A multimovement piece inspired by dances is called a ______________.
Suite
Why is the second movement of Bach's Suite No. 3 called an "air"?
It is scored for only strings and continuo and is serene and lyrical, in contrast to the majestic and then bustling French overture
What were the sources of chorale melodies?
They were tunes that had been composed in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries or had been adapted from folk songs and Catholic hymns.
Why would Bach play a chorale prelude during services?
reminded the congregation of the melody
What was the major musical form most often used in Lutheran services in Bach's time?
cantata
How many cantatas did Bach compose?
Bach wrote about 295; about 195 are still in existence
List 3 ways oratorios differ from operas? from cantatas?
they are not intended for religious services, it has no acting, scenery, or costumes, and they are longer than cantatas and have more of a story line.
Which German composer lived in London and wrote Italian opera?
George Frideric Handel
How is "The Messiah" different from Handel's other oratorios?
Messiah is meditative rather than dramatic; it lacks plot, action, and specific characters.
Why were women asked not to wear hoop skirts and men asked to leave their swords at home?
