Baroque Music

1
Baroque Music

• 1600-1750

2
The Concerto

• Comes from concertare (to contend with)
• the opposition of two dissimilar bodies of
  sound
• Two types of Baroque Concerto
• Solo concerto
• Violin favored instrument
• Fast-slow-fast scheme
• Concerto grosso
• Tutti or ripieno

3
Antonio Vivaldi(1678-1741)

• Known as the red priest because of his hair
• Music master at an all-girl school although
  well-established career, died mysteriously in
  poverty
• Wrote over 500 concertos, about 230 for violin
• Wrote operas, cantatas, chamber music, an
  oratorio, a famous Gloria
• Known as father of the concerto (and for
  establishing the ritornello)
• Most of his concertos bear descriptive titles
  (Four Seasons)

4
Vivaldis Four Seasons

• A group of four violin concertos
• Use of rapid scale passages, virtuosic
• Word painting hear birds, etc., in the music.
  Poems, probably written by the composer, describe
  each season. Each line of the poem is printed at
  a particular spot in the music.

5
Spring from Four Seasons

• Description on p. 446
• Poem on p. 447
• Ritornello a recurring theme that unifies the
  movement

6
Bachs Brandenburg Concertos

• Dedicated to the Margrave Christian of
  Brandenburg
• Concerto grosso (big group tutti or ripieno vs.
  little concertino group)
• Brandenburg Concerto No. 2 (p. 450)
• Three movement scheme
• Concertino violin, oboe, recorder, trumpet
• Ritornello unifies the movement

7
The Baroque Suite

• Comes from an earlier tradition of pairing dances
  of contrasting tempos and characters.
• A set of dances (standard four w/others)
• Allemande
• Courante
• Sarabande
• Gigue
• Written in the same key
• Orchestral suites and keyboard suites

8
Handels Water Music

• Played for a royal party, held by King George I,
  on the Thames River in London on July 17, 1717.
  (p. 453)
• Contains 22 numbers, divided into 3 suites
• Contains many of the optional dances suite
  movements are not in the standard order
• Suite in D Major Allegro, p. 454

9
Bach and the Chorale Prelude

• Prelude a fairly short piece based on the
  continuous expansion of a melodic or rhythmic
  figure
• pre before a piece played to introduce a
  group of dance pieces, among others
• Preludes used in church
• Chorale preludes combine hymns with improvisation
• Bach wrote over 140 organ chorales

10
Bachs Chorale PreludeA Mighty Fortress is Our
God

• p. 457-458
• 1709
• Features imitation and a cantus firmus melody
  (tune of the hymn)
• Composed for a three-manual organ

11
Bachs Preludes and Fugues

• Well-Tempered Clavier
• To show off the new system of tuning keyboards
• One Prelude Fugue in EVERY key
• Wrote 2 books of these
• Preludes different characters
• Fugues imitative pieces (mostly 3 or 4 voices)

12
Bachs Prelude and Fugue No. II in C Minor, WTC
IPerformance on harpsichord

• Prelude
• Perpetual motion
• Contains free, cadenza-like section
• Ends fast
• Fugue
• 3 voices