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When it All Started: Classical Music
Classical music has been around for hundreds of years. A majority of people might think
that classical music is just “elevator music” but it really is much more than that. Many people
might like this music without even knowing it because it is commonly heard in television shows,
movies, video game soundtracks, restaurants, you name it. In the online article, “History of
Classical Music,” talks about the evolution of classical music traced as far back as the Medieval
Era in the eleventh century. The music in this era was mostly religious such as Gregorian chant
and plainsong which are written as one musical line and later developed into organum which are
three lines. A Gregorian Chant is church music sung as a single vocal line in free rhythm and a
restricted scale (plainsong) in a style developed for the Medieval Latin liturgy (“History of
Classical”).
After the Medieval Era came the Renaissance Era in the fifteenth century which consisted
more of art music and madrigals. The instruments that were used in the Renaissance era were
woodwinds and keyboards. Well known and most influential composers of their time: Dunstable,
Ockeghem, Despres, and Dufay. This is also the period when instrumentals came in on its own
especially keyboard music in dance movements. A song one might of heard back in the
Renaissance era would be “Quam Pulchra Es,” by John Dunstable. This song sounds like a piece
one might hear while they are in mass at a church.
We move into the 1600s, the Baroque era where there were important advances in music.
The idea of modern Orchestra was born alone with opera, concerto, sonata, and modern cantata.
The period of important advances in music was the Baroque period. Instrument groups such as
the old instruments were replaced with a bolder violin, viola, and a cello. An instrument called a
harpsichord was invented which added a new variety to the music in this period. Composers
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were also more focused on writing instrumental works for ensembles which became more
popular. This music was most commonly played by parties and special occasions of the rich
people. The most popular composers in this period were: Johann Sebastian Bach, Handel,
Telemann, Rameau, Francois Couperin, Domenico Scarlatti, and Vivaldi (“History of Classical”).
A well known song from a composer of this time period that is popularly heard to this day is
“Canon in D,” by Johann Pachelbel. In an article, “Canon in D: the facts” mentions, “It's as
simple as three violin, one cello, and eight bars of music repeated 28 times. Johann Pachelbel's
Canon has risen in popularity to become one of the best-known pieces of classical music ever
written” (“Pachelbel-Canon in D: the facts”).
The balance and structure in classical music was at its best during 1750-1830 in the
Classical period according to an article called, “Classical Era Music.” According to this article,
the classical period saw the introduction of a form which has dominated instrumental
composition to the present day: sonata reform. With it came the development of the modern
concerto, symphony, sonata, trio and quartet to a new peak of structural and expressive
refinement. Another two main developments was the piano and further expansion of the
Orchestra. The piano replaced the harpsichord since it sounded smoother and more realistic than
the harpsichord. Since the woodwinds became more versatile they were able to join the
orchestras (“Classical Era Music”). With all these developments the orchestras started to
resemble more of what we hear and practice today in orchestras. “Classical Era Music” says,
“The Classical period is said to be the sound of delicate order gradually being taken over by
emotion and indulgence.” A well known song from this period is “Symphony No. 9 Choral
Finale” by Ludwig Van Beethoven which is a song most people have heard at some point in time.
As time went on and music was more successful, the sound became more emotional expressive
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and excitement. Beethoven with his music introduces us to the next period in classical music: the
Romantic period.
The transition from Romantic era to classical era did not happen instantly because
composers were experimenting with different instruments played and put together as well with
the sizes of the orchestras. The man who helped the transition from classical to the romantic
period was Beethoven which is one of the biggest reasons that he is well respected in his time to
the present and will most likely be appreciated for his music in the future. Since orchestral
structure was figured out, composers wanted to focus more on putting emotion into their music.
According to an online article called, “Get Into Classical,” the most important composer in this
period was Beethoven but the first composer to really take Romantic music to its extremes was
Berlioz with his most famous piece, “Symphonie Fantastique”. An interesting fact about this
piece by Berlioz is that “Symphonie Fantastique” is about a young artist falling hopelessly in
love with a girl and obsesses over her perfection throughout three movements of the piece then
pumping himself with opium and having visions of his own execution in the fourth. “You hear
the bit at the end, where it gets all peaceful for a second, and then there are two little thuds and a
drumroll? Well that peaceful bit represents the girl, which is the protagonist's dying thought: the
two thuds of the drop of a guillotine and the hero's head bouncing on the floor” (Get Into
Classical).
The Real Taste
This music brings life and emotion into almost anything. Without symphony orchestras to make
the music soundtracks then everything wouldn't look as interesting as it does with the music.
A well known piece appears in the movie V for Vendetta which is “1812 Overture” by
Tchaikovsky which is how this piece became famous. I mention this song because I played it
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while I was in orchestra and it was an interesting piece to play because it had an exciting
explosive feel to the song. It literally has exploding sounds in the song although we did not
include those exploding noises when my orchestra played it but still an exciting piece to play.
A well known Orchestra is the London Symphony Orchestra who played original film
scores such as: Raiders of the Lost Ark, Harry Potter, Braveheart, and The Queen (“World's Best
Symphony Orchestras”). Orchestras that play music for movies and video games make movies
much more interesting. The soundtracks that are made by symphony orchestras make movies
sound much more intense than not having any music at all. A personal favorite of mine is the
music that comes from the movie, “Pirates of the Caribbean.” There is something about that
movie's music that captures my ear. Credit of these wonderful soundtracks are given to Kalus
Badelt and Hans Zimmer. I feel like the songs fit the pirate movie perfectly because there are
times of peace then all of a sudden excitement.
League of Legends is an online game created by the Riot Company who try their best to
give people a fun experience in gaming. A well known song in online gaming is the music of
League Of Legends and their theme songs to their game that is orchestrated by Riot. I am
addicted to the League of Legends theme song because it makes me feel like its the soundtrack of
my life because it is so intense. Just kidding but I like to pretend it is. This theme song goes from
a calm state to an intense state and is overall put together magnificently and it would go great
along with a movie about a war or a fight. Although credit is not given to the people who play in
the orchestra, credit is given to Praeco and Duncan Watt in creating and orchestrating these
creative pieces. In “Inside the Design: The Music of League of Legends,” ByronicHero
interviews Praeco on the making of the music of League of Legends. In the interview, Praeco
says, “Music is one of the most powerful tools of all to capture a character or mood. For every
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champion I always try to have at least one or two defining elements or instruments in the piece. I
think that going into extremes is really important. If you take pieces like Draven or Diana, in
these cases I tried to find a very unique element that people haven't heard before and that they're
going to remember to remember when they listen to it” (Hero). I agree with Praeco, when it
comes to symphony music, going to the extremes is the way to go when it comes to making a
song that is truly memorable. The theme music is played right before a game starts which adds
motivation and intensity to the game. Right before the game starts the League of Legends theme
song is playing as you prepare for a long ride of victory.
I enjoyed many pieces I played in the high school orchestra although it would have been
great to have the opportunity to play more advanced pieces. One of the pieces that I enjoyed
playing with my orchestra was Allegro in D for Strings by Antonio Vivaldi who was a well
known composer in the seventeenth century. I loved playing this song because it required
different sides of the orchestra to listen and understand each other and work as a team to make
the song sound like one whole piece. One of the most challenging pieces I played in high school
was Hoedown from Rodeo by Aaron Copland who was a composer of the twentieth century. This
song was challenging to play together as an orchestra because it was intense and we had to make
sure that we were capturing the intensity and to demonstrate it in our playing. The most
entertaining piece we played was the Star Wars Theme which we played along with the school
band which was also quite memorable. The sound of our orchestra and their band forming a
symphony orchestra was wonderful because all of the instruments worked beautifully together as
a result of hard work and practice. This song was also really challenging to play because the
sound difference is huge and we had to learn how to work with each other to hear every part of
the piece. By sound difference I mean the orchestra tends to be much softer than band
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instruments because band is naturally loud.
Give It A Try: It Might Surprise You!
I do not intend to tell people to only listen to orchestral symphonies but to make an
attempt to listen to it while doing homework and trying to concentrate. I didn't always listen to
orchestral music or any kind of music because I would always think that would distract me from
doing my work as if I wasn't distracted already by my surroundings. I thought noise was a
distraction since my music was hearing my baby brother yell while I was doing homework. All I
wanted was silence but when I listen to this music it forces me to relax and to top it all off it goes
over my brothers voice which is a great benefit when it comes to my concentration! Listening to
orchestral symphonies is calm and it is much better than pure silence or in this case, a child
yelling. While listening to this music while doing my homework I feel inspired and motivated to
finish so I could be free from homework for the rest of the day. I am not saying this music will
stop you from procrastinating because that would be a lie. It motivates you to keep going no
matter what time of day it is.
There has been a rise in popularity for certain kinds of music. A certain kind of music that
is often heard by young people these days. This particular kind of music does not contain the best
of word usage. That is what's also great about listening to any type of instrumental music. I am
not specifying what type of music this is because there are many types that don't use the best
word usage. Instrumental music does not provide the listener with foul language but an earful of
peace and relaxation. One can listen to instrumental music and create their own words and
imagination with it. There is no need for words because the melody is more than the ears can
handle. Music that contains foul language is a bad influence for many children who are exposed
to this kind of music daily and grow up to think that using this incorrect usage of words to be
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normal. That is why it is symphony orchestra is something one should hear more often instead of
music that has foul language and inappropriate slang usage.
I think one should try listening to Classical music to get in touch with something
different. One might be surprised of the music they might like. It might provide a quiet and
peaceful getaway and concentration for anybody.
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Works Cited
"20 Best Symphony Orchestras in the World." About.com Classical Music. N.p., n.d. Web. 14
Apr. 2014.
"Classical Era Music: A Beginner's Guide." Classic FM. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Apr. 2014.
Guide to the Eras." Get Into Classical. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Apr. 2014.
"Inside Design: The Music of League of Legends." League of Legends Community RSS. N.p.,
n.d. Web. 13 Apr. 2014.
"The World's Leading Classical Music Group." History of Classical Music. N.p., n.d. Web. 14
Apr. 2014.