Music History
The Baroque Period
1600-1750 A.D.
Music History
1. In a revival of Greek drama by Florentine intellectuals,
composers wanted to bridge song and speech. When the first
opera
full length drama set to music was composed, ____________
was born.
intellectuals or aristocrats
2. At first, opera only appealed to the ________________________.
3. Opera reached its greatest popularity in the Italian city of
Venice
__________,
the center of adventurous music activity.
1637
4. Venice’s first public opera house was built in _______.
350 new operas were performed.
5. During the next 60 years, ______
6. The action in the opera would stop momentarily for a flowing
aria
melody called an _____.
Music History
E. Baroque --- 1600 - 1750 AD (worksheet)
beautiful ________.
singing
7. Bel canto means _________
male voice.
8. A castrato is a special type of _______
9. In the 1600’s, the opera house was a _________
social center.
Audiences ate, talked, and gambled, pausing only to hear their
favorite arias.
dynamic
10. Gabrielli was one of the first composers to specify _________
gradations, or levels of loudness, in the music.
and overly ornate
11. Baroque means: flamboyant
_____________________________.
polyphonic that is, it gave
12. Most Renaissance music was _____________
equal importance to each voice line.
Music History
E. Baroque --- 1600 - 1750 AD (worksheet)
13. The opposite of polyphonic music, music that is based on one
melody with harmonic accompaniments, is _________________.
homophonic
14. In the Baroque, composers divided music into contrasting
happy and the minor
types; the major tonality represented ________
sad
tonality represented ______.
15. During the Baroque, amateur and semi-professional
Instrumental
ensembles sprouted in towns all over Europe. _____________
music began to develop its own forms and styles.
16. Pieces of music were written for the __________
moment with little
thought of lasting value.
17. Stringed instruments reached their maturity during the
Baroque. The _______
violin became fully developed during this period.
Music History
E. Baroque --- 1600 - 1750 AD (worksheet)
Concerto _________,
Grosso a piece for a larger instrumental
18. ___________
group, was also popular.
19. Composers were supported by the __________
church or by the
aristocrats with whom they sometimes lived.
_____________
20. Younger composers developed their skills by studying with
_______
older composers, copying music by hand.
Lully was born in Italy, but settled in
21. Jean Baptiste ________
France to compose opera.
harpsichord
22. The _________________
was the most popular keyboard
instrument of the time.
23. Antonio Vivaldi composed operas that were performed often
but also composed more than ______
450 concertos.
Music History
E. Baroque --- 1600 - 1750 AD (worksheet)
24. Organ music in Germany, where older styles persisted longest
featured an Italian form called a __________.
toccata
Mass expanded into a standardized musical form of
25. The ______
grand proportions.
Handel was a German composer who
26. George Frederic ________
studied in Italy, but moved to England to compose.
27. Handel’s oratorio “The Messiah” was the most
________________
popular oratorio ever written.
28. Handel was one of the _____________
wealthiest and most popular
composers of his time.
29. Handel’s music has never gone out of _____________.
fashion/style
Music History
E. Baroque --- 1600 - 1750 AD (worksheet)
30. Johann Sebastian Bach was from __________
Germany and spent
most of his life working as a composer in a Lutheran
________
church ________.
school
20 children!!!!!!!!
31. Bach had ______
composers
32. Bach often rearranged the music of other ____________,
improving structural details.
1,000 works in all forms
33. JS Bach composed more than _______
opera
but __________.
34. Bach was regarded by his colleagues as a highly skilled
technician
_____________.
35. Toward the end of Baroque period, the spirit of the time was
music toward greater _____________.
simplicity
Music History
E. Baroque --- 1600 - 1750 AD (worksheet)
1750 is considered the end of
36. The year of Bach’s death _______
the Baroque period.
“EXTRA CREDIT”:
1. From the explanation of the workings of the harpsichord, it
percussion/string
is a member of which family of instruments? _______________
2. One word that was used to describe the Baroque period is:
CONTRAST
________________
(8 letters)
Music History
Music of the period is divided between vocal and instrumental
music
VOCAL: Opera
-also known as “musical drama”
-Operas are dramas or stories, acted out on a stage,
in which the performers sing their words instead of
speaking them.
-Opera often included large sets, elaborate costumes,
and even fireworks and special effects.
-The stories were often based on ancient Greek myths.
Music History
E. Baroque --- 1600 - 1750 AD
a. Opera (continued)
-two types of singing in an opera:
1. Aria - beautiful, flowing songs that express
powerful emotions. The most memorable parts
of operas.
2. Recitative - “speech singing”: the dialogue
and storytelling portion of the opera. Usually
involves conversation between characters.
Music History
E. Baroque --- 1600 - 1750 AD
b. Oratorio
-The same as opera with two differences.
1. The story of an oratorio must come from the
Catholic Bible. (that means that it is sacred music)
2. The story is NOT acted out on stage. The
performers simply stand on stage and sing the
music. There are no costumes or special effects.
Music History
E. Baroque --- 1600 - 1750 AD
3. Important Composers (continued)
b. George Frederic Handel
-born in Germany
-studied music in Italy
-wrote music in and spent most of his life in England
-wrote many styles of music including opera, sonatas,
concerto grossos, solo concertos, and masses
-most famous for writing oratorio (his most famous
oratorio was The Messiah)
Hallelujah Chorus from
“The Messiah”
Music History
E. Baroque --- 1600 - 1750 AD
3. Instrumental Music
a. Sonata
-a piece of music for a solo instrument
-sometimes a harpsichord might play accompaniment
-in Sonata-Allegro Form (has three movements or
sections)
b. Concerto Grosso
-music that alternates between a large group of
instruments and a small group (2-4) of instruments
-three movements (fast
slow
fast)
Music History
E. Baroque --- 1600 - 1750 AD
3. Instrumental Music (continued)
c. Solo Concerto
-music that alternates between a large group of
instruments and a SOLO instrument
-three sections (fast
slow
fast)
d. The most popular keyboard instrument of the Baroque
period was the harpsichord.
Music History
E. Baroque --- 1600 - 1750 AD
3. Important Composers
a. Antonio Vivaldi
-from Italy
-a Catholic Priest and a composer (nicknamed the
Red Priest)
-famous for writing concerto grossos, solo concertos,
and operas. (450 concertos)
-loved writing music for string instruments
Concerto: The Four Seasons: Spring
Music History
E. Baroque --- 1600 - 1750 AD
3. Important Composers (continued)
c. Johann Sebastian Bach
-from Germany
-first of the Three B’s (the three most influential
composers of all time--Bach, Beethoven, Brahms)
-worked at a Lutheran Church School.
-wrote over 1000 pieces of music in all forms but opera,
but he wrote mostly sacred music
-he had 20 children, and some of them became composers
(large family!!!)
Famous Pieces:
Toccatta and Fugue
(for organ)
Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring
(cantata)
Music History
E. Baroque --- 1600 - 1750 AD
4. The Patronage system continued through the Baroque period.
5. The one word that best describes the Baroque period is
CONTRAST
a. Loud vs. Soft
b. High vs. Low
c. Large group vs. Small group
d. Happy vs. Sad