Baroque Era
1600 - 1750
Baroque = “Age of Excess”
Extravagant Style
, Excessive, Massive, Ornamented
Vocal music was as important as instrumental music.
Sacred music was as important as
secular music.
Music continued to develop in a polyphonic style (Bach)
• Music also began to develop in a homophonic style
(music with accompaniment).
• Usually the higher voice part was given the melody,
while the lower parts would sing harmony.
• The most important voice part was the Soprano
In the Renaissance, music sounded the same from beginning to end.
In Baroque music, composers began to write contrasting sections
within a piece.
Contrasting Sections
A. A slow section would come after a fast section.
B. A soft section would come after a loud section.
C. The sonata is the new musical form that developed
during this time.
D. A sonata is an instrumental work that has 3
contrasting movements.
New Forms
Other new music forms evolved that had contrasting
movements.
A. Cantata – could be either sacred or secular, a choral
piece with accompaniment.
B. Oratorio – sacred music, choral piece with
accompaniment.
C. Neither of these forms used staging, scenery, or
costumes.
The first opera was written during this time. It is a
play, set to music, and staged, usually lasting 3 to
4 hours.
Instead of doubling the voice parts, instruments now
accompanied the vocalists.
The development of the modern orchestra began
during this period, but it was generally made up of
only string instruments.
Music notation developed into
essentially the same notation
we use today. (Staff, clefs, etc.)
Instruments of the Baroque
Strings
 Violin

Viola

Cello

Harpsichord/Bass
Woodwinds
 Flute

Oboe

Clarinet

Some form of Bassoon
Brass
 Trumpet

Trombones
Percussion

Timpani
II. Baroque Music Culture
A. “Age of Excess”: Love of
Extravagant, Excessive, Massive
During the Baroque period, music became more
expressive.
People went to concerts for the sole purpose of
hearing the music.
St. Mark’s Cathedral, built in the shape of a cross,
began polychoral music because there were two
organs and two choirs that would perform at the
same time.
•Cori spezzati (lit. broken choirs) = polychoral w. spatial separation
Although science made great strides, superstition was still
rampant.
Religious persecution caused the Puritans to come to America.
The first book printed in America was a Puritan book of
Psalms, in 1640.
On the day Michelangelo died, Galileo was born.
He became one of the
greatest scientists and got
in a lot of trouble with the
church for his theory that
the Earth was not the center
of the universe, but the
earth revolved around the
sun.
In 1642 when Galileo
died, Isaac Newton was
born. He too was
fascinated with science,
and know him for
studying gravity. He also
studied the swinging of
the pendulum, which
eventually led to the
invention of the
metronome in the 19th
century.
•Music was only supposed to
convey one emotion per piece.
•During this time, the tonal
system was developed and
triads were first used.
Baroque music (and art) was filled with
ornamentation.
Performers were expected to ornament
things on the spot – like jazz
improvisation.
Basso Continuo
Chordal accompaniment of
Baroque
Improvised above written
bass notes
Harmony indicated by
number-shorthand
(figured bass notation)
Goals of Early Opera:
Amaze
Astonish
Move the Emotions
Text which is set to music is called
the libretto.
Florence, Italy
Where it began
Recitative –
very similar to
spoken words.
Used for plot.
Aria – more like
a song, where
rhythm is definite.
Used for
reflection.
During the Renaissance, the castrati had
been admired for their extreme range and
power in their voices.
Now women were starting to get beautiful singing
roles. The prima donna, or first lady in opera,
generally became the star.
FAMOUS COMPOSERS
Antonio Vivaldi
George F. Handel
FAMOUS COMPOSERS
Johann Sebastian Bach
Domenico Scarlatti