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Higher Listening
Baroque Unit
The Baroque period lasted approximately between 1600 and 1750. The
main developments in this period were:
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More contrast in texture – both homophonic and polyphonic
Several new instrumental styles were written – fugue, concerto
grosso, chorale prelude, French/Italian overture and the Suite
New vocal styles were developed – da capo aria, cantata, passion
and oratorio
Basso continuo was the foundation for this style
Baroque music was a very decorative style using many
ornaments(trills, mordents, turns, appoggiaturas, acciaccaturas)
The main composers from this period were Bach, Handel, Vivaldi,
Monteverdi and Corelli.
Concepts learned in Standard Grade:
Oratorio
Opera
Recitative
Aria
Homophonic
Polyphonic
Melisma
Syllabic
Antiphonal
Cantata
Passion
Chorale
Tierce de Picardie
Overture
Cadences
Ornaments
Obbligato
In addition to these, you will learn new concepts. These are:
Augmentation
Basso Continuo
Chaconne/Passacaglia
Concertino
Concerto grosso
Da capo aria
Diminution
French/Italian Overture
Fugue
Ornaments
Real answer
Ripieno
Ritornello
Suite
Tonal Answer
Chords (dominant 7th etc)
Vocal Music
One development of vocal music was the addition of a simple chordal
accompaniment. This consisted of a bass line and and another part
filled the harmonies. This was known as the Basso Continuo. (it
continues throughout the piece)
The ‘basso’ part is usually played by cello.
The ‘continuo’ part is usually played by a harpsichord or organ.
Listen to this vocal piece. How would you describe the texture of it?
The Opera
Monteverdi wrote the first great Operas and combined the new
baroque style (with basso continuo) with older contrapuntal
movement.
Listen to this piece from an Opera. What type of solo song is it?
Listen to a further excerpt. What type of solo song is this?
The Oratorio
This is a similar work to the Opera but it is based on religious text.
The most famous Oratorio is Handel’s ‘Messiah’.
In the Baroque era, there were two types of Overture.
Italian overtures had three sections. Quick – Slow – Quick
French overtures started with a fanfare like slow section with dotted
rhythms. This was followed by a quicker section using imitation.
Listen to the overture from ‘ The Messiah’. Which overture is this?
Da Capo Arias
The Da capo Arias were used in both opera and oratorios. A Da Capo
Aria is essentially in Ternary Form(ABA) but only sections A and B
are written out. Instead of writing section A again, the composer
wrote the instruction D.C or Da Capo meaning to return to the
beginning.
Instrumental Music
There were several new styles of instrumental work developed in this
period.
The Concerto Grosso
This work preceded the Symphony. It consisted of two main groups of
instruments. These are:
The Concertino – A small group of soloists.
The Ripieno – The larger group(small orchestra)
During the Concerto grosso, there is often a recurring theme. This is
known as the Ritornello.
Listen to the piece. Name the instruments in both groups.