Mansur Brown Baroque assignment 12 SGe The Baroque period was a period of change in the way architecture and

music were interpreted. The period began approximately in the year 1600 and ended in the year 1750. There was an ad ance transformation in terms of the de elopment of tonality as well as ma!or de elopments in both types of musical instruments and in reference the transformation from harpsichord to piano as well as introduction of strings as the harmony supporting the melody. "ne of the most important de elopments of the Baroque period was the system of ma!or and minor #eys$ functional harmony$ and modulation that are still the basis of many musical styles today. The system e ol ed gradually throughout the period and did not include all of its current features until around 1700. The familiarity of ma!or and minor #eys to modern listeners ma#es Baroque music more immediately accessible than earlier music to many people. The classification of consonance and dissonance established during the %enaissance remained in effect for the Baroque perio $ but the treatment of dissonance was less strictly regulated. The principles of functional harmony and the use of dissonant chords were used to create patterns of tension and resolution that control the dynamic layout of Baroque compositions. The role of the basso continuo reflected the central importance of harmony in the style of the period. &n addition the disco ery of equal temperament was extremely significant in the de elopment of tonality. &n addition to the fact that equal temperament is that is was able to gi e each #ey its own unique sound. 'nfortunately at this point in time there was not a uni ersal equal temperament. "n forth with the addition of the string section and the harpsichord$ the timbre of music became fuller and concrete. Before this period instrumental music was absent due to the churches belief that instrumental music sought disrespect to the lord. "nward in ad ance the rise in the use of musical instruments and also with the de elopment of different types of music. (onody is also a distincti e feature of baroque music. ) monody is a single oice line supported by an instrumental bass line$ upon which chords were constructed. The oice line followed the natural speech rhythms of the words. This style of writing for the oice *half singing and half reciting+ became #nown as recitati e. )ll the composer wrote down beneath

the melody was a bass line to be played by a low stringed instrument$ such as a cello. This was called the ,basso continuo,$ but the composer expected another continuo player on harpsichord$ organ or lute$ to build up chords upon the bass line. )s these chords had to be impro ised$ the player had to be ery s#illful. -igures below the notes indicated which chords to play. This is called a figured bass.

The sound of music became much more original and different. .ue to the fact church began to abandon its pur iew o er music and secular compositions became more extrusi e and melodies where not limited to con!unct flow. (elodies also became ery ad enturous with /armonic idiom between modal and tonal *with many chromatic changes+ with use of more frequent dissonance *some unprepared+$ fast harmonic rhythm$ 01& cadences but still many step progressions. 2 en religious music became more open to musical ideas and lest restricted in regards to musical influence. 0iewing baroque melodies from a modern perspecti e$ the music contained intricate detail in reference to harmony and melody at the same time. 3omposers in the Baroque era often enforced techniques li#e sequence in their compositions4 as a result this ma#es their melodies more memorable and distinguished. -or example one of the most recogni5able and identifiable baroque compositions to this present day is Bach6s ,,Toccata and -ugue in . minor6 as well as the ,,7oldberg ariations,,. 8olyphony was also a ma!or characteristic in the Baroque 2ra$ which is also #nown as a -ugue but is referred to 8olyphonic by definition. ) -ugue is a composition characteri5ed by one main theme$ called the sub!ect$ and the imitation of that theme by sung by different oices. -ugue,s usually ha e four oices$ but could sometimes ha e three or fi e. The sub!ect begins with the first unaccompanied oice. This way the sub!ect is highlighted and it is easy to notice when the imitation of that sub!ect begins to play in the next oice. The imitation of the sub!ect starts at equally spaced inter als of time in each of the other oices. -irst the sub!ect then the second oice$ then the third$ and then the fourth oice. 2 ery time one of the oices finishes ta#ing its turn at playing the sub!ect they immediately play an accompaniment to the next oice playing the sub!ect. This accompaniment is called the countersub!ect$ and it is only played by one oice while another oice is playing the sub!ect. )nother cogent feature of baroque music is the abundant use of terraced dynamics$ whereby a lot of baroque music has ery little fluidity. Terraced dynamics meant that only one dynamic could be played in one section in a piece of music. .ue to the ery little technological ad ancement amongst instruments musicians had to play different instruments to play multiple dynamics. )s a result if a composer wanted to ha e multiple dynamics the player of that instrument would ha e to use different instruments tuned to the different dynamics the composer intended for. "peras became extremely popular throughout the baroque period amongst primarily the upper class in which an opera is a large1scale drama that is sung and it combines both ocal

and instrumental music soloists$ ensembles$ choruses$ orchestra$ and sometimes ballet with poetry and drama$ acting and pantomime$ scenery and costumes. ) %ecitati e a ocal style$ which grew out of the earliest monodies of the -lorentine 3amerata who were a group of humanists$ musicians$ poets and intellectuals in late renaissance which is a style that imitates the natural mo ement of speech in which its mo ement is shaped to the rhythm of the language. ) recitati e is often characteri5ed as a repetition of the same note$ as well as rapid question1 and1answer dialogue that builds tension. &n time$ two styles of recitati e became standard9 secco *&talian for :dry;+$ which is accompanied only by the basso continuo and mo es with great freedom$ and the accompagnato$ which is accompanied by the orchestra and mo es much more e enly. The recitati e gi es at lyrical moments to the aria. The aria is a song$ usually of a highly emotional nature. &t is what audiences wait for$ what they cheer$ what they remember. )n aria$ because of its tunefulness$ can be effecti e e en when sung out of context<for example$ in a concert. "ne formal con ention that de eloped early in the genre6s history is the dal capo aria$ a ternary$ or )1B1)$ form that brings bac# the first section with embellishments impro ised by the soloist. 8urcell$ a master of choristers at =estminster )bbey$ was born in 165> to /enry 8urcell and his wife 2li5abeth. =hen he was fi e$ his father died$ forcing his mother to resettle the family of six children into a more modest house and lifestyle. /e was a great #eyboard irtuoso by his late teens$ recei ed a second important post in 167>$ this one succeeding Blow as organist at =estminster )bbey$ a position he would #eep all his life and on ?eptember 10$ 1677$ 8urcell was gi en the 3ourt position of composer1in1ordinary for the iolins. )s well as @ohann ?ebastian Bach a composer who was widely #nown for his composition 7oldberg 0ariations for being mathematically precise in its structure and melodies.

) well1#nown wor# of 8urcell was the opera .ido and )eneas$ which is a tale of two lo ers between .ido who is the queen of 3arthage and )eneas$ is a Tro!an war hero. Purcell's structure of piece Aey ?tructure 8urcell used ma!or #eys to e o#e happiness and minor #eys to e o#e sadness. The first scene is in 3 minor$ because .ido is unhappy and fearful about falling in lo e with )eneas.

/owe er$ )eneas lo es .ido bac# and e eryone is happy and so the next scene shifts in #ey to 3 ma!or. Then follows the 3a e ?cene$ where the witches hatch their plot. This reflects the #ey structure of act one$ but going from - minor to - ma!or$ when they ha e finali5ed their diabolical plan. )lthough #ey changes from ma!or to minor are a fairly common de ice used to illustrate happiness and sadness$ 8urcell,s are exceptional$ because they change from tonic minor to tonic ma!or *3 minor to 3 ma!or$ for example+$ rather than tonic minor to relati e ma!or. There are some interruptions to the otherwise neat #ey structure$ howe er when the witches in the ca e scene refer to the hunting party in the gro e scene$ the - tonality of this scene is interrupted by the #ey of .$ the #ey of the gro e scene. )lso$ when )eneas enters in scene two$ the tonality shifts from 3 ma!or to 2 minor$ showing that )eneas formed an interruption to .ido,s life in 3arthage. Word Painting 8urcell demonstrates his s#ill in .ido and )eneas by bringing the words to life. -or example$ in .ido,s recitati e ,=hence could so much irtue spring,$ 8urcell paints the word ,storm, with a melisma *se eral notes on the same syllable+ to fabricate impression of a storm. This contrasts to the painting of the word ,soft,$ a few bars later$ which he uses a sigh$ descending semitone. Ground Bass Arias The two most famous arias from .ido and )eneas$ ,)hB Belinda, and ,=hen & am laid in earth, *.ido,s Cament+$ both ha e ground basses4 a bass line which repeats itself o er and o er$ while the other parts change o er the top. 8urcell #eeps the interest going by ha ing the phrases in the ocal line o erlap the repeats of the ground bass$ and harmonising the ground bass with different chords from repetition to repetition. .issonance 8urcell,s use of dissonance is ery extraordinary. 8articular examples of dissonance in .ido and )eneus are the first part of the o erture and .ido,s Cament. &n the lament$ the string parts are ery dissonant$ helping to illustrate .ido,s extreme anguish. This is play that is sure to lea e you battered with shoc# and confusion.