Baroque

(1600-1750)

The word "baroque" comes from a Portuguese word used to describe irregular pearls. It was applied to art, architecture and music that was very ornate.

Two popular compositional techniques were counterpoint and fugue.

Counterpoint- more that one melody of equal importance at the same time.

Fugue- imitative counterpoint. The melodies imitate each other.

The piano(forte) was not invented until the end of the Baroque period. The primary keyboard instruments of the time were the organ, harpsichord, and clavichord.

Composers in the Baroque period standardized the rules about harmony that we still use today. This system was based on the relationships between different chords.

Some Important Baroque Composers:

Claudio Monteverdi- (1567-1643) Both a Renaissance and Baroque composer. He wrote the first major opera called Orfeo.

Jean Baptiste Lully- (1632-1687) Italian born French composer who created a popular form of French opera.

Dietrich Buxtehude- (c.1637-1707) Danish/German organist who influenced many other composers.

Johann Pachelbel- (1653-1706) German composer/one-hit-wonder who wrote Canon in D.

Henry Purcell- (1659-1695) One of the finest English composers of all time. Wrote the famous English opera Dido and Aeneas.

Antonio Vivaldi- (1678-1741) Italian composer and priest. Wrote 450 concertos, including the famous The Four Seasons.

Georg Frederich Handel- (1685-1759) German composer who lived in England, writing operas and oratorios including the very famous Messiah.

Johann Sebastian Bach- (1685-1750) Often considered the greatest composer of all time. He was an obscure church musician his entire life, not becoming famous until more than 100 years after his death. Historians and music theorists use Bach as the standard for what is acceptable.