The Baroque Era

The Baroque Era

General Characteristics

  • The Baroque era (1600-1750) is characterised by emotional expression, complexity and contrast in music.
  • The period is famous for its use of counterpoint, where two or more melodic lines are combined, and ornamentation (adding decorative notes which are not essential to the melody or harmony).
  • Continuo (also known as basso continuo), a key element of Baroque music, involves a bass line which often provided the harmonic structure, over which other parts would improvise or play composed parts.

Instruments and Ensembles

  • A variety of ensembles were used in this period, including chamber orchestras, opera ensembles, choirs and solo performers.
  • Newer instruments like the violin family were popular, and advances were made in keyboard instruments, with harpsichord and organ being widely used.
  • The orchestra was much smaller than in later periods, typically featuring strings with a few woodwind or brass, and the aforementioned continuo.

Notable Composers

  • Key figures of the Baroque period include Johann Sebastian Bach, George Frideric Handel, and Antonio Vivaldi among others.
  • Each of these composers significantly contributed to the development of Baroque forms such as the fugue, the concerto and the opera.

Form and Structure

  • Popular forms in this period include binary (AB) and ternary (ABA), which were used in dances, and the da capo aria used in vocal music.
  • Harmony was based on the system known as tonality, with keys (major and minor) emerging as important structural elements.
  • The functional harmony system of the Baroque era (with its focus on tonality, progression and resolution) strongly influenced western classical music that followed.

Key Works

  • Notable pieces to study from this era include Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons, Bach’s Brandenburg Concertos, and Handel’s Messiah.
  • Understanding these works will provide important understanding of the styles and structures of the period, as well as the capabilities of the instruments used.

Influences from Previous Eras

  • The Baroque era saw a development from the polyphony used in the Renaissance era to the more homophonic style (melody plus accompaniment) that characterised much of this period’s music.
  • Use of modes in the music from the Renaissance era started being replaced by major and minor keys, a key change in the musical landscape.

Closing Remarks

  • It’s important to remember the gradual nature of changes between periods, the dates given are approximate and not rigid boundaries.
  • Baroque music laid groundwork for many musical conventions and patterns that were further developed and transformed in the Classical era that followed.