Baroque Instrumental Music traits



Unit Test Review Sheet – Music Heritage

Mr. Johnson, Instructor

Medieval Traits

Pope Gregory – Pope who catalogued and organized the church’s liturgy during the 6th/7th Century

Gregorian Chant – chant of the genre that Pope Gregory compiled

Characteristics of chant - non-metrical, mostly step wise singing, irregular pulse, devotional in purpose, meant to reflect the words.

Syllabic Chant – chant with about one syllable per note

Melismatic Chant – chant with many syllables per note

Plainsong – another word for chant

Organum – process of adding voices to altered chant set in rhythms. More regular pulse.

Monophonic music – music that consists of one voice

Polyphonic music – music that consists of many independent voices

Hildegard von Bingen – composer of chant and liturgical dramas

Leonin – Composer of Organum at Notre Dame in Paris

Perotinus Magnus – Composer of organum and Leonin’s student

Propers of the Mass – those parts of the Mass that change weekly or seasonally

Ordinaries of the Mass – those parts of the Mass that remain constant at each Mass.

Five Ordinaries of the Mass Kyrie – Lord have mercy

Gloria – Glory to God in the highest

Credo – Nicene Creed

Sanctus – Holy, holy, holy

Agnus Dei – Lamb of God

Why are the Ordinaries of the Mass so important for music history?

Troubadours and Trouveres – singing poets and minstrels who wrote and sang secular music for nobility.

Renaissance Traits:

Humanism – the celebration of all things human – human achievement, the human form, the human mind

Skepticism – the ability to ask questions like, “How do we know something is true?”

Why is Michelangelo’s statue, “David” a good reflection of Renaissance philosophy?

Why does it make sense that composers would concentrate on vocal and choral music during the Renaissance?

Sacred – for the church

Secular – for entertainment or artistry

Vernacular – language of the people

Motet – Sacred polyphonic composition with a Latin text

Madrigal – Secular polyphonic composition with a vernacular text.

Martin Luther and the Reformation – reflects skepticism and human intellectual exercise

Imitation – how voices in a composition mimic each other.

Word Painting – how words reflect sounds of nature

Madrigalism – how the music reflects the words in the text of a piece

Baroque Instrumental Music traits

Baroque means “misshapen” or “bizarre.” The term is a bit of a misnomer in that it really does not reflect the baroque traits except to say that it is a period of excesses in music, fashion and theater.

Virtuosity - impressive display and ability

Basso continuo - Presence of a bass line and harmony.

(cello or bassoon with organ or harpsichord)

Concerto Grosso pits the large group against the small group.

texture, and dynamic contrast.

Melodic Sequence – repeating of a short melodic idea ascending or descending the scale one step at a time.

Examples:

Six Brandenburg Concerti - Johann Sebastian Bach

The Four Seasons - Antonio Vivaldi

Ground bass or Basso Ostinato – repeated short bass line

Canon in D - Johann Pachelbel

Use of harpsichord predominates

Baroque Vocal Music

Opera - large dramatic secular work for chorus, soloists and orchestra

Performed staged with costumes and sets

Oratorio - large dramatic sacred work for chorus, soloists and orchestra

Performed without costumes or sets

Both opera and oratorio have the following types of song:

Aria - longer song - more poetic

Chorus - for the "company"

Recitative - sung dialogue or narration

Messiah - George Frederic Handel

St. Matthew Passion - Johann Sebastian Bach

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