The Baroque Era Bach, Harpsichord & Clavichord, Concerto, Madrigal, Sacred Music

BACH Bach was a German Composer - Organist, harpsichordist, violist, and violinist of the Baroque period - His most famous works consist of: The Mass in Bminor, Toccata And Fugue In D Minor, Jesu, Joy Of Man's Desiring and Air On A G String - Bach composed cantatas, large scale choral works, chorales, sacred songs, preludes, canons and sonatas. - During the late eighteenth and early nineteenth century, Bach was widely recognised for his keyboard work. Mozart, Beethoven, Chopin, Robert Schumann, and Felix Mendelssohn were among his most prominent admirers; they began writing in a more contrapuntal style after being exposed to Bach's music. Beethoven described him as the "Urvater der Harmonie", the "original father of harmony". Toccata And Fugue In D Minor: Air On A G String

THE CLAVICHORD & HARPSICHORD - The clavichord is a European stringed keyboard instrument known from the late Medieval, through the Renaissance, Baroque and Classical eras. - It was widely used as a practice instrument and as an aid to composition, not being loud enough for larger performances. - The harpsichord is a stringed keyboard instrument, differing from the clavichord and the piano in having plucked, rather than struck, strings. - A harpsichord may have two keyboards or manuals rather than one, as a piano does. - The harpsichord has a smaller range than typical modern instruments, it’s maximum dynamic is softer than a piano’s; making crescendos, decrescendos, and accents impossible. The Clavichord The Harpsichord

A CONCERTO - A concerto is a musical composition usually composed in three parts or movements, in which (usually) one solo instrument (for instance, a piano, violin, cello or flute) is accompanied by an orchestra. -Started in the Baroque period and is still used today. - Famous piano concertos include: Brahms’ No.2 B-flat Major Op.83, Beethoven’s No.5 E-flat Major Op.73, Schumann’s Concerto in A minor, Op.54 and Rachmaninoff’s No.3 D minor Op.30 Schumann’s Concerto in A minor: Rachmaninoff’s No.3 in D minor

A MADRIGAL - A madrigal is a non-religious vocal music composition of the Renaissance and early Baroque eras - The number of voices in a madrigal vary from 2 to 8 and are unaccompanied - Most madrigals are through-composed - The composer tried to express the emotion contained in each line of a celebrated poem - An example of a madrigal is Monteverdi’s Ohime, Se Tanto Amate (That we studied at AS) - -

SACRED MUSIC - Sacred music is music composed for religious use or through religious influence - Opposite to secular meaning non-religious - Sacred music has always been around and still is today - Popular sacred music works include: Mozart’s Requiem in D minor, Handel’s Messiah, Beethoven’s Missa solemnis in D Major Op.123 and Bach’s St. Matthew Passion Mozart’s Requiem