Essay on Western Music free essay sample

We can divide each major element of Western Music into periods_ Some of the major periods of Western Music consist of Baroque, Classical, Romantic, and Modern Music. Each period contributed key elements that have influenced the formation of music. These key periods helped form the musical geniuses;Bach, Beethoven,Mozart,Verdi, and Copeland. The Baroque period lasted from 1600-1750. The two best known Baroque composers are Johann Sebastian Bach and George Frederick Handel. The music of the period is thick and complex polyphonic texture prevails In many composers works.The music gives a sense of drama and urgency Is Incorporated Into In vocal forms such as the cantata, mass, opera, oratorio and passion, and in instrumental forms such as the concerto, concerto gross, prelude, fugue, toccata sonata and suite. Vibrant rhythms and expressive dissonances heighten tension in many Baroque works. Much of the Baroque keyboard music written for the harpsichord and clavichord was written In suites comprising separate dance pieces, changing In tempo and meter but maintaining key unity throughout. The Dance Movements such as the allemande, accurate, serenade, segue and others such as the gavotte, muskets, Euro, minuet and paean. Each dance movement is usually written in two sections called Binary form, and Is generally performed with each section repeated. Other forms of keyboard music from the Baroque period are theme and variations, piccalilli, channel, invention, prelude, fugue, choral prelude, recreate, fantasy, toccata and concerto. The two best known Baroque composers are Johann Sebastian Bach and George Frederick Handel. The Classical Era (1750-1820 C. E. Although the Classical Era lasted for only 70 years, there was a substantial change In the music that was being produced. Lassie music placed a greater stress on clarity with regard to melodic expression and instrumental color. Although opera and vocal music (both sacred and secular) were still being written, orchestral literature was performed on a much broader basis. The orchestra gained more color and flexibility as clarinets, flutes, oboes, and bassoons became permanent members of the orchestra. The classical style was dominated by homophony homophony, which consisted of a single melodic line and an accompaniment.New forms of Nas the sonata sonata which was in instrumental music. This form continued to hang and evolve throughout the classical period, and it is important to note that the classical sonata was very different from the sonatas written by Baroque composers. The early sass reflected a musical style known as Rococo. This style served as a transition from the Baroque to the Classical Era. Rococo, which developed in France, is actually an art term that described a new art style which was both a light and embellished. Musically speaking, it is referred to as style gallant. In Germany, after 1750, the style gallant became infirmaries still.With this change in name came an deed element of expressiveness and sentimentality. As classical music evolved, distinctive characteristics developed. Changes in form were seen along with changes in phrase structure. Shorter phrases and well defined cadences became more prevalent. During this time period, a favorite accompaniment pattern was the Alberta bass (name for Dominic Albert), which featured a broken chord progression. The melodies of the Classical era were more compact and diatonic. Harmony was less structured. It used the tonic, dominant, and subdivision chords.In addition, during his period, diatonic harmony was more common then chromatic. Composers mainly used chords in triadic form and occasionally used seventh chords in their The four major composers of the Classical era were Haydn, Mozart, compositions. Cluck, and Beethoven. These composers wrote extensively for vocal and instrumental mediums. Ere Romantic Era 11850- 1920 C. E. ) The Romantic era was a period of great change and emancipation. While the Classical era had strict laws of balance and restraint, the Romantic era moved away from that by allowing artistic freedom, experimentation, and creativity.The music of this time period was very expressive, and melody became the dominant feature. Composers even used this expressive means to display nationalism nationalism. This became a driving force in the late Romantic period, as composers used elements of folk music to express their cultural identity. As in any time of change, new musical techniques came about to fit in with the current trends. Composers began to experiment with length of compositions, new harmonies, and tonal relationships. Additionally, there was the increased use of dissonance dissonance and extended SE of chromatics chromatics.Another important feature of Romantic music was the use of color. While new instruments were constantly being added to the orchestra, composers also tried to get new or different sounds out of the instruments already in use. One of the new forms was the symphonic poem symphonic poem, artistic background to it. Another was the art song art song, which was a vocal musical work with tremendous emphasis placed on the text or the symbolical meanings of words within the text. Likewise, opera became increasingly popular, as it intended to musically tell a story and to express the issues of the day.Some of the themes that composers wrote about were the escape from political oppression, the fates of national or religious groups, and the events which were taking place in far off settings or exotic climates. This allowed an element of fantasy to be used by composers. During the Romantic period, the virtuoso virtuoso began to be focused. Exceptionally gifted performers pianists, violinists, and singers became enormously popular. List, the great Hungarian pianist/composer, reportedly played tit such passion and intensity that women in the audience would faint. Most composers were also virtuoso performers; it was inevitable that the music they wrote would be extremely challenging to play. The Modern/20th Century Era (1900 present) With the coming of the 20th century another evolution in the musical world emerged. While some of the early 20th century music can be seen as extensions of the late Romantic style, much of 20th century music can be seen as a rebellion. Composers did not look to build on what was standard but again created music freely ND used sounds that went against the current grain.Twentieth century music can be described as being more refined, vague in form, delicate, and having a mysterious atmosphere. Twentieth century music is an era that is hard to define in terms of musical style. The only easy way to define 20th century music is that it does not fit into the Romantic eras requirements. And because of its own expression and orchestral technique it does not fit into any other category but its own. This time period spawned many new terms for musical styles because of the diversity of music that was being written.Some common examples are atonality, expressionism (seen in Schoenberg early music), neo-Romanticism neo- Romanticism, and neo-classicism Neo-classicism. As was true in the Romantic era, nationalism nationalism was still an important musical device used during the first half of the 20th century. Composers utilized folk songs to enriched their music. Examples can be seen in the music of Rappel Vaughan Williams (England), Bell Bartok (Hungary), Hitherto Villa Lobos (Brazil) and Aaron Copeland (USA). Jazz and popular musical styles influenced composers from both the United States and Europe. D recreated or composed using non-western musical techniques and abstract ideas. Technology also became an extremely important factor in the music making during this time period. Composers have been known to use recording tape as a compositional tool. Electronically created sounds are used in combination with other electronic sounds or played together with traditional music instruments. Most recently, the use of computer technology has affected the world of music making. Some ways in which computers currently alter the face of the music world are by manipulating the performance of instruments in real time.