13 - Folder 4 - Late Baroque: Vivaldi & Rameau Flashcards
Give some background information on the Late Baroque Era (c. 1720–1750).
a. Continuation of genres, styles, and forms of the 17th century
b. Culmination of Baroque traditions in the music of Vivaldi, Rameau, Handel, and J.S. Bach
How was the Late Baroque Era a period of emerging changes in style?
i. Signs of the new Classical style began appearing in the 1730s, particularly in Italian music
ii. NB: Early classicism will be covered at the beginning of MUHL 386 (Overview II)
Describe the life and output of Antonio Vivaldi (1678–1741). Five points!
i. Italy’s most famous composer of the early 18th century
ii. Born in Venice
1. His father was a musician at the Cathedral of St. Mark’s
iii. Music Director and teacher at the Pio Ospedale della Pietà, a Venetian orphanage and school for girls (1703–1740)
iv. Virtuoso violinist
v. Composed solo concerti, concerti grossi, chamber music (sonatas), opera, cantatas, miscellaneous choral music
What two things are included in Vivaldi’s composed concerti?
- 350 solo concerti (most for violin; others for bassoon, oboe, mandolin, cello, flute, recorder)
- 150 concerti grossi
What instruments were included in Vivaldi’s orchestral works?
- 20–25 strings, divided into Violin I, Violin II, Viola, and Cello/Bass
- Continuo (either harpsichord or organ)
- Occasional use of woodwinds or brass
In what form were Vivaldi’s concerti?
- Established a three-movement structure that became the standard for later composers of concerti
- First movement — fast tempo; home key; ritornello form (see Late Baroque: Handel topic outline for details on ritornello form)
- Second movement — slow; home key or a closely related key; binary, ternary, or through-composed form; lyrical
- Third movement — fastest tempo; home key; ritornello form
Who was Jean-Philippe Rameau (1683–1764)?
i. Leading French opera composer and music theorist of the early-middle 18th century
ii. Now considered the great heir to Lully in French opera
iii. First came to prominence as a theorist
What was Rameau’s Traitéde l’harmonie (Treatise on Harmony)? 4 points.
- Published in 1722
- One of the most influential theoretical works in Western music history
- First theorist to discuss triads, seventh chords, tonic, dominant, subdominant as the foundations of tonal harmony
- First theorist to identify the root of a chord, and the notion of chord inversions (previously, chords had been considered collections of intervals, so C-E-G and E-G-C were not recognized as the same basic chord until Rameau did so)
For what types of music is Rameau best known?
v. Best known for his French operas
vi. Also composed keyboard music (in the tradition of the French clavecinistes, like Couperin), chamber music, and some sacred music
Name and describe the new elemetns found in Rameau’s operas.
i. Achieved success with his first opera Hippolyte et Aricie (1733)
ii. Followed by Les indes galantes (1735), Castoret Pollux (1737), Zoroastre (1749), and others
iii. Initially attacked for changing the operatic style of Lully (see Middle Baroque: Vocal Music topic outline), Rameau was later praised for preserving the great tradition of French opera
Name the Similarities of Rameau’s operatic style to that of Lully.
- Recitatives with careful, flexible rhythms capture the declamation of the French language
- Mix of recitative with arias, choruses, and instrumental music
- Stylistic differences between aria and recitative are minimized
- Use of French overture (with its dotted rhythms), but treated more freely
- Inclusion of ballet
What were some New elements of Rameau’s operatic style?
- More chromatic harmonies
- Melodic motion derives directly from the harmonic progressions
- More elaborate, varied, and colorful orchestral writing
