Exam 22 Flashcards
Where was opera born
Italy
The ____ was a group of novels, poets, and composers who began to meet regularly in Florence around 1575. They wanted to create a new vocal style that could be used for preforming ancient Greek tragedies.
Florentine Camerata
A type of singing modeled after speech
recitative
The earliest opera that has been preserved is Euridice by ____ preformed in _____ around 1600.
Jacopo Peri, Florence
The first public opera house opened in ____ in 1637.
Venice
Male singer castrated before puberty to retain a high voice range; the most important category of vocal soloists in opera in the baroque period.
Castrato
The earliest baroque operas were based on ancient ___ ___. Later baroque operas were based on historical events, but often the gods would intervene on behalf of mortals.
Greek tragedies
_____ ______ (1567-1643) is a very important composer. He is considered a transitional figure, a bridge between the renaissance and baroque eras in music. He served at the court of Mantua, and then was appointed music director at St. Mark’s in Venice.
Claudio Monteverdi
Most of __ _____ vocal music was written for the lutheran church.
J. S. Bach’s
Sets of dance inspired movements
baroque suites
Baroque composers wrote ___ of music based on dance forms of the day. They were instrumental music for solo instruments or small groups of instruments. Most include an _____, _____, ____, some optional dance movement, and a ____.
suites; allemande; courante; sarabande; gigue
Some suites begin with a movement that is not a dance movement; often this movement is either a prelude of a _____ _____. It has two sections, a slow section followed by a fast section. The opening slow section usually features dotted rhythms (long-short-long-short).
French overture
early baroque
1600-1640
middle baroque
1640-1690
late baroque or “high baroque”
1690-1750
fills space with action and movement
baroque
in European society, the ________ is very wealthy and powerful, and they surround themselves with luxury.
aristocracy
a baroque composition usually expresses a _____ ______.
single mood
most of the baroque music that you hear today is from the _____ baroque era.
late
Basso continuo, or the _______ ______, is the rhythm section of the baroque era. It consists of a harmony instrument and a low melodic instrument. It functions in a similar manner to the rhythm guitar or piano and the bass in a rock or jazz combo today. They lay down the chords and the rhythm and keep the rest of the ensemble going.
continuo group
By modern standards, a baroque orchestra is small: ___ to ____ players with a ______ _______.
ten; thirty; continuo group
Small groups of soloists “vs.” larger orchestra
concerto grosso
The large orchestra is referred to as
tutti
concerto grosso usually has ____ movements: fast-slow-fast
three
an opening theme, the REFRAIN comes back periodically (RETURN-ello)
ritornello
Around 1721 ____ wrote six brandenburg concertos, dedicated to the Christian Ludwig, Margrave of Bradenburg
Bach
A _____ is a polyphonic composition based on one main theme, called a subject.
Fugue
A fugue usually includes three, four, or five voices. The first thing you’ll hear is a statement of the ____ in one single voice; the other voices will enter one at a time.
subject
same theme as the subject, but usually transposed a fifth up or a fourth down from where the subject was
answer
melodic idea that is almost always heard along with the subject or answer
countersubject
short sections in a fugue where the subject in its entirety is not included in any voice
episode
a statement of the subject starts in one voice; before its finished, another voice enters with a statement of the subject of the subject or answer.
stretto
middle ages
450-1450
renaissance
1450-1600
____ ______ is sometimes used to soothe people who are in the final hours of life.
Gregorian Chant
