History of Baroque Period Music

By hammerthumbs
  • Period: Jan 1, 1580 to

    Early Baroque

  • Sep 19, 1581

    Galilei's influence

    Vincenzo Galilei (1528 – 1591), a musician and scientist advocates for equal temperament tuning and solo singing

  • First "concerto" piece

    first piece using word “concerto” published written by Andrea Gabrieli (1533 – 1585) and Giovanni Gabrieli (1554 - 1612) at St. Mark’s in Venice

  • Declamatory singing emerges

    declamatory singing emerged because of persuasion of the Florentine camerata, a society of influential people including Count Giovanni Bardi (1534 – 1612), Girolamo Mei, and Galilei

  • First appearance of dynamics in musical score

    G. Gabrieli’s Sacrae symphonae book is first music to indicate dynamics

  • First true opera composed

    Jacopo Peri (1561 – 1633) composes first true opera in Northern Italy called “Dafne”

  • Monteverdi - Artusi controversy

    Claudio Monteverdi (1567 - 1643), extremely influential composer and G. M. Artusi (theorist) argue the level of importance of text and music in compositions, Monteverdi referring to his “Seconda Practica” composition style emphasizing text.

  • Doctrine of Affections theory

    “Doctrine of Affections” music theory emerged stressing importance of deciding upon specific musical moods or affections in compositions

  • First preserved opera composed

    Peri composes “Euridice”, the first preserved opera which was rewritten by many composers, including his rival, Giulio Caccini (1551 – 1618) who rewrote it in 1602

  • Vocal ornamentation written

    Caccini writes book La nuove musiche showing description and notation of vocal ornamentation for the first time, including specifically his piece, Filli, mirando il cielo, a madrigal characteristic of this type of singing

  • Monteverdi composes opera "Orfeo"

    Monteverdi composes opera Orfeo (his version of Peri’s Euridice), in Italian court of Mantua

  • stille concertato music popular

    In ecclesiis by G. Gabrieli, concerted motet (stille concertato) composed, a more detailed composition indicating separate choirs and specific

  • Froberger born (popularized dance suite)

    Johann Froberger (1616 – 1667) popularized the dance suite for instrumentalists
  • Period: to

    Middle Baroque

  • Cavalli

    1602 – 1676 Francesco Cavalli, composer and student of Monteverdi, composes 33 operas

  • Colossal Baroque style popular

    Around 1630s – colossal Baroque style composing popular, including several choirs and instrumentalists, little music survived

  • Lulli (French opera official) born

    Giovanni Battista Lulli (1632 – 1687) in charge of the Academie royale de musicque, French opera company popularized new kind of music/theater tragedie lyrique

  • Fiori musicali organ composition

    Girolamo Frescobaldi (1583 – 1643) famous organ composer from Rome, writes Fiori musicali, Mass music for St. Peter’s among other churches

  • violin music makes way to Southern Italy

    Maurizio Cazzati (1616 – 1678) composes violin music that spreads to Southern Italy

  • Opera music gains popularity in Venice

    1637 – Venice, Italy: opera becomes very popular

  • "Miserere" composed

    Gregorio Allegri (1582 – 1652) composes Miserere, most recognized version of “stile antico” style of music which was conservative in nature and originated in the papal Sistine Chapel

  • Monteverdi's final opera composition

    Moteverdi composes his final well-regarded opera, L’incoronazione di Poppea

  • German composer first of many to be influenced

    Heinrich Schutz (1585 – 1672) German composer traveled to Venice to study with Gabrieli, returning to Germany which became a common path for composers, affecting music in Germany by 1650.

  • Strozzi composes cantata

    Barbara Strozzi (1619 – 1677) cantata L’Amante Segreto: Voglio morire showcasing “lament bass”, a melancholy sounding descending ostinato bass line popular to the time period (Wright, Simms, p. 258)

  • Corelli born

    Arcangelo Corelli (1653 – 1713) famous violinist and first strictly instrumental composer

  • Pachelbel born

    Johann Pachelbel (1653 – 1706) vocal and instrumental composer, most famous piece is Canon in D

  • Giuseppe Torelli born

    Giuseppe Torelli (1658 – 1709) wrote much instrumental music including around 50 trumpet pieces, such as Sinfonia in D Major

  • Cesti composes famous opera

    Antonio Cesti (1623 – 1669) composes his most popular opera, Il pomo d’oro (The Golden Apple) (composed 12 altogether)

  • Vivaldi born

    Antonio Vivaldi (1678 – 1741) composer from Venice of almost 500 concertos, many solo concertos. The most famous are The Four Seasons
  • Period: to

    Late Baroque

  • George Frideric Handel born

    George Frideric Handel (1685 – 1759) German-born composer extremely well-known in Baroque music, composed in every genre

  • Dido and Aeneas composed (Purcell)

    Henry Purcell (1659- 1695) composer who worked with theater music among other types. Famous composition of his is Dido and Aeneas (1689)

  • ABA song form established

    Alessandro Scarlatti (1660 – 1725) establishes da capo aria style or ABA song form

  • J.S. Bach life and composition information

    Johann Sebastian Bach (1685 – 1750) vocal and instrumental composer, organist, genius
    Among famous works are the B-Minor Mass (1749), The Brandenburg Concertos, and The Well-Tempered Clavier (1722) to name a few.

  • Stradivari, famous violin maker

    Antonio Stradivari (1644 – 1737), famous violin maker, violin music becomes extremely popular in Italy

  • Handel composes oratorio, "Messiah"

    1741 – Handel’s Messiah (oratorio) written