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5500 BCE
Percussion (Baroque Period , Percussion)
Invented in 5500 BC originating from Belgium. Research Link -
3100 BCE
Lute (Renaissance Period , Strings / Plucked)
Invented in 3100 BC originating from Ancient Mesopotamia. Research Link -
2500 BCE
Harp (Classical Period , Strings / Plucked)
Invented in 2500 BC originating from Ancient Egypt. Research Link -
2000 BCE
Trumpet (Romantic Period , Brass)
Invented in 2000 BC originating from Egypt. Research Link -
900 BCE
Flute (Classical Period , Woodwind)
Invented in 900 BC originating from China. Research Link -
600 BCE
Gong (Classical Period , Percussion)
Invented in 600 BCE originating from China. Research Link -
500 BCE
Maracas (20th Century Period , Percussion)
Invented in 500 BC originating from Central Chile, Pre-colonial Brazil, Puerto Rico, and West Africa. Research Link -
Jan 1, 900
Xylophone (Romantic Period , Percussion)
Invented in 900 originating from southeast Asia. Research Link -
Jan 1, 1280
Citole (Medieval Period , Strings / Plucked)
Invented in 1280 originating from England. Research Link -
Jan 1, 1300
Timpani (Baroque Period , Percussion)
Invented in 1300 originating from Ancient Greece. Research Link -
Jan 1, 1400
Renaissance Period Begins
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Period: Jan 1, 1400 to
Renaissance Period
The start and end of the Renaissance period. -
Jan 2, 1400
Masses (Style Prominent In Renaissance)
Definition - Masses are choral compositions in music with settings either polyphonic or plainchant, setting the invariable portions of the liturgy of the Eucharist.
Role In Renaissance: Created a unified musical structure from disparate texts.
Prominent Composers - Josquin des Prez, Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina, Guillaume Du Fay
Fun Fact: Masses are associated with the Roman Catholic Church.
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Jan 2, 1400
Madrigals (Style Prominent In Renaissance Period)
Definition - A style of vocal secular chamber music in constant poetic form with 2-3 stanzas in 3 lines each performed along a cappella and polyphonic texture.
Role In Renaissance: Popularized the word painting musical technique that defined the Renaissance period and its ideals.
Prominent Composers - Jacques Arcadelt, Thomas Morley, John Dowland
Fun Fact: Written as social entertainment for middle class and aristocracy.
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Jan 2, 1400
Motets (Style Prominent In Renaissance)
Definition - Motets are a style of vocal composition that is a short choral religious piece of Latin music typically without the accompaniment of instruments.
Role In Renaissance: Marked the flowering of the form with its flexibility of use in masses making it widely used and popular.
Prominent Composers - Gilles Binchois, John Dunstable, William Byrd
Fun Fact: Motets are most written primarily in the Latin language.
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Jan 1, 1450
Trombones (Romantic Period , Brass)
Invented in 1450 originating from Germany. Research Link -
Jan 1, 1450
Josquin des Prez (Renaissance Period)
Year Born - 1450
Year Died - August 27th, 1521
Birthplace: Condé-sur-l’Escaut?, Burgundian Hainaut [France])
Major Influences - Franco - Flemish composer Johannes Ockeghem, light italian secular music
Notable Works: Missa Pangw lingua (1515), Missa L'homme armé super voces musicales (1502), Missa Hercules Dux Ferrariae. (1503)
Fun Fact: Josquin De Prez was heavily mistaken for Josquin de Kessalia in the past.
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Jan 1, 1490
John Taverner (Renaissance Period)
Year Born - 1490
Year Died: October 15th, 1545
Birthplace - Boston, Lincolnshire
Major Influences: Unknown
Notable Works - Missa Gloria tibi Trinitas (1520), The Western Wynde Mass (1530), Missa Corona Spinea (1527)
Fun Fact: Though Taverner worked within a church for the majority of his life, he was branded a heretic due a book he wrote called the ‘‘Book of Martyrs’’.
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Jan 1, 1500
Cornett (Renaissance Period , Woodwind)
Invented in 1500 originating from France. Research Link -
Jan 1, 1515
Violin (Renaissance Period , Strings / Plucked)
Invented in 1515 originating from Spain and Italy. Research Link -
Jan 1, 1528
Orlando di Lasso (Renaissance Period)
Year Born - 1530
Year Died: June 14th, 1594
Birthplace - Mons, Spanish Hainaut
Major Influences: Catholic Counter-Reformation, liturgical music for Roman rite, Magnificats, Catholic Ulenberg Psalter settings, Lagrime di San Pietro
Notable Works: Matona mia cara (1544-1551), Psalmi Davide poenitentialis (1549), Bonjour mon coeur (1564)
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Jan 1, 1539
William Byrd (Renaissance Period)
Year Born - 1539
Year Died: July 4th, 1639
Birthplace - London, England
Major Influences: Queen Mary
Notable Works - Cantiones Sacrae (1573), Fitzwilliam Virginal Book (1562-1612), Gradualia (1607)
Fun Fact: William Byrd would often put contemporary poetry within his songs as he was a composer of secular vocal music at the time.
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Jan 1, 1560
Spem in alium nunquam habui (Renaissance Period Song)
Composer - Thomas Tallis
Year Composed: 1560
Style - Motets / Renaissance Choral music
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Jan 1, 1562
Missa Papae Marcelli (Renaissance Period Song)
Composer - Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina
Year Composed: 1562
Style - Homorhythmic, Declamatory Style / Choral - Sacred
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Jan 1, 1564
Violin (Classical Period , Strings / Plucked)
Invented in 1564 originating from Northern Italy. Research Link -
Jan 1, 1572
O Magnum Mysterium (Renaissance Period Song)
Composer - Cristóbal de Morale
Year Composed: 1572
Style - Responsorial Chant / Motet
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Renaissance Period Ends
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The Transition Between The Renaissance To The Baroque Period
As the Renaissance Period closed out, the polychoral motets of the Venetian schools multiple independent choirs came together to form the beginning. They did this out of rebellion in the high mannerisms of Renaissance with an age of enlightenment. The Baroque period would begin as a result, built upon elaborate ornamentation and tonality. Due to the shift, choral vocal music became less favored to soloist vocal practice. Along with this, innovation of basso continuo furthered than ever before. -
Period: to
Baroque Period
The start and end of the Baroque period. -
Baroque Period Begins
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Cantata (Style Prominent In Baroque Period)
Definition - A vocal musical composition intended to be sung vocally with 1 or multiple voices with instruments playing as well, being intended for medium length works.
Role In Baroque Period: Provided improvements upon Church related works being heavily demanded in the Lutheran church.
Prominent Composers - Antonio Lucio Vivaldi, Jean-Philippe Rameau,Arcangelo Corelli
Fun Fact: J.S. Bach was a major enthusiast of Cantata.
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Opera (Style Prominent In Baroque Period)
Definition - Staged dramas sung from the beginning to the very end often about a serious topic such as a Greek tragedy and are extensively put together with orchestral overtures and interludes woven in.
Role In Baroque Period: Presented a spectator, lively atmosphere on the stage during the Baroque period of music.
Prominent Composers - Henry Purcell, Lully, Giuseppe Verdi
Fun Fact: Opera was also known as Castri.
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Stile Moderno (Style Prominent In Baroque Period)
Definition - Style that emphasizes solo voice, polarity of melody as well as the bass line, and interest in expressive harmony using the Monody to do so.
Role in Baroque Period: Allowed for greater distinction between sacred works and secular music creating a new theatrical style in the process.
Prominent Composers - Heinrich Schutz, Johann Pachelbel, Antonio Vivaldi
Fun Fact: Stile moderno was developed for secular usage.
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Henry Purcell (Baroque Period)
Year Born - 1659
Year Died: November 21st, 1695
Birthplace - London, England
Major Influences: Orlando Gibbons, William Byrd, French school, Jean Batiste Lully
Notable Works - Abdelazer (1676), Dido and Aeneas (1683), Dioclesian (1690)
Fun Fact: Henry Purcell has been regarded as the most important English composer of all time covering a wide variety of fields.
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Tomaso Albinoni (Baroque Period)
Year Born - August, 14th, 1671
Year Died: January 17th, 1751
Birthplace - Venice, Italy
Major Influences: Unknwn
Notable Works - Adagio (Date Unknown), Sinfonie e Concerti a 5 (Opus 2, 1700), the concerti for strings (Opus 5, 1707)
Fun Fact: Tomaso Albinoni referred to himself as a ''dedicated amateur'' in public.
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Antonio Vivaldi (Baroque Period)
Year Died - March 4th, 1678
Year Born: July 28th, 1741
Birthplace - Venice, Republic of Venice [Italy]
Major Influences: Giovanni Battista Vivaldi
Notable Works - Concerto for Four Violins and Cello in B Minor, Op. 3, No. 10 (1711), Concerto for Two Trumpets in C Major (1720), Ottone in Villa (1713)
Fun Fact: Vivaldi worked the majority of his life in an orphanage in Venice writing songs for a girls orchestra.
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Johann Sebastian Bach (Baroque Period)
Year Born - March 21st, 1685
Year Died: July 28th, 1750
Birthplace - Eisenach, Thuringia, Ernestine Saxon Duchies [Germany]
Major Influences: Johann Christoph Bach, Johann Pachelbel, Johann Jakob Froberger, Jean-Baptiste Lully, Louis Marchand, Marin Marais, Girolamo Frescobaldi
Notable Works - Brandenburg Concertos, The Well-Tempered Clavier (1722), Christmas Oratorio (1733), Mass in B Minor (1733-1738)
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Toccata and Fugue in D Minor, BWV 565 (Baroque Period Song)
Composer - Johann Sebastian Bach
Year Composed: 1708
Style - Baroque, Organ, Chorale
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The Four Seasons (Baroque Period Song)
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Joseph Haydn (Classical Period)
Year Born - March 31st, 1732
Year Died: May 31st, 1809
Birthplace - Rohrau, Austria
Major Influences: George Frideric Handel, Nicola Porpora
Notable Works - Deutschland (1796), Emperor Quartet (1797), Gott erhalte Franz den Kaiser (1797)
Fun Fact: Though Joseph Haydn is regarded as the father of the strings, he is not predicated as the first to write a string quartet.
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Messiah, HWV 56 (Baroque Period Song)
Composer - George Frideric Handel
Year Composed: 1741
Style - English Oratorio
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Baroque Period Ends
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Classical Period Begins
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Period: to
Classical Period
The start and end of the Classical period. -
Chamber Music (Style Prominent In Classical Period)
Definition - Music composed for miniscule ensembles of instrumentalists with its purpose to be played at home in comparison to the theatre or church.
Role In The Classical Period: Brought the composure of music at home to the public bringing home intimate music, and refined musical ideas alongside it.
Prominent Composers - Franz Ignaz von Beecke, Felix Mendelssohn, Antonín Dvořák
Fun Fact: Chamber music promoted teamwork.
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Sinfonia (Style Prominent In Classical Period)
Definition - A 3-part autonomous orchestral symphonies introduction in fast-slow-fast form expanding to relatively self-sufficient movements in each form.
Role in the Classical Period: Provided an increase of dramaticness and duration within the introduction of symphonies.
Prominent Composers - Ludwig Van Beethoven, Joseph Haydn, Johann Stamitz
Fun Fact: The 1st movement in sinfonia could be done in sonata form.
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Concerto (Style Prominent In Classical Period)
Definition - A musical composition where solo instruments are set off against an orchestral assembly within a cycle of several contrasting movements is integrated both tonally and thematically as well.
Role In Classical Period: Standardized the fast-slow-fast form allowing for more dramatic uptake in works.
Prominent Composers - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Joseph Haydn, Ludwig Van Beethoven
Fun Fact: Concerto means concertare in Latin.
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Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (Classical Period)
Year Born - January 27th, 1756
Year Died: December 5th, 1791
Birthplace - Salzburg, archbishopric of Salzburg [Austria]
Major Influences: George Frideric Handel, Johann Sebastian Bach
Notable Works: The Magic Flute (1791), The Marriage of Figaro (1786), Symphony No. 40 (1788)
Fun Fact: Mozart’s full name in its entirety is Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart.
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Ludwig Van Beethoven (Classical Period)
Year Born - December 17th, 1770
Year Died: March 26th, 1827
Birthplace - Bonn, archbishopric of Cologne [Germany]
Major Influences: Joseph Haydn, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Johann Sebastian Bach, George Frideric Handel, Antonio Salieri, Ludwig van Beethoven the Elder
Notable Works - Archduke Trio (1814), Battle Symphony (1814), Choral Fantasy in C Minor (1808)
Fun Fact: Beethoven performed for Mozart at the age of 17.
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Eine kleine Nachtmusik (Classical Period Song)
Composer - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Year Composed: 1787
Style - Classical Music
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Franz Schubert (Classical Period)
Year Born - January 31st, 1797
Year Died: November 19th, 1828
Birthplace - Himmelpfortgrund, near Vienna [Austria]
Major Influences: Joseph Haydn, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Ludwig Van Beethoven
Notable Works - Symphony No. 9 in C Major (1825), Piano Sonata No. 21 in B-flat Major (1828), Winterreise (1827)
Fun Fact: Schubert was one of the very few major composers to have been born in Vienna.
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Moonlight Sonata (Classical Period Song)
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Richard Wagner (Romantic Period)
Year Born - May 22nd, 1813
Year Died: February 13th, 1883
Birthplace - Leipzig [Germany]
Major Influences: Ludwig Van Beethoven, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Notable Works - A Communication To My Friends (1852), Art and Revolution (1849), Das Rheingold (1876)
Fun Fact: Richard Wagner was inspired to the field of opera from Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9.
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Classical Period Ends
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The Transition Between The Classical Period To The Romantic Period
As the classical period began to end, the strict rules wavered as Beethoven broke them all. Composers began to break boundaries as they focused on emotion, a seedling to the Romantic Period. The Romantic Period would begin as composers began to experiment on new forms like tone poem and choral symphonies. This would lead to the theatrical nature of the period and the chore values it had. Composers also began to draw inspiration from famous art and literature for inspiration to their works. -
Period: to
Romantic Period
The start and end of the Romantic period. -
Romantic Period Begins
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Overture (Style Prominent In Romantic Period)
Definition - A musical composition usually done as the orchestral introduction of a work that's an opera or ballet to set the mood of the audience.
Role In Romantic Period: Incorporated emotion with melodies to create an atmospheric tone for an audience to be immersed upon.
Prominent Composers - Chopin, Edvard Grieg
, Giacomo Puccini
Fun Fact: An Overture creates a independent work along with the original work.
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Program Music (Style Prominent In Romantic Period)
Definition - Instrumental music carrying extra musical meaning to the extent of a ''program'' in a literal idea, legend, scenic description, or a personal idea being presented.
Role In Romantic Period: Provided a storytelling method from the usage of instruments instead of songs.
Prominent Composers - Richard Strauss, Franz Liszt, Sergey Prokofiev
Fun Fact: Program music has an extra music idea compared to other styles.
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Nocturne (Style Prominent In Romantic Period)
Definition - A musical composition inspired or evocative of the night referring to any works with the night referenced mostly seen piano character pieces.
Role In Romantic Period: Represented the period's ideals with the free meter in rubato style and a flexible, relaxed, and spontaneous rhyme that shows emotion.
Prominent Composers - John Field, Robert Schumann, Chopin
Fun Fact: The English Nocturne is derived from the French Nocturne.
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Anton Bruckner (Romantic Period)
Year Born - September 4th, 1824
Year Died: October 11th, 1896
Birthplace - Ansfelden, Austria
Major Influences: Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina, Johann Sebastian Bach, First Viennese School, Richard Wagner
Notable Works - Symphony No. 4 in E-flat Minor (1881), Symphony No. 5 in B-flat Major (1875-1876), Symphony No. 7 in E Major (1881-1883)
Fun Fact: Anton Bruckner had a fascination with writing proposals to young damsels.
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Ave Maria (Classical Period Song)
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Octet for Strings in E-flat Major, Op. 20 (Romantic Period Song)
Composer - Felix Mendelssohn
Year Composed: 1825
Style - Classical / Chamber Music
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Symphonie Fantastique (Romantic Period Song)
Composer - Hector Berlioz
Year Composed: 1830
Style - Programmatic Music / Romantic Music
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Nocturne Op. 9 No. 2 (Romantic Period Song)
Composer - Frédéric Chopin
Year Composed: 1831
Style - Repeating Form / Nocturne (instr.)
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Johannes Brahms (Romantic Period)
Year Born - May 7th, 1833
Year Died: April 3rd, 1897
Birthplace - Hamburg [Germany]
Major Influences: Franz Schubert
Notable Works - A German Requiem (1867), Academic Festival Overture, Op. 80 (1880), Four Serious Songs (1896)
Fun Fact: Johannes Brahm became friends with Robert Schumann with him proclaiming Brahm a genius.
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Gustav Mahler (Romantic Period)
Year Born - July 7th, 1860
Year Died: May 18th, 1911
Birthplace - Kaliště, Bohemia, Austrian Empire
Major Influences: Ludwig Van Beethoven, Friedrich Ruckert, Friedrich Nietzsche
Notable Works - Resurrection Symphony No. 2 in C Minor (1895), Symphony No. 1 in D Major (1889), Symphony No. 10 in F Sharp Major (1910)
Fun Fact: Mahler’s songs were inspired from real life traumatic events that he had in his life.
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Romantic Period Ends
