Music M401
History and Literature of Music I:
Antiquity to 1750
Baroque Instrumental Music
Performing Forces
- solo: lute, harpsichord, organ
- ensemble: solo with continuo, chamber group with continuo
- orchestra: more than one player on a part
Nationalities
- Italian
- French
- Nothern: German, Lowlands
- Spanish
- English
Types of Pieces
- First half of the 17th century (Grout, p. 308)
- 1. Fugal pieces in continuous imitative counterpoint (ricercare,
fantasia, capriccio)
- 2. Canzona types: sectional pieces in imitative counterpoint,
sometimes with other styles mixed in
- 3. Pieces which vary a given melody (partita, chorale partita,
chorale prelude) or bass (partita, passacaglia, chaconne)
- 4. Dances and other pieces in stylized dance rhythms, either
loosely strung together or more closely integrated in the suite
- 5. Lute or keyboard pieces in improvisatory style: toccata,
fantasia, prelude
- Second half of the 17th and first half of the 18th centuries (Grout,
p. 359)
- 1. Keyboard:
- Toccata (or prelude or fantasia) and
fugue
- Arrangements of liturgical tunes (chorale prelude, verset,
etc.)
- Variations, passacaglia, and chaconne
- Suite
- Sonata (after 1700)
- 2. Ensemble:
- Sonata (sonata da chiesa), sinfonia, and related
forms (series of movements not obviously in dance rhythms)
- Suite (sonata da camera) and related forms (series of
movements in dance rhythms, often with prelude or overture)
- Concerto, solo concerto, concerto grosso
Types of textures and styles
- Toccata texture vs. fugal texture
- Idiomatic playing vs. sections dominated by abstract "musical" ideas
Last updated: 5 November 1998
URL: http://www.music.indiana.edu/som/courses/m401/instrum2.html
This page was created by Patrick Warfield
and is maintained by Patrick Warfield and J. Peter Burkholder
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Copyright © 1997 by J. Peter Burkholder and Patrick Warfield