Enter the French. With the English School well-established since Dunstable and the German School developing in the wake of Martin Luther, the French School began to reassert its influence in the 17th and 18th centuries. First up, Jean-Baptiste Lully, court composer to the Sun King, Louis XIV. Born to humble origins, Lully would climb to … Continue reading Baroque Music II: Jean-Baptiste Lully (1632-1687)
Category: Baroque Period
Late Monteverdi
In opera singers express their emotions directly to each other and indirectly to the audience—the fusing of drama between singer and audience is what powers opera to this day. And this is where it began, in earnest, with Monteverdi’s late opera Poppea, which was premiered to a paying audience in a public theatre. No more … Continue reading Late Monteverdi
More Monteverdi: A Prayer on the 20th Anniversary of 9/11
As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, without end. It is a wonderfully cool morning in NYC. Perhaps that’s what triggered it in my mind -- it was that nearly imperceptible hint of fall that did the trick. 9/11. It had been the same 20 years ago: 9/11/01 was just … Continue reading More Monteverdi: A Prayer on the 20th Anniversary of 9/11
Baroque Music I: Claudio Monteverdi, Part II, The Birth of Opera
The genius who birthed the Baroque was, as previewed last time, the great Renaissance composer Claudio Monteverdi. Its birthplace was Florence, and the medium was opera. Opera was midwifed in the Florentine Camerata, that group artists, philosophers, musicians, poets, and intellectuals at the end of the Renaissance who debated and studied the arts. I previously … Continue reading Baroque Music I: Claudio Monteverdi, Part II, The Birth of Opera
Back in the Baroque: An Introduction and Preview
The Baroque period covers roughly 150 years of music history, divided into the early (1605 to 1630), middle (1630 to 1680), and late (1680 to 1750) periods. Just a quick detour into music theory. Baroque music introduces the figured bass (also known as the thorough bass), as composers began what was to become an obsession … Continue reading Back in the Baroque: An Introduction and Preview
A Gertus History of Music 