baroque

baroque period

1600-1750 - known for dramatics and stylistic diversity

ornamentation

embellishments to the melodies

terraced dynamics

sudden change from one dynamic level to another without the use of crescendo or diminuendo - either loud or soft

figured bass

musical notation in which numbers and symbols appear above or below (or next to) a bass note

major scale

musical scale - tends to sounds more ‘happy’

minor scale

musical scale - mirrors a major scale - tends to sound ‘sad’

diatonic

stepwise arrangement of the pitches in a scale

conjunct

melody which rises and falls slowly, with small pitch changes - not a lot of jumping

tonic

first note of a scale e.g. C major, it is C

subdominant

4th note in a scale

dominant

fifth note in a scale (fifth note from the tonic)

perfect cadence

ending the piece/section on chord 1

groundbass

technique in composing where all parts of a composition stem from the bass line

ritornello

recurring musical section

concerto

instrumental composition designed for one or more soloists accompanied by an orchestra or ensemble

opera

theatrical, vocal pieces of music

canon

voices or instrument that play or sing the same thing but start at different times

imitation

when a motif/pattern is repeated on a different instrument

fugue

one or two themes repeated/imitated at different times shows up repeatedly throughout a piece

arco

telling when the bow should be used (for an instrument in the violin family)p

pizzicato

plucking the strings (for bowed stringed instruments)

harpsichord

musical instrument played with a keyboard - one of the first variations of a piano

basso continuo

continuous bass line

baroque orchestras

ensemble of mixed instruments, typically a smaller group

melody and accompaniment

melody is the part that creates the main tune, accompaniment supports the melody

homophonic

one sound or melody being played by multiple instruments

polyphonic

combination of two or more tones or melodic lines

sequence

melodic or chordal figure repeated at a new pitch (transposed)

suspension

creating tension by prolonging a constant note while the underlying harmony changes

polyphonic texture

dense overlapping with lots of interweaving melodies

timbre and sonority

describes the unique sound or tone

oratorio

large music composition for choirs, orchestras, no theatrical element

melisma

one word that is spread over many notes/beats

syllabic

one beat for each word

aria

a solo vocal piece

recitative

one held note. singer sings many words over one held note. used for filling in the story