Overview of Music History

In my first grading period of Music Appreciation and History, we reviewed different periods and styles of music, ranging from modern times to the first known written piece of music.  After listening to a piece of music, we would then individually describe the piece in terms of rhythm, melody, harmony, texture, and form.  Using these terms, we would attempt to describe why we do or do not particularly like the given piece.  Of all the periods we discussed, the Baroque period was my favorite. 

The Baroque period followed the Renaissance and preceded the Classical era.  Notable composers of this period are Johann Sebastian Bach, George Frideric Handel, and Antonio Vivaldi.  The aspect of the Baroque period that I liked the most was figured bass, the improvisation of the background instruments, which contrasts greatly with modern jam-style bands, in which the lead instrument normally does the improvisation.  The Baroque period also brought about the founding of Opera as a genre, thus a notable characteristic of Baroque music is text over music--text with instrumental accompaniment that does not overpower the vocals.

The Baroque period featured instruments such as the Baroque guitar, the Baroque violin, and the Harpischord. 

                                                           
The Baroque guitar was smaller than the modern guitar, had gut strings, and often had gut frets, which were simply tied around the neck of the instrument.  They normally had 9 or 10 strings divided into 5 courses. 

                                             
The Baroque violin closely resembles the violin of today, except for the common Baroque feature of gut strings, a fuller neck, and a different playing style, in which players rarely rested their chin on the instrument.

I hope to greatly broaden my horizons in my Music History and Appreciation class.  Even before taking the class, I have always tried to find good qualities in every type of music I hear.  For example, even though I generally dislike most country music, if made to listen to a country song I will try to find elements of the song that are interesting to me as a musician, such as an unusual chord progression or a rhythmic change that I find intriguing.  I normally do not listen to today's music, as I find it to be unoriginal and unappealing.  However, this class is teaching me how to justly describe why I do not like a song, or which aspects of a song are redeeming.  I am excited to learn more about ancient styles of music, for I love history.  I believe that this class will lend a great deal of knowledge to me that I can use in writing my own music, such as the figured bass featured in the Baroque period.