Post on 05-Jan-2016
BACH & VIVALDI
Cantatas and Concertos
JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH
1685-1750
Tail end of the Baroque
era
Musical Family (for
generations)
Orphaned by age 9
Raised by elder brother
Devout Lutheran
Married twice• Maria Barbara Bach (cousin)
Died of unknown causes
• Anna Magdalena
Died in poverty 10 years after Bach
Of 20 children, only 10 survived to adulthood, one with severe disabilitiesLived entire life in 200-mile radius
PERSONAL LIFE
HIS WORK
• Almost half of his compositions have been lost
• Hundreds of
Cantatas
• Entire works have been cataloged using a BWV code number (1100 +)
From Italian cantare: to singA choral/vocal composition with instrumental accompaniment
Sacred or secular
Multiple movements/sectionsCan include solos, duets, and full choir
WHAT’S A CANTATA?Thomaskirche,
Leipzig Characteristics
CHORALES:THE ANTI-PLAINCHANT
CHORALE-TUNES• Strong folk and
secular influence on church music
• The Lutheran musical tradition broke away from the Catholic plainchant tradition
• Dance meters and forms set newly written texts
• The congregation would have recognized the chorale tunes
CONCERTO
Some say the word Concerto means “fight” from a Latin
root, referring to the competing roles of the soloist(s) and
orchestra
An instrumental form, which helped solidify the emerging
importance of both secular instrumental music
Most concertos are composed in 3 separate movements• Fast• Slow• Fast
TO CLAP OR NOT TO CLAP?
Generally, you only
clap at the end of the
LAST movement or
section
Most common practice
era pieces are in 3 or 4
movements
Group(s) of instruments vs. orchestra (gang fight)
Championed by Corelli, Torelli, & Händel
Later overtaken by solo concertos
Soloist(s) vs. orchestra
(David vs. Goliath)
Often include Cadenza• Short improvisatory solo
section near the end of 1st movement
Variations:• Double Concerto• Triple Concerto
TYPES OF CONCERTOS
Concerto Grosso Concerto
ANTONIO VIVALDI
1678-1741 (high Baroque)
Father was violinist
Learned violin at an early age
“Red Priest” ordained at age
25Worked as a music teacher in an Venetian orphanage
Wrote over 500 Concertos
Died in poverty (Vienna)
WINTER, FROM:THE FOUR SEASONS
• Each season is actually a violin concerto
• Composed in 1723• Each concerto tries
to depict the mood of a season
• Text painting without text! Excellent example of “Doctrine of Affections”