Terms in this set (14)

• opera. a large scale music drama that combines poetry, acting, scenery, and costumes with singing and instrumental music.
• recitative. the plot and action are generally advanced through a kind of musical declamation, or speech.
• accompagnato.
• aria.
• overture.
• libretto.
• orfeo.
• masque.

Chorale: A simple, metrical Lutheran melody; these were used by Bach and others as the basis for contrapuntal variations, preludes, and cantata movements.

Baroque orchestral music

• long flowing melodic lines often using ornamentation (decorative notes such as trills and turns)
• contrast between loud and soft, solo and ensemble.
• a contrapuntal texture where two or more melodic lines are combined.

The soloists and the chorus rehearse separately from the orchestra until the Italian run, which is a rehearsal without costumes but when the singers and orchestra run through the entire production for the first time.

Terms in this set (7)

• recitative. musical speech that advances the plot or action, vocal style, grew out of the earliest monodies of Florentine Camerata.
• aria. italian for air; song, usually of a highly emotional nature, solo.
• secco.
• accompagnato.
• overture.
• librettist.
• libretto.

Baroque orchestra instruments usually included:

• strings – violins, violas, cellos and double basses.
• woodwind – recorders or wooden flutes, oboes and bassoon.
• brass – sometimes trumpets and/or horns (without valves)
• timpani (kettledrums)
• continuo – harpsichord or organ.

Traditional opera, often referred to as “number opera,” consists of two modes of singing: recitative, the plot-driving passages sung in a style designed to imitate and emphasize the inflections of speech, and aria (an “air” or formal song) in which the characters express their emotions in a more structured melodic …

A concertino, literally “little ensemble”, is the group of soloists in a concerto grosso. This is opposed to the ripieno and tutti which is the larger group contrasting with the concertino. Though the concertino is the smaller of the two groups, its material is generally more virtuosic than that of the ripieno.

Some general characteristics of Baroque Music are: MELODY: A single melodic idea. RHYTHM: Continuous rhythmic drive. TEXTURE: Balance of Homophonic (melody with chordal harmony) and polyphonic textures.

As with Renaissance music, tempos of Baroque works should also be moderate. Extremely fast or slow tempos should be avoided. The rhythm is motorlike, constantly pulsing, and very steady.

CHORUS. A group of singers with more than one person singing each part, like a choir. The choruses in opera usually represent groups such as soldiers, priests, peasants, nymphs of the woods and so on – whatever is required by the story.

Opera is a huge undertaking, made up of many different parts: overtures, acts, arias, and recitatives just to name a few.

What were the main components of Baroque opera? opera. a large scale music drama that combines poetry, acting, scenery, and costumes with singing and instrumental music. recitative. the plot and action are generally advanced through a kind of musical declamation, or speech. accompagnato. aria. overture. libretto. orfeo. masque.

Opera would get pretty bland if only one character sang at a time for the duration of the performance. Fortunately for us listeners, composers have always employed ensembles as parts of an opera. Technically, an ensemble can refer to a duet, trio, quartet, chorus, or any group of performers singing together.

The first and most common sort of ensemble you’ll hear in an opera is also the biggest one–the chorus. According to Scottish Opera, “The choruses in opera usually represent groups such as soldiers, priests, peasants, nymphs of the woods and so on – whatever is required by the story.”

Indeed, Farinelli was one of the most famous singers of the 18th century. Italian opera set the Baroque standard. Italian libretti were the norm, even when a German composer like Handel found himself composing the likes of Rinaldo and Giulio Cesare for London audiences.