KARISHMA D'MELLO
A Brief Overview of
Music’s History (Part II):
The Evolution
of Classical
We’ve delved into some of the most defining moments in
music’s history – the ambiguous findings of prehistoric
times, right up to the skepticism of the renaissance.
And now it’s time to have a look at the eras that follow
– the baroque, classical and the romantic periods. the unfortunate depths of obscurity. The fortepiano or
the metaphorical prelude to what would become the
piano was used primarily in various compositions of
that time. Compositions now had distinctive chords,
harmonies and discernible melodies to them.
The baroque era is where we see the birth of the
orchestra. Music now took a shift into instrumental
compositions, where concertos, sonatas, cantatas, and
operas took the centre stage. Choral music had to step
aside, as it was no longer appreciated as much as it
was before. “Instrumental” expanded to include the
likes of cellos and violins. One of the most defining
characteristics of this time was the emphasis on “basso
continuo” – the added element of a continuous bass line. It is perhaps the era most people think of when they
think of classical, and quite rightly so. The products
of this era include Wolfgang Mozart, Joseph Haydn,
Ludvig Van Beethoven, Luigi Boccherini and more
of classical’s most well-renowned composers. Among
them, Beethoven and Schubert became the bridge
across which we find the Romantic era of music.
Composition and the art of writing took precedence
over all else. Instruments were more diverse and
less standardized. It was during the baroque era that
composers began to create more intricate pieces,
finding contrast and creating dissonance with the help
of minors, majors and their use of chromatic scales.
It perhaps, made way for the modern classical piano,
but instead of a keyboard, they would use a harpsichord
or a pipe organ. It was an era where Johann Sebastian
Bach, G. F Handel, and Antonio Vivaldi set things in
motion for the beginning of a new, more classical era.
In the broader definition of the term, classical includes
various forms of western art music leading up to the
2000s. Where the baroque era emphasized structural
complexities, the classical era emphasized the need
for clarity within these intricacies. It was everything
the baroque era stood for, but simply through a more
polished, refined version of music. Instruments were
not spared from this constant evolution. They continued
to transform into different versions of themselves,
and some like the harpsichord found themselves in
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The romantic era represents a time where emotion became
more intertwined with compositions. It grew far deeper,
more dramatic, more intense and just more expressive
in every way. Music became more artistic, abstract and
free-form. And thus began the development of nocturnes,
fantasies and other deviations to the structural norm of
compositions. The piano finally made its transition into
a structure we would recognize today, finding its way
into middle-class homes. The orchestra welcomed more
percussion into its formation, creating a grander spectacle.
Music was more complex, but players were more
than willing to tell those stories, and with the ease
of virtuosic performer. Compositions now spoke in
metaphors. They were storms, gales, winds and floods,
the seas, the trees and everything in between.
Now, this is only a really brief overview of a few
fine moments. It perhaps resembles a summary of
what should be a far more detailed dissertation. But
even the most detailed version of musical history,
would not do it much justice. Because when you
look beyond the large spectacles, the big moments
and the grand parades, you’ll find that sometimes
all music is, is the quiet chirping of a bird.