Definition Of A Concerto

20. Discuss the classical concerto. What is a cadenza? A classical concerto usually has three movements occurring in the same order of tempos as the Italian sinfonia: fast-slow-fast. Cadenza is an extended virtuosic passage for a solo instrument.

Finally another common characteristic between the pieces is that the texture of both is polyphonic. Polyphonic texture shows two of more melodic lines competing for attention. The listener would hear the polyphonic texture during the soloist performances in Bach’s work. One instrument would imitate the other leading to the competition of being heard. This is also seen in Corelli’s sonata. The two violins are the showcase for the melodic lines and are imitated by the bass continuo, played by the organ and cello.

Beethoven wrote the Violin Concerto for his friend Franz Clement, a great violinist of his time. The concerto was first preformed in the Theatre an der Wien in Vienna on December 23, 1806, as a benefit concert for Clement. The concerto was well received by the public but the music critics did not approve. The music critics thought it was dull and too long while violinists criticized it for being too

A concerto grosso is small group of solo instruments that accompany a string orchestra. A solo concerto is instead only one instrument. They both generally have three movements

During the Baroque period, instrumental music was written for every conceivable size of ensemble. On the smaller side, the Baroque sonata offers one of the finest examples of chamber music. Two types of sonata are found during this period: the sonata da chiesa (church sonata), and the sonata da camera (chamber sonata). The sonata da chiesa was more somber, while the sonata da camera was, much like the suite, usually comprised of dance forms. The gigue from Corelli's Sonata for 2 violins and lute is a fine example of the sonata da camera

The abundance of harmonies never loses the thread to his audience. Furthermore, the opening of the slow movement inspires the imagination and attention of its listeners. All these elements make this piece one of the most successful concertos in the musical history.

In the 1700s, Antonio Vivaldi composed his highly accredited Four Seasons concerto. The autumn movement in this concerto follows the allegro-adagio-allegro pattern. Vivaldi provided sonnets to go along with each movement to explain what the true meanings are. As a group, we felt it was necessary to provide all of our reactions to the piece. This allowed us to interpret what each of the others were visualizing throughout the composition. Some of our opinions may have varied, but overall the general mood of the piece allowed us each to have the same emotions toward the Autumn movement of the Four Seasons.

In what period was the work composed? List three aspects of the musical style of this period that apply to this work.

By doing this, the sound made by the groups swells, portraying to the audience a sound of growth and progression. According to the textbook Music Appreciation Online, in this type of concerto, “a tutti section, a full orchestra (with basso continuo), and a small group of solo instruments usually referred to as the concertino or principale” is used. In the concertino section, two or more soloists are used. Arcangelo Corelli was the first major composer of the concerti grossi (the Italian form of the concerto grosso). The concerto grosso comes in two major forms: the concerto da chiesa (church chant) and the concerto da camera (chamber concert). The concerto da chiesa was used for formal occasions and alternated between adagio and allegro movements. For the most part, the movements were written in the same key, however there were occasions where one or more of the movements were in contrasting tonality. The sonata de camera was made up of a prelude and a succession of dances that were all in the same key. Its structure was that of a slow introduction, a fugued allegro, a cantabile slow movement and an energetic finale. This setup created its dancelike sound and feeling. The sonata da camera composition grew to be referred to as a suite, a partita, or in the French opera

Plantiga, Leon. "Beethoven's Concertos: History, Style and Performance. " New York: W.W.Norton, inc., 1999. pp.3-21, 113-158

Sonatas composed from 1773 to 1784 were intended as “public” works from the very beginning, with a clear conception of the taste, preferences, and instruments available to the musical public of Vienna. The Sonata in F Major, Hob. XVI: 23; L38 written in 1773 for solo harpsichord is the best known and most virtuosic of

Antonio Vivaldi is a famous Italian baroque composer, known by most Suzuki violin students who study his concertos or by audiences everywhere who have heard and love his composition of the Four Seasons.  Having grown up as students of the Suzuki Violin Method, we recognize this composer and have experience performing his pieces.  In addition to his many concertos written for solo violin, Vivaldi composed many concertos intended to be performed by two solo violins, accompanied by a small orchestra.  Because we are both violinists, we chose to analyze the second movement of Vivaldi’s Concerto for Two Violins in A minor, RV 522, included in his L’Estro Armonico works.

The classical music period extends from 1740 to 1810, which includes the music of Haydn, Mozart, and the first period of Beethoven. The classical period of music combined harmony, melody, rhythm, and orchestration more effectively than earlier periods of music. With the natural evolution of music slowly changing with the culture, the baroque era had ended. That era had left a structure, articulation and periodic phrasing of music which would shape classical music.

Baroque Period, during which a few of the greatest composers on this planet were born, brought classical music onto a whole new level. The word “Baroque”, which came from the Portuguese for “the imperfect pearl”, implies strange, extravagant and overblown. Toccata, fugue, chorale, ortario, and the concerto Grosso, all of these special musical forms were created and represent this period. The six main characteristics: increased emotional expression, contrast, use of basso continuo, continued harmonic development, use of ornament, and the emphasis of improvisation, molded the unique style of music of the Baroque period.

Music is constantly changing. The Baroque period (1600-1750) and the Classical period (1750-1820) have both differences and similarities in elements such as form, texture, and dynamics. I will be comparing the first movement of Spring from the Four Seasons composed by Antonio Vivaldi and the first movement of Symphony No. 5 in C minor by Ludwig van Beethoven. I will construct a stylistic comparison of the two compositions and their musical stylings with regard to the periods of music of which they belong.