Baroque

Baroque

     Baroque in European culture takes period in extension with one and a half century. Human of baroque period is not image of God, a criterion or standard of beauty as it was in Renaissance, but first of all a being capable to feel and suffer, possessing infinite imagination.

     Artistic style of baroque, which came for replacement of Renaissance in the second half of 16 century, was extraordinary showed in musical art. For baroque is characteristic to internal, spiritual life of human, and music was able to reflect this part of period. Moreover, musicians of this period tried to show internal emotional experiences of human. And it became not enough to consider relation of all mankind with God. And it’s much more interesting relations with him of individual person and his feelings in this or that occasion.

     Perhaps, the main subject of baroque music is generally communication. And consequently, baroque music, reflecting in human’s life is extremely rhetoric. However, communication with God didn’t contain in human rules and it should be carried out by specific rules, “Sincere”, and this “Sincere rules” baroque music tries to find out.

     Baroque music perceived big vocal forms and dramatic development of a topic. Reflection in sphere of musical genres became: opera, fugue and oratorio. Opera was mainly in a sketch about musical theatre. Oratorio was first of all a spiritual genre. The word an oratorio means “speak” and “pray” and it simultaneously roused with opera and cantata, but in church. The development of oratorio was in two directions. On the one hand, getting more and more folksy character, it has gradually turned to comic presentations. On the other hand, desire for keeping seriousness of pray relation with God all the time pushed to static character of implementation, even at the most developed to drama genre. Ant it finally led to occurrence of oratorio as independent, at first time purely in church, and then in concert genre.

     Fugue means in Italian (“Fuga”) “run”, “escape” and “rapid current”. This musical form collected all polyphonic riches, which saved up by musical middle Ages and Renaissance. And in difference with that time polyphony in baroque became “free polyphony”, because polyphony in Renaissance perceives by us with some difficulties, whereas polyphony of baroque is much easy. The form of a fugue as the highest musical form of baroque is could be used by composers practically in all genres of music from small chorus preludes to great oratorical choruses.

     The favorite musical instruments in baroque are harpsichord and organ. Mainly these musical instruments could to express better the spirit of this deep and unbalanced period. The aspiration to infinite continuous sounding of organ was combined with abrupt and all time interrupting sound of harpsichord.

     Organ in baroque is first of all an architectural construction. The person in comparison with organ is small and sickly and it seems almost a part of interior. Really, organ is a unique musical instrument into which is possible to enter. Then, organ is more a machine than any other instrument. And not for nothing they say about executors on organ that they operate the instrument, rather than play on it.

     Harpsichord is an instrument of secular court etiquette. And it has perceived as chamber, personal and almost an intimate instrument.