Identify one composition by Monteverdi or Vivaldi that demonstrates the qualities of the Baroque musical style.
Identify one composition by Monteverdi or Vivaldi that demonstrates the qualities of the Baroque musical style. Describe your choice by relating key terms from the textbook to the selection you hear. Can you compare this to a modern soundtrack or song that evokes a similar mood?
I listened to both compositions and in my opinion Vivaldi’s “Spring” from Vivaldi : A Man for All Seasons embodies the qualities of the Baroque musical style. When I listened Vivaldi’s “Spring” I could close my eyes and visualize each season, if thats possible. The composition ranges from whimsical and flirty to dramatic and sharp. In our reading of Chapter 21, The Baroque in Italy, you can see how the church wanted to win back those that had been driven away by the Protestant Reformation. The church wanted to evoke more emotion and used a “sensual turn” to draw others back into the church. The Baroque musical style could be compared to Giovanni Gabrieli, who was the principal organist at Saint Mark’s Cathedral. He was able to utilize the open spaces in the Cathedral where organs were already placed, choirs, brass instruments and used each specific area almost as if they were competing against each other to achieve the sound.
When I think about Vivald’s “Spring,” I know I have heard snippets of his music in the movies. Sometimes its played in a wedding scene and sometimes it was played during a period piece. Like “The Scarlet Pimpernel”.
Monteverdi’s Orfeo was very sad. You could connect with the emotion even if you didn’t understand what he was saying. However, the emotion was one emotion, sadness. There was no range. It was steady on the one emotion and there was no climatical ending.