The eras and their music:
- Medieval (500-1400)
- Renaissance (1400-1600)
- Baroque (1600-1750)
- Classical (1750-1820)
- Romantic (1820-1900)
- Modern (1900-Present)
- Conclusion
Medieval (500-1400)
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The era is defined by sacred and mystical vocal music of monophonic (single melody) chants that later evolved into polyphony (many melodies). The era is represented by Hildegard of Bingen (1098-1179), a mystic and abbess whose ecstatic, monophonic chants were transcribed directly from divine visions. Music:- A feather on the Breath of God (Gothic Voices), Hildegard of Bingen, Hyperion Records, 1985. The feather flew, not because of anything in itself but because the air bore it along. Thus am I, A feather on the Breath of God.
Renaissance (1400-1600)
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The era is defined by polyphonic music (many melodies) that includes four to five interweaving voices supporting and enhancing each other. The era is represented by Josquin des Prez (1450-1521), a master of the Franco-Flemish school who pioneered the art of matching music to the emotional meaning of the text.
Music:- Ave Maria, gratia plena (The Tallis Scholars & Peter Phillips), Josquin des Prez, Gimell, 1985. Hail Mary, full of grace is the very first track of the first ever printed book of motets (polyphonic choral music) by the publisher Ottaviano Petrucci in 1502.
- Miserere mei, Deus (Cappella Amsterdam & Daniel Reuss), Josquin des Prez, Harmonia Mundi, 2018. Commissioned by the Duke of Ferrara, Have mercy on me, O God is a plea for forgiveness rooted in Friar Savonarola's meditation on sin and repentance.
- Nymphes des bois a 5 (Orlando Consort), Josquin des Prez, Deutsche Grammophon, 2000. A deeply personal eulogy by Josquin to mourn the death of his mentor Ockeghem, asking the Nymphs of the woods and the goddesses of the fountains to cry and lament his passing. "a 5" indicates five voices.
- Mille regretz (The King's Singers), Josquin des Prez, Sony Music, 1993. The pain of Thousand regrets captured the melancholy of the Roman Emperor Charles V so well that it became associated with his reign.
- La Cancion del Emperador (Hopkinson Smith), Luys de Narvaez, Audivis-Astree, 1996. A guitar-like vihuela version of Mille regretz created as The Emperor's Song because Charles V also wanted to hear it played instrumentally.
- El Grillo (Cantus), Josquin des Prez, CPR Performance Studio, 2018 The Cricket with rhythmic chirping sounds makes the performers to stop being holy and start being funny.
Baroque (1600-1750)
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The era is defined by counterpoint where independent stories of multiple characters (soprano, alto, tenor, bass) are woven together creating friction and debate before converging at the end. This differs from the Renaissance polyphony where all the voices make supporting statements. The era is represented by Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750), a master of counterpoint who died in 1750 when there was nothing more left to explore or evolve in the Baroque counterpoint style.
Music:- The Well-Tempered Clavier (Sviatoslav Richter), Johann Sebastian Bach, BMG Entertainment, 1991. The old keyboard instruments could not play in all keys; some keys were never played. Bach showed for the first time that all keys could be used if the Keyboard was well tuned (Well-Tempered Clavier). As such, this work serves as both a musician's handbook and an inexhaustible source of delight. The Well-Tempered Clavier is divided into two books. Each book contains 24 pairs of a prelude and a fugue in every one of the 12 major and 12 minor keys. The prelude is an introductory piece that sets the mood and tone, while the fugue is a debate between several voices that showcases the art of counterpoint. BWV is an abbreviation for Bach-Werke-Verzeichnis, which is German for Bach-Works-Catalogue, published in 1950 by Wolfgang Schmieder. Book 1 (BWV 846-869)
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BWV 846: Prelude and Fugue in C major
BWV 847: Prelude and Fugue in C minor
BWV 848: Prelude and Fugue in C-sharp major
BWV 849: Prelude and Fugue in C-sharp minor
BWV 850: Prelude and Fugue in D major
BWV 851: Prelude and Fugue in D minor
BWV 852: Prelude and Fugue in E-flat major
BWV 853: Prelude and Fugue in E-flat minor
BWV 854: Prelude and Fugue in E major
BWV 855: Prelude and Fugue in E minor
BWV 856: Prelude and Fugue in F major
BWV 857: Prelude and Fugue in F minor
BWV 858: Prelude and Fugue in F-sharp major
BWV 859: Prelude and Fugue in F-sharp minor
BWV 860: Prelude and Fugue in G major
BWV 861: Prelude and Fugue in G minor
BWV 862: Prelude and Fugue in A-flat major
BWV 863: Prelude and Fugue in G-sharp minor
BWV 864: Prelude and Fugue in A major
BWV 865: Prelude and Fugue in A minor
BWV 866: Prelude and Fugue in B-flat major
BWV 867: Prelude and Fugue in B-flat minor
BWV 868: Prelude and Fugue in B major
BWV 869: Prelude and Fugue in B minor
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BWV 870: Prelude and Fugue in C major
BWV 871: Prelude and Fugue in C minor
BWV 872: Prelude and Fugue in C-sharp major
BWV 873: Prelude and Fugue in C-sharp minor
BWV 874: Prelude and Fugue in D major
BWV 875: Prelude and Fugue in D minor
BWV 876: Prelude and Fugue in E-flat major
BWV 877: Prelude and Fugue in E-flat minor
BWV 878: Prelude and Fugue in E major
BWV 879: Prelude and Fugue in E minor
BWV 880: Prelude and Fugue in F major
BWV 881: Prelude and Fugue in F minor
BWV 882: Prelude and Fugue in F-sharp major
BWV 883: Prelude and Fugue in F-sharp minor
BWV 884: Prelude and Fugue in G major
BWV 885: Prelude and Fugue in G minor
BWV 886: Prelude and Fugue in A-flat major
BWV 887: Prelude and Fugue in G-sharp minor
BWV 888: Prelude and Fugue in A major
BWV 889: Prelude and Fugue in A minor
BWV 890: Prelude and Fugue in B-flat major
BWV 891: Prelude and Fugue in B-flat minor
BWV 892: Prelude and Fugue in B major
BWV 893: Prelude and Fugue in B minor
Classical (1750-1820)
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The Classical era shifted the focus from complex, weaving debate to clarity and structured drama. The era is defined by homophony where a clear, singing melody (the protagonist) is supported by a subordinate accompaniment, moving through a structured story of tension, development, and resolution. The era is represented by Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) who, mastered the structure established by Haydn and Mozart and then, pushed far the structural and emotional boundaries to launch the Romantic era.
Music:- Beethoven: The Complete Sonatas (Richard Goode), Ludwig van Beethoven, Nonesuch Records, 2006.
Each sonata is split into fast-slow-fast movements. Each movement has its own structured story of tension, development, and resolution (the "Classical" Sonata Form).
Beethoven was very deliberate in assigning the Opus numbers to his works, to showcase the evolution of music. Opus is latin for "work", and indicates the formal publication of the work. Early Period (Sonatas 1-11) Demonstrating extreme technical skill while following the tradition, Beethoven publicly made fun of the piano players who could not keep up.| No. | Name | Key | Opus | Movement 1 | Movement 2 | Movement 3 | Movement 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | - | F minor | 2/1 | Allegro (Fast) | Adagio (Slowly) | Menuetto (Minuet) | Prestissimo (Extremely fast) |
| 2 | - | A major | 2/2 | Allegro vivace (Lively) | Largo (Broadly) | Scherzo (Playful) | Rondo (Graceful) |
| 3 | - | C major | 2/3 | Allegro con brio (Spirited) | Adagio (Slowly) | Scherzo (Playful) | Allegro assai (Very fast) |
| 4 | Grand Sonata | Eb major | 7 | Allegro molto (Very fast) | Largo (Broadly) | Allegro (Fast) | Poco allegretto (A bit fast) |
| 5 | - | C minor | 10/1 | Allegro molto (Very fast) | Adagio molto (Very slow) | Prestissimo (Extremely fast) | - |
| 6 | - | F major | 10/2 | Allegro (Fast) | Allegretto (Fairly quick) | Presto (Very fast) | - |
| 7 | - | D major | 10/3 | Presto (Very fast) | Largo e mesto (Sad) | Menuetto (Minuet) | Rondo (Fast) |
| 8 | Pathétique (Passionate) | C minor | 13 | Grave-Allegro (Solemn) | Adagio (Singing) | Rondo (Fast) | - |
| 9 | - | E major | 14/1 | Allegro (Fast) | Allegretto (Fairly quick) | Rondo (Comfortable) | - |
| 10 | - | G major | 14/2 | Allegro (Fast) | Andante (Walking) | Scherzo (Very fast) | - |
| 11 | - | Bb major | 22 | Allegro con brio (Spirited) | Adagio (Expressive) | Menuetto (Minuet) | Rondo (Fairly quick) |
| No. | Name | Key | Opus | Movement 1 | Movement 2 | Movement 3 | Movement 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12 | Funeral March | Ab major | 26 | Andante (Variations) | Scherzo (Very fast) | Marcia funebre (Funeral) | Allegro (Fast) |
| 13 | Quasi una Fantasia (Like a Fantasy) | Eb major | 27/1 | Andante (Walking) | Allegro (Very fast) | Adagio (Expressive) | Allegro vivace (Lively) |
| 14 | Moonlight | C# minor | 27/2 | Adagio (Sustained) | Allegretto (Fairly quick) | Presto agitato (Agitated) | - |
| 15 | Pastoral (Rural) | D major | 28 | Allegro (Fast) | Andante (Walking) | Scherzo (Lively) | Rondo (Not too fast) |
| 16 | - | G major | 31/1 | Allegro vivace (Lively) | Adagio grazioso (Graceful) | Rondo (Fairly quick) | - |
| 17 | The Tempest (The Storm) | D minor | 31/2 | Largo-Allegro (Broad) | Adagio (Slowly) | Allegretto (Fairly quick) | - |
| 18 | The Hunt | Eb major | 31/3 | Allegro (Fast) | Scherzo (Lively) | Menuetto (Moderate) | Presto con fuoco (Fiery) |
| 19 | Easy Sonata I | G minor | 49/1 | Andante (Walking) | Rondo (Fast) | - | - |
| 20 | Easy Sonata II | G major | 49/2 | Allegro (Not too fast) | Tempo di Menuetto | - | - |
| 21 | Waldstein | C major | 53 | Allegro con brio (Spirited) | Adagio molto (Very slow) | Rondo (Fairly quick) | - |
| 22 | - | F major | 54 | Tempo d'un Menuetto | Allegretto (Fairly quick) | - | - |
| 23 | Appassionata (Passionate) | F minor | 57 | Allegro assai (Very fast) | Andante (With motion) | Allegro (Not too fast) | - |
| 24 | To Thérèse | F# major | 78 | Adagio-Allegro (Slow) | Allegro vivace (Lively) | - | - |
| 25 | The Cuckoo | G major | 79 | Presto (German style) | Andante (Walking) | Vivace (Lively) | - |
| 26 | Les Adieux (The Farewells) | Eb major | 81a | Adagio-Allegro (Parting) | Andante (Absence) | Vivacissimo (Return) | - |
| 27 | - | E minor | 90 | Mit Lebhaftigkeit (Lively) | Nicht zu geschwind (Slow) | - | - |
| No. | Name | Key | Opus | Movement 1 | Movement 2 | Movement 3 | Movement 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 28 | - | A major | 101 | Etwas lebhaft (Lively) | Marschmäßig (March) | Langsam (Yearning) | Geschwind (Quickly) |
| 29 | Hammerklavier (Hammer-Keyboard) | Bb major | 106 | Allegro (Fast) | Scherzo (Very lively) | Adagio (Sustained) | Allegro risoluto (Fugue) |
| 30 | - | E major | 109 | Vivace (Not too fast) | Prestissimo (Extremely fast) | Gesangvoll (Singing) | - |
| 31 | - | Ab major | 110 | Moderato (Singing) | Allegro molto (Very fast) | Adagio (Slowly) | Fuga (Fast Fugue) |
| 32 | - | C minor | 111 | Maestoso-Allegro (Fast) | Arietta (Very slow song) | - | - |
Romantic (1820-1900)
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The Romantic era is defined by the emotion and tension of Chromaticism that moves away from the clear structure of the Diatonic keys established by Bach. The era is represented by Frederic Chopin (1810-1849), the "Poet of Piano", who used Chromatisim to create intimate music.
Music:- Chopin: 4 Ballades (Krystian Zimermam), Frederic Chopin, Deutsche Grammophon, 1988.
- The Chopin Collection (Artur Rubinstein), Frederic Chopin, RCA Victor, 2007.
The 4 Ballades are songs and stories in music (no lyrics).
The 21 Nocturnes (night pieces) are the ultimate examples of intimacy and chromatic nuance.
Conclusion
The World as Will and Representation, 1859, by Arthur Schopenhauer:The (Platonic) Ideas are the adequate objectification of the will. To stimulate the knowledge of these by depicting individual things (for works of art are themselves always such) is the aim of all the other arts (and is possible with a corresponding change in the knowing subject). Hence all of them objectify the will only indirectly, in other words, by means of the Ideas. As our world is nothing but the phenomenon or appearance of the Ideas in plurality through entrance into the principium individuationis (the form of knowledge possible to the individual as such), music, since it passes over the Ideas, is also quite independent of the phenomenal world. Positively, it ignores the world and, to a certain extent, could still exist even if there were no world at all, which cannot be said of the other arts. Thus music is as immediate an objectification and copy of the whole will as the world itself is, indeed as the Ideas are, the multiplied phenomenon of which constitutes the world of individual things. Therefore music is by no means like the other arts, namely a copy of the Ideas, but a copy of the will itself, the objectivity of which are the Ideas.
For this reason the effect of music is so very much more powerful and penetrating than is that of the other arts, for these others speak only of the shadow, but music of the essence.