Baroque and Medieval- test 2

Question 1

Gregorian chant

Answer 1

which consists of melody set to sacred Latin texts and sung without accompaniment.
(The chant is monophonic in texture.)

Question 2

church modes

Answer 2

Similar to the major and minor scales, but uses a different pattern of intervals to give them an “otherwordly” sound

Question 3

Pope Gregory

Answer 3

He reorganized the Catholic liturgy; Even though he is credited with its creation,
Gregorian chant evolved over hundreds of year

Question 4

Word painting

Answer 4

Musical representation of specific images

Question 5

Palestrina

Answer 5

An important Italian Renaissance composer; He composed exclusively for the Catholic Church;
He was the music director for St. Peter’s in Rome; He composed 104 masses and approximately
450 other sacred works

Question 6

6. Terraced dynamics

Answer 6

loud then soft; no crescendos or diminuendos

Question 7

basso continuo

Answer 7

–harpsichord and a cello or bassoon

Question 8

figured bass

Answer 8

A system of numbers that the keyboard player would have to interpret to create the chords

Question 9

movement

Answer 9

piece that sounds fairly complete and independent but is part of a larger composition

Question 10

tutti

Answer 10

the full orchestra or a large group of musicians contrasted with a smaller group

Question 11

ritornello

Answer 11

a repeated section of music usually played by the full orchestra; the refrain

Question 12

libretto

Answer 12

text of an opera

Question 13

aria

Answer 13

song for solo voice with orchestra accompaniment; expresses an emotional state through melody

Question 14

recitative

Answer 14

vocal line which imitates the rhythms and pitch fluctuations of speech

Question 15

chorus

Answer 15

a group of singers performing together

Question 16

overture or prelude

Answer 16

orchestral composition which opens an opera

Question 17

castrato

Answer 17

male singer castrated before puberty to retain high voice range

Question 18

trill

Answer 18

the rapid alternation of two musical pitches

Question 19

French overture

Answer 19

opening piece in Baroque suite; two parts—first with dotted rhythms and the second quick

Question 20

chorale

Answer 20

hymn tune sung to a German religious text

Question 21

chorale prelude

Answer 21

short composition for organ, based on a hymn tune

Question 22

concerto gross

Answer 22

composition for several instrument soloists and small orchestra

Question 23

fugue

Answer 23

polyphonic composition based on one main theme or subject

Question 24

opera

Answer 24

drama that is sung to orchestral accompaniment on one main theme or subject

Question 25

sonata

Answer 25

an instrumental composition in several movements for 1 to 8 players

Question 26

trio sonata

Answer 26

three melodic lines; played by 3 instruments and a basso continuo

Question 27

solo concerto

Answer 27

a piece for a single soloist and an orchestr

Question 28

prelude and fugue

Answer 28

short piece usually serving to introduce the fugue; polyphonic composition

Question 29

mass

Answer 29

sacred choral composition made up of five sections

Question 30

What are the parts of the Ordinary of the Mass?

Answer 30

Kyrie, Gloria, Credo, Sanctus, Agnus dei

Question 31

cantata

Answer 31

composition in several movements, usually for chorus

Question 32

oratorio

Answer 32

large-scale composition for chorus, soloists and orchestra, without acting scenery or costumes often based on biblical stories

Question 33

33. What type of composition is the Messiah and who wrote it?

Answer 33

Oratorio/ Handel

Question 34

What type of composition is Orpheus and who wrote it?

Answer 34

Opera/Monteverdi

Question 35

Who wrote over 450 concerto grossi and solo concertos during the Baroque period; and his nic-name is the Red Priest?

Answer 35

Vivaldi

Question 36

Which Baroque composer was born in Germany but spent most of his adult life writing music in England?

Answer 36

Handel

Question 37

Which Baroque composer had 2 wives, 20 children, and worked for the Lutheran Church in Germany?

Answer 37

Bach

Question 38

in what city was the first public opera house opened?

Answer 38

venice

Question 39

What were the castrated male singers of the Baroque period called?

Answer 39

Castrato

Question 40

is a fugue mostly chords or mostly polyphonic?

Answer 40

polyphonic

Question 41

What Baroque instrument would use music written with Figured Bass?

Answer 41

Harpsichord

Question 42

In what country was opera first written?

Answer 42

Italy

Question 43

In what language did Bach write his cantatas

Answer 43

German

Question 44

What are the three most common movement in a concerto grosso?

Answer 44

fast/slow/fast

Question 45

What piece, many times, precedes the fugue?

Answer 45

prelude

Question 46

What is unusual about the ending of many Baroque pieces written in a minor key?

Answer 46

ends with a major chord

Question 47

Changes in texture are more frequent in Bach’s music than in Handel’s

Answer 47

false

Question 48

list the dates of the baroque period

Answer 48

1600-1750

Question 49

The Messiah was performed with more singers and instruments in the Baroque period than it is today.

Answer 49

false

Question 50

What is program music and what Baroque composer wrote program music?

Answer 50

Instrumental music associated with a story, poem, idea or scene/Vivaldi

Question 51

unity of mood

Answer 51

* Usually one basic mood; what begins joyfully will remain that way throughout * No emotional state was off limits. Composers could try to express joy, sorrow, discord * Specific rhythmic or melodic patterns were used to convey these emotions * The exception was in vocal music—though one emotion would be presented for a length of time before yielding to a different emotion

Question 52

rhythm

Answer 52

* Unity of mood through the continuity of the rhythmic patterns. * Patterns heard at the beginning of a piece are repeated throughout * The forward motion is rarely interrupted—though there are complete cadences throughout, there is not a sense of completion on the very end of the piece. * The beat is far more important in Baroque music than in Renaissance or Middle Age music

Question 53

melody

Answer 53

• Melodies also help to create this continuity of mood • The forward drive of a piece can be heard in the sequential use of melodies • Baroque melodies are elaborate and ornamental and generally not easy to remember or to sing Dynamics

Question 54

dynamics

Answer 54

* Dynamics tend to be fairly consistent throughout | * Terrace dynamics; no crescendos and dimenuendos

Question 55

texture

Answer 55

• Usually polyphonic; particularly instrumental music • Imitation was common; one voice would start a melody, then another voice would take it up, etc. Depended on the composer—Bach typically wrote polyphonic music whereas Handel would contrast between polyphonic and homophonic—especially in this vocal music; usually because text needed to be expressed in a different way