Baroque

Page 2

1. 

   Piano

   Lodovico Giustini wrote the first ever piano sonatas for the instrument invented by Bartolomeo Cristofori

   One of the main disadvantages of the harpsichord is its constant volume level which does not depend on the strength of…

   May 15, 20191 comment

2. 

   Flute

   The early collaboration of flute and viol in the court of Versailles

   In one of his marvelous court paintings, André​ Bouys depicts four prominent composers working on a composition for…

   May 1, 20195 comments

3. 

   Viol

   Bach and Abel: a collaboration that lived in two generations of composers

   The prominent German composer and multi-instrumentalist Carl Friedrich Abel was born into an extraordinary musical…

   April 7, 20191 comment

4. 

   Classical Guitar

   4 collections of early guitar music by enigmatic Santiago de Murcia discovered on 3 Continents

   Little is known about the life of the late Baroque composer Santiago de Murcia whose survived collections of works…

   March 26, 2019

5. 

   Ney

   Ottoman heritage captured in music manuscripts of Bobowski

   The oldest known examples of Ottoman music notation can be found in a few manuscripts compiled by composer and polyglot…

   February 19, 2019

6. 

   Orchestra

   The perfect union of Italian and French styles by Élisabeth Jacquet de La Guerre

   Elisabeth-Claude Jacquet de la Guerre (née Elisabeth Jacquet) was one of the first female composers known to history,…

   February 12, 2019

7. 

   Orchestra

   The vital source of Lutheran music by Andreas Hammerschmidt

   Andreas Hammerschmidt was a German composer and organist of Bohemian birth whose works played an important part in the…

   January 15, 2019

8. 

   Organ

   Mecca for organ music created by Dieterich Buxtehude in Lübeck

   The picture Musical Company by Johannes Voorhout shows baroque composer Dietrich Buxtehude playing the viol while his…

   December 7, 2018

9. 

   Recorder

   Fiery dances of Marco Uccellini from Forlimpopoli

   Forlimpopoli is a tiny Italian town located on the Romagna plain, at the foot of the Apennines. Founded by Romans in…

   November 27, 2018

10. 

    Piano

    The Orpheus of Amsterdam: the joyful nickname for organist Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck

    The ‘Orpheus of Amsterdam’ was the nickname lovingly given to Jan Pietersz Sweelinck (1562–1621), an organist, composer…

    November 2, 2018

11. 

    Orchestra

    The four elements of nature expressed in musical form by Jean-Féry Rebel

    French composer Jean-Féry Rebel was born in 1666 to a distinguished musical family. His father and uncle were French…

    October 24, 2018

12. 

    Orchestra

    Amsterdam's free spirit for the Italian virtuoso

    Pietro Locatelli (1695—1764), Italian violinist and composer, was one of the first great violinists who practiced…

    October 10, 2018

13. 

    Chalumeau

    German maestro ordered all his music to be set on fire

    Christoph Graupner (1683–1760) was one of the principal German composers of the period shared by J.S. Bach and Georg…

    October 2, 2018

14. 

    Classical Guitar

    The sorely short career of the Abreu brothers duo

    The brothers Sérgio and Eduardo Abreu were active during the 60’s and the early 70’s and are considered by many the…

    September 30, 20183 comments

15. 

    Violin

    Only 18 sonatas survived to be the only proof of the maestro's life

    Giovanni Battista Fontana was a composer and violinist in the early Baroque period. Unfortunately, only a couple of…

    September 15, 2018

16. 

    Orchestra

    Classic textbook by great Austrian composer eclipsed his talent

    Johann Joseph Fux was an Austrian composer, music theorist, and teacher of the late Baroque era. He is most famous as…

    September 8, 2018

17. 

    Lute

    Neapolitan lutier died in terrible plague that destroyed the kingdom

    The worst disaster to strike the kingdom and city of Naples in the 1600s was the plague of 1656. The outbreak of the…

    September 2, 2018

18. 

    Composer

    Venetian architecture sparked a new musical era in Europe

    Giovanni Gabrieli was one of the most influential musicians of his time, representing the culmination of the Venetian…

    August 25, 2018

19. 

    Classical Guitar

    Lute fell into obscurity after the death of its greatest maestro

    Silvius Leopold Weiss (1687–1750) was one of the most important composers in lute music history. Born into a lute…

    August 20, 2018

20. 

    Violin

    150 composers contributed to La Folia through the centuries

    La Folia is one of the most revered melodies in music history. Originating as a late fifteenth-century Portuguese dance…

    August 18, 2018

21. 

    Piano

    Choosing career in music got Rameau expelled from school

    Jean-Philippe Rameau (1683–1764) was one of the truly multifaceted French composers and theorists, with his theoretical…

    August 12, 2018

22. 

    Classical Guitar

    The voice that carried guitar over the barriers of Cultural Revolution

    Born in Beijing following the Cultural Revolution—during which Western music and instruments were banned—Xuefei Yang…

    August 7, 2018

23. 

    Viol

    Exceptional sensibility of consort music from the traveling maestro of the Stuart era

    John Jenkins (1592–1678), lutenist and string player, was the most eminent composer of the Stuart and Commonwealth eras…

    August 6, 2018

24. 

    Trumpet

    Forgotten German composer behind the shift from Baroque to Classical

    Johann Friedrich Fasch (1688-1758) was the leader of the transitional period from late Baroque to early Classical in…

    July 28, 2018

25. 

    Orchestra

    Obscured by Vivaldi, an Italian virtuoso found fans in England

    Francesco Saverio Geminiani—influential Italian violinist, composer, and theorist—was born in 1687 in the scenic town…

    July 14, 2018

26. 

    Orchestra

    Alessandro Scarlatti: Italian opera innovator was lost in history for two centuries

    Alessandro Scarlatti (1660-1725) was among the most important Italian composers of the late Baroque period. His huge…

    July 7, 2018

27. 

    Trumpet

    Nameless trumpet sonata credited to Purcell after years of debate

    Henry Purcell, the most prominent English figure of the Baroque era, covered a wide field of genres, producing music…

    June 24, 2018

28. 

    Cello

    Bach's brilliant cello suites survived thanks to Anna Magdalena

    The Bach collection of six suites for solo cello may have been written around 1720 as basic practice pieces intended to…

    June 1, 20181 comment

29. 

    Harp

    The Celtic Baroque roots of Stairway to Heaven

    Irish musician Turlough O'Carolan (1670-1738) is considered to be a pioneer in blending court music of the Baroque era…

    May 14, 20186 comments

30. 

    Viola

    Indecent Ciaconne dance came from the New World and swept Europe off its feet

    Chaconne or Ciaconne is a fiery dance popularized in Spain in 17th century which later gave birth to a new musical form…

    May 12, 2018