Although we consider some of the music during this period to be artistic masterpieces today, composers and musicians during this time thought of themselves more as craftsmen than artists. They often made their living through patrons or individuals who supported them in exchange for their music. Patrons included not only the wealthy in society, but also the nobility and the church. The music of the period was often composed for specific circumstances, whether it was a party or a religious event.
Some composers also worked as music tutors, composing easier compositions for their students. Vivaldi, for example, has a number of pieces that appear to be five-finger exercises composed for his students. Because of the deliberate and specific reasons for compositions, individual pieces were not generally thought of as great compositions that would be played over and over and have a lasting impact. Rather, they were thought of as situation specific, almost as disposable pieces of music. The pieces were like the improvised music we find in society today in this way: unique pieces of music to be played, but not generally remembered beyond today. The composers of the era would probably be very surprised to learn how often and in how many different circumstances their music is played today.
Characteristics of Baroque Music
Although the music of the Baroque period is grouped together under the label of Baroque, it is actually quite diverse and varied. Scholars often separate and categorize Baroque music into early, middle, and late Baroque music or into Italian, German, French, and English Baroque music. We might also separate the period into sacred and secular Baroque music. If the music of this period is so diverse and different, why do scholars label the music under the same title? While the music itself has many different elements, composers and musicians during this time period generally shared a common ideal about the music they produced—in both the music and art of the period, artists were concerned with describing emotions and feelings. Thus, making generalizations across all of these different categories of Baroque music can be challenging given the diversity of the music, even though the music across these categories seeks to influence the listeners’ emotions.
Many pieces from the Baroque period share several common elements. First is the use of figured bass (also known as thoroughbass). Figured bass is a musical notation using numbers to indicate chords, intervals, and other aspects in relation to the bass note of the music. The numbers were generally placed under the bass line to indicate the intervals that the bass note should use. The figured bass was closely related to what is known as the basso continuo (or shortened to just continuo). Basso continuo was the harmony of the music. Generally, an instrument that was capable of playing chords played the basso continuo, such as a harpsichord, organ, or harp. Bass instruments, such as a cello or bassoon, might also be included.
Figured Bass
The musician playing the basso continuo structure would play the bass note indicated in the harmony and then add in other notes on the chord as appropriate. The figured bass then helped the musician playing the basso continuo by giving numbers under the bass note to indicate which chords should be played in that spot.