Over the course of time, music has become a wonderful piece of art that has evolved over the years. From the medieval period 500BC, through the Renaissance era (1400-1600) and even through the baroque (1600-1750) era to the classical period (1775-1825), music as influenced and inspired the lives of many. What makes classical music different than many of the other eras of music was its level of complexity. The complexity was far less intense compared to Baroque music. Many believe at that point in musical history had a much better understanding of tempo and dynamics; therefore less emphasis was placed on creating overly complex pieces. In addition, classical music was less fluid, meaning several smaller movements, rather than melodies that tend to be long with constant flow. Furthermore, classical music had several composers from that period that are considered by many as some of the greatest composers of all times. For example, Franz Joseph Hayden (1732-1809), which is believed to be considered be one of the first composer of the classical. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791), Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach (1714-1788), and of course the famous Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) are just few great ones for their time. Not only is classical music inspiring, but the fact that it incorporates a whole orchestra is truly remarkable. The different instruments working together in harmony as one entity can truly be appreciated by the people who understand the technicality in which not only how difficult it is to play, but create into a work of art. Although there are many aspects of classical music that have caused it to stand out from the other musical eras, the most important, however is the flexibility of rhythm, gradual changes in dynamics, and the use of texture in classical music. The classical period was an era in which rhythms were allowed to maneuver. Unlike the baroque period where rhythms were mostly constant with little to know change, the classical period, however allowed the wealth of interesting rhythmic patterns. This allowed the music to feel more explorative with a variety of surprising pauses, different forms of syncopations, followed by several variations of note lengths (short & long). This included changes in notes length that were either gradually completed or occur suddenly. A perfect example of this is J.S. Bach Cello suite No. 1 in G, which is truly a remarkable piece that incorporates so many different rhythmic variations throughout the piece. Another interesting aspect of classical music was the changes in dynamics.
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During the Baroque period dynamics were mainly terraced dynamics, meaning they were usually sudden changes in the dynamic levels. However, during the classical period there was a much wider range of dynamics. In addition, composers were much more interested in gradual changes in dynamics, such as crescendo (slowly getting louder) and diminuendo (slowly getting quitter), rather than sudden changes. A perfect example of classical dynamics was a single dynamic passage transforming into a larger structured piece with a wonderful transition, especially if held for specific period of time. In Beethoven’s Finale of the fifth symphony at about the 6:08 minute mark where an interesting transition occurs from a fast pace repeated patterns turns out to be a perfect transition, also referred to as a bridge. This links the fast pace section with the next slow pace section of the piece. This is an excellent example of how dynamics are used in a musical masterpieces were patterns of different volumes are used to emphasis a transition. Another interesting characteristic in classical music is texture. During the baroque era, the texture was solely based upon polyphonic textures, which are textures with multiple parts are two or more melody lines playing at the same time. However, during classical era homophonic texture, which are textures with one main melody with other parts. This means that basically its different sounds but have the same rhythmic ideas. Although there are many interesting aspects regarding classical music, the most interesting is how the classical symphony is structured. In a symphony orchestra there are usually four movements. The first movement is usually fast and is referred to as sonata form, which is simple and understanding. It provides the listener the opportunity to get a taste of what’s
During the Baroque period dynamics were mainly terraced dynamics, meaning they were usually sudden changes in the dynamic levels. However, during the classical period there was a much wider range of dynamics. In addition, composers were much more interested in gradual changes in dynamics, such as crescendo (slowly getting louder) and diminuendo (slowly getting quitter), rather than sudden changes. A perfect example of classical dynamics was a single dynamic passage transforming into a larger structured piece with a wonderful transition, especially if held for specific period of time. In Beethoven’s Finale of the fifth symphony at about the 6:08 minute mark where an interesting transition occurs from a fast pace repeated patterns turns out to be a perfect transition, also referred to as a bridge. This links the fast pace section with the next slow pace section of the piece. This is an excellent example of how dynamics are used in a musical masterpieces were patterns of different volumes are used to emphasis a transition. Another interesting characteristic in classical music is texture. During the baroque era, the texture was solely based upon polyphonic textures, which are textures with multiple parts are two or more melody lines playing at the same time. However, during classical era homophonic texture, which are textures with one main melody with other parts. This means that basically its different sounds but have the same rhythmic ideas. Although there are many interesting aspects regarding classical music, the most interesting is how the classical symphony is structured. In a symphony orchestra there are usually four movements. The first movement is usually fast and is referred to as sonata form, which is simple and understanding. It provides the listener the opportunity to get a taste of what’s