The Arts Society Newbury lecture: Misshapen Pearl: an overview of the music of the Baroque Period at Arlington Arts, Snelsmore on Tuesday, June 18 Review by ALAN CHILDS It was the Italians, of course, who broke the rules. By the end of the 16th century the Renaissance form of music had been encoded and understood by composers, musicians and singers alike. It was rule-based and intellectual, musician and Radio Three broadcaster Sandy Burnett told The Arts Society Newbury.
Its ideals were balance, beauty, order and regulation, with blended voices in euphony and not dissonance, all working together. Then in 1589 in Florence, the role of music in drama through the rediscovery of Greek theatre meant composers decided that they could put on a show to enhance the action. In 1607, Claudio Monteverdi premiered the opera L’Orfeo, which changed everything in style because the drama required the music to make an impact and to accompany and illustrate extremes of emotion.
For singers such as the diva Barbara Strozzi, the new style allowed them to express strong – perhaps even overwrought – feelings, and the style swept through Europe. It was the Baroque, after the Portuguese for a misshapen pearl, highly-prized by Renaissance jewellers as unique and natural forms. In Venice, Antonio Vivaldi polished the Baroque with his concerti such as Le Quattro Stagioni.
In France, dance became an important element of the Baroque, with stylised and dramatic gestures. Louis XIV celebrated coming i.
