Identifying Different Styles of Music

Identifying Music

Different styles of music have their own identities. Not only does cultural music represent and express the identity of the specific group of people, but various different time periods of music and their different styles can be identified based on important qualities.

The Middle Ages

We can trace music back to the Middle Ages. Prior to the Middle Ages, the ancient people did have some forms of music, and evidence of this has been found in cave drawings of instruments and other artifacts. During the Middle Ages, life was centered around the Church for most people. The Church preserved the classical arts, preformed services, and taught people how to live according to Christian law. Many people were illiterate during this time, so music and art taught these people the stories of the Bible and their lessons. The Gregorian Chant is one of the earliest types of music. It originated from Jewish and and Byzantine religious chants and contained one melody without accompaniment. Pope Gregory I (r. 590-604) standardized these religious chants to form the Gregorian Chant. Dies Irae is an example of a Gregorian Chant and if you watch the video below (the first one), you can listen to it. Click here to see its lyrics.
During the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, music in Paris developed into the Ars Antiqua. This music, generally sung at the Notre Dame Cathedral, worked with two melodies. The idea of having two melodies originated three hundred years before it was used in Paris. When there are two or more voices in a piece of music, the music can be called polyphonic. The Notre Dame music usually had the two melodies rising and falling together, though they can cross over one another. One of the composers who wrote in this style was Pérotin, who composed for four voices in his Organum 4 Vocum, which can be listened to in the video below (the second one)

The Renaissance

The Renaissance was a rebirth of the arts and of culture of Europe. Classical arts, including music, was revived during this time period. While there was religious music in Europe during this time period, people also began to perform and compose secular music. Dance music of the Renaissance had different rhythms that had simple meters to which one could dance. People usually danced in couples; to see the different type of Renaissance dance music, click here.
Renaissance music was often a cappella, meaning sung without an instrumental accompaniment. In England, madrigals were often sung. There were secular songs with four or five voices. They were often love songs. William Byrd composed Hey Ho, Greenwood, which was a madrigal, a polyphonic piece in which the various different voices took turns taking the melody. This piece can be heard by watching the video below. Listen for the multiple whistles, or flutes, played throughout the piece. They each have different melodies that stand out at different parts; it is a polyphonic piece. Motets were also sung during this time period. Motets were also polyphonic, but their multiple voices sang religious songs.

The Baroque Period

The Baroque period followed the Renaissance. After the Protestant Reformation, the Roman Catholic Church tried to earn back its prestige and followers. The Church hired many musicians and artists to create works of art and musical pieces that were religious. Eventually, this movement spread beyond the Roman Catholic Church. The opera was created during this time period. Opera has one melodic line with basic chords accompanying the melody. This is called homophony. Originally, operas were only performed in courts, until a public opera house was created in Italy in 1637. Claudio Monteverdi was one of the composers of opera during this time period. He was hired to compose religious operas, but he preferred secular operas. One of his most famous operas is called L’Orfeo and can be seen in the video below (the first one). Listen to how the trumpets and the violins take the melody in toghether throughout the piece while the other instruments provide the harmony.
The Concerto was created during this time period. In a concerto, there are two different groups of instruments. One of the groups, the ripieno, usually consists of strings and a harpsichord. The other group, the smaller one, is the concertino, and consists of a few solo instruments. The concerto was invented during this time period because of the increasing importance of instrumental music. It would have various different movements with varying tempos, or speeds. Johann Sebestian Bach was one of the later composers of concerto music. Bach composed solo concertos, in which the solo instrument is equally as important as the ripieno. Bach’s Double Violin Concerto in D Minor can be heard in the video below (the second one). Listen to how the violins are the solo instruments, while the rest of the orchestra is the harmony. While the piece, like most Baroque pieces, is very structured, Bach does add syncopation.

The Classical Period

During the Classical Period of 1750-1820, musicians were inspired by the classical times of ancient Greece and Rome. The patrons, now the aristocracies and upper classes, wanted tuneful music for dancing. In Germany, the symphony was created. The symphony was based on the homophonic style of the Baroque period, but its chords were played in unison, or at the same time. Dynamic (volume) contrasts were added, along with the change in tempo between multiple movements. Wolfgang Mozart was a famous musician who worked with symphonies and many other styles. Mozart’s Symphony 40 in G Minor can be head in the video below (the first one). Many string quartets and sonatas were also written by Mozart and other composers during this time period. Listen for the the chords that are played together and the very structured format. The Classical Period used a lot of techniques and a structured style from the Classical times (ancient Greek and Roman times). The varying dynamics are also a key aspect of this piece.
Ludwig van Beethoven was also a composer of this time period. He composed various different symphonies, sonatas, and quartets. Beethoven’s Symphony no. 3 in E-flat Major can be heard in the video below (the second one). Beethoven added more weight, more instruments, and more voices to the classical symphony’s structure. Listen for the dynamic changes and feeling behind the music as the Classical Period turned into the Romantic Period. The multiple voices develop within this piece, though it does follow a general structure.

The Romantic Period

The Romantic period followed. Romanticism rejected reason and science. As mentioned earlier, Romantic music was about nationalism and the glory of a country. Romanticism captured emotions. Its music expressed the emotions of the composer and the people of the time. Romantic music had more feeling and was able to break away from the structure of previous music styles. This set the tone for music of the present time, which often does not seem to follow any structure at all. Robert Schumann composed many different Romantic pieces of music for the piano. He was influenced by poetry and beauty, both of which helped him compose his Romantic pieces. Schumann’s Carnaval can be heard in the video below. Its varying tempos and dynamics express strong emotions and passion. Listen for these, as the slower tempos and accelerandos leave the listener with a sense of suspense. The piece expresses different emotions in its different parts.

The 20th Century

During the twentieth century, music changed. There were various different styles of music in this century. Composers took liberties with the traditional structures of symphonies and other styles of music, transforming these styles into their own, unique styles of music. The whole-tone scale was used, and music took Impressionism ideas. Composers used the whole-tone scale and Impressionism ideas. Other composers just created their own styles of music, sometimes using ideas that were never thought to be music. In the video below, one can hear John Cage's "4'33"". Listen for the fact that there is no music being played. Can silence be music? This was an idea that was unprecedented, and it was part of the twentieth century music.

Jazz

    Jazz music evolved in America during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Originating from African American folk music, Jazz is one of the few styles of music to be American. Jazz music has four aspects: melody, harmony, rhythm, and tonal qualities. The Work Song is one type of jazz music. Its upbeat, repeating melody was used to make the workday go faster. An example of the Work Song can be heard in the video below (the first one). Listen for its upbeat tempo, easy to follow tune, and the melody and harmony between the trumpet and the other instruments.
    Hot jazz was the most popular type of jazz. There were two types of jazz: straight jazz and hot jazz. In straight jazz, the performer plays the music as written with no improvisation, no variation, and no personal changes. In hot jazz, the musician is free to change pieces of the music.  Originally, this term originated from the jazz musicians who played with warmth and eloquence. Hot jazz has the proper intonations and variations that make it special. It also has a more intense expression and feeling behind the music. However, both types of jazz are swung. Yet hot jazz has more swing than straight jazz.
    The Chicago style of jazz is another type of jazz. In this type of jazz, which originated in Chicago after many southerners were drawn to Chicago looking for jobs, adds the piano the jazz piece. Most Chicago jazz music was improvised and never written. In night clubs in Chicago, jazz music was played in small bands that improvised. With the relatively basic Chicago style, the musicians were able to improvise, and this was a major reason for their success and popularity. There is some written Chicago jazz music, but it was mainly improvised. In 1928, some of the jazz musicians in Chicago collaborated to make a record of the improvisations that they performed. There was a common formula for Chicago jazz music: the ensemble introduces the tune, solos for each musician, and the collective improvisations ended the piece. An example of this type of jazz is I've Found a New Baby by the Chicago Rhythm Kings, which can be heard in the video below (the second one).   Listen to the music and remember that it is improvised. There are solos throughout the piece that are in the jazz style.

Works Cited for all of Music Section