Music in Classical Era - Essay Example

? Music in ical Era Music illustrates a rich history with marked evolution over the years among various societies and civilizations. This is easily credited to the role of music in a given society as well as the thirst for a new sound. Music is a critical identifier in any given culture owing to unique styles and composition applied. As such, music has grown from antiquity in the earliest civilizations to the contemporary and scientific age that characterizes modern sounds. In essence, through the enriched history of music, it has emerged as an influential industry in the world over. Of the various eras in music history, the classical era stands out as a unique period regarded as the age of enlightenment. In light of this, the paper seeks to explore the classical era in the history of music, paying attention to the cultural characteristics, musical development, and the role of musicals in the society. Classical Era The classical era was preceded by the Baroque period, which provided a unique basis of evolution in terms of form, style, and medium. The period between 1750 and 1820 experienced the height of classical compositions and performances across Europe. This follows the shift towards new styles in architecture, literature, and arts in the continent that sought to emulate classical antiquity from ancient Greece. The works of great philosophers such as Isaac Newton would soon be incorporated in music, as composers and performers sought structural clarity. This catalyzed the evolution of the Baroque period into the classical period of layered instrumental melodies to create a combination dubbed homophony. The pre-classical music presented a change in form, style, and production eventually replacing old forms of music with new sectional structures. This indicates a sharp contrast with previous styles where music was mostly written for human voices and instruments were regarded as dull compared to the human voice. Notably, a symphony orchestra is a widely acknowledged medium of classical music, which involves a group of instruments from various classes. This comprises a string section that includes harps, violins, and string bass; brass section with French horn, trumpet, and tuba; a percussion section with drums, cymbals, xylophones, and chimes; and a woodwind section incorporating flutes, clarinet, and bassoon. As such, orchestra bands consist of large numbers of players, each with his or her own music piece that is performed concurrently. However, the size and composition of the orchestra are largely dependent on the music piece being performed. At the height of classical music, about 10 performers for serenades, which spurred the rapid development of opera, performed compositions. This development was characterized by regional styles across Europe that would identify the origin and inspiration behind the piece. Notable Composers The classical era provided recognition to renowned composers for their work that sought striking melodies and dramatic effects. Their unique compositional styles refined previous works to produce clearer textures and dramatic shifts in the performance of music. Among these composers known for their role in the classical period are Joseph Haydn, Wolfgang Mozart, Ludwig van Beethoven, Muzio Clementi, and Luigi Boccherini, to mention but a few. Haydn is regarded as the father of symphony owing to his role in the development and expansion of the presentation and is credited for numerous symphonies. Another classical composer worth noting is Beethoven whose work is considered as a bridge between classical and romantic eras. Mozart is well known for his compositions, especially the wedding of Figaro, which is quite popular and has had a significant impact in society, generally. His compositions took an educational turn with the influence of J. S. Bach who only served to inspire him further into applying mathematics and ethics into his compositions. Through this, the society saw change in music becoming a form of communication, where he applied social and educational principles into music for all to learn in an enjoyable form. Moreover, in modern times, there have been studies done in psychology, where it has been discovered that listening to classical musical has a significant impact on one’s intelligence. As a result, the study came up with the term “the Mozart effect” to refer to the improvement of one’s intelligence after listening to classical music, especially that which was composed by Mozart himself (Bangerta & Heath, 2004). Characteristics of Classical Music Music from the classical era was characterized by an overhaul in the various aspects of composition and presentation. The overhaul majored in the texture, melody, timbre, form, and dynamics to establish a reign that would last about 80 years. In contrast to preceding eras, classical compositions comprised fluctuations in mood within a single performance. As such, the rhythm can be described as entirely flexible to accommodate the highs and lows depicted by the mood. This largely incorporated a wide range of dynamics as demonstrated by the use of crescendos, diminuendos, formatas, and pauses to depict variations in rhythm. The fundamental identifier of the classical era is the radical departure from a layered polyphony texture to mostly homophonic, which was a single melody line accompanied by notes of the chord (Miller, 2002). This was widely referred to as the chordal style, which served to replace the traditional style employed by baroque music, and establish a highly thematic identity. Consequently, a complex harmony was achieved using principal triads such as tonic, dominant, and subdominant chords. Compositions were highly ornamented while other details that were dominant in previous eras were kept aside. The sonata form was the most dominant to present a dramatic performance composed of an exposition, development, and recapitulation. Influences and Impacts The classical period was precipitated by various social, political, and cultural influences, which were characteristic of the prevailing society. Classical music can be traced to the events that were the highlight of the past civilizations such as Renaissance and Classicism. These periods saw the society re-evaluate its values and standards with regard to art, architecture, and literature. Renaissance illustrates a period of cultural movement and its spread to the rest of Europe with Italy considered as the birthplace, which saw the outlook and institutions of the Middle Ages merge. It is during this period that radical change would be experienced at all levels of the society, giving rise to the European civilization, which later transformed the modern Western civilization. The scholars would write about their life experiences as well as humanly feelings. In addition, literary works and artistic achievements used perspective to depict human emotions through gestures and expressions. Similarly, they portrayed the human anatomy in a more precise manner in order to encourage appreciation. Artistic expressions also changed the perception of the society, which was later used for architecture. Politically, the 18th century saw the death of King Louis XIV of France who held the longest reign in European history, and his reign provided political stability in the region in spite of wars among the European countries. The stability catalyzed social rest that is crucial in the development of cultural practices such as music compositions and proliferation of other social advances. Classical music held political significance as it was widely preferred by the governing elite to indicate their social status. Similarly, the height of classical music coincided with the American independence, which provided a unique opportunity for the evolution of music. This was facilitated by cultural exchange that sought to enrich music by incorporating new ideas of composition and presentation. The classical era is also regarded as the age of enlightenment following social and cultural events that were characteristic of the period. Classicism entailed expression by philosophers through art, literature, and music sourced from ancient Greece, emphasizing simplicity, form, and restraint. The age of reason sought to break barriers with regard to the rigid social stratification and eliminate prejudice while improving education. It was in the same period that crusades were a common occurrence precipitating the establishment of freemasonry. The secret society attracted membership from various professions including musicians such as Mozart. The changes brought about by Mozart and his music were the result of his involvement in freemasonry, in which he was a believer in his final years of life. It was because of his involvement with the freemasons that he was widely misunderstood and underappreciated, especially among the music elite or those that understood his music and its background. The society in which he lived was predominantly catholic and his being once a believer of Catholicism saw him meet some of resistance against his music (Fuchs, n.d.). This is because freemasonry was the result of enlightenment, where Mozart was utterly enlightened and was then converted into a freemason. Notably, various scientific discoveries contributed to the expansion of classical music by facilitating innovation among composers. These discoveries culminated industrialization, which saw the mass production of musical instruments. In the same vein, innovation saw the development of new musical instruments such as piano, violin, etc. The printing press revolutionized the writing, teaching, and the availability of music as it could be easily produced. Commercial and industrial activities explicated significantly to introduce new and more efficient products to the society. As a result, capitalism in most city-states replaced most primitive forms of economic organization (Perry, Chase, M. Jacob, J. Jacob, and Laue, 2009). This is a defining characteristic of the modern Western civilization, whose commercial activities are based on capitalism. The adoption of capitalism by the earlier civilizations enhanced pre-existing social inequalities, which, for instance, widened the gap between the rich and poor. At the height of the booming commercial activities, people on the middle-class level of the society increased in number as they amassed wealth, which played a crucial role in the economic and cultural life. As such, classical music established itself as a preference among the prosperous middle class families who identified with the sophistication that accompanied production of music. Consequently, classical music composers were highly revered in the society to the extent of influencing public opinion. The society appreciated the role of composers in creating a valuable piece that they could identify with in every sense of their existence. They were also regarded as watchdogs since they highlighted social issues in their performances, for most compositions fluctuated in rhythm to depict emotions. In conclusion, the significance of classical music in society over the years cannot be lessened. Compositions from this era have been indicated to influence later evolution of music with modern genres borrowing heavily from the classical period. This can be attributed to the rich presentation of compositions that comprises a harmony of numerous instruments from different classes. Studies indicate stimulated intelligence and calm resulting from listening to classical music. Notably, the genre is associated with sophistication and elegance in modern society as evidenced by the attendance. References Bangerta, A., & Heath, C. (2004). The Mozart effect: Tracking the evolution of a scienti?c legend. British Journal of Social Psychology, 43, 605–623. Fuchs, P. (n.d.). A resolution of Mozart and freemasonry: Enlightenment and the persistence of Counter-Reformation. Retrieved from http://www.masonmusic.org/Mozart%20and%20the%20Enlightenment.pdf. Miller, R. (2002). A survey of classical music. Appassionata Music Publishing. Retrieved from http://clem.mscd.edu/~millr/1000/1000-pdf/Classical-supplemental.pdf. Perry, M., Chase, M., Jacob, M., Jacob, J., & Laue T. (2009). Western civilization: Ideas, politics and society. USA: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Read More