MUSIC

Classical Period 1 /7

1732 –1809

A very exquisite period of Music is this one when we find composers giving us a well balanced and inspiring atmosphere of melodies and instrumentation during the late XVIII and beginning of XIX century, We will try to select some of the most significant names and their most relevant masterpieces to help you remember and enjoy their contribution to the world.

We are absolutely sure to make you feel and enjoy it like a marvelous journey to times simple but profound roots of what human beings can reach when listening and travelling along the composer to a land where you may encounter yourself with some musical proposals of finest quality ever thought to be discovered.

Enjoy them as we have found them all suited for you,

ALMO

almoxxi.blogspot.com

Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia . . .

The Classical period was an era of classical music between roughly 1750 and 1820.^[1]

The classical period falls between the Baroque andc Romantic periods. It is mainly homophonic, using a clear melody line over a subordinate chordal accompaniment,^[2] but counterpoint was by no means forgotten, especially in liturgical vocal music and, later in the period, secular instrumental music. It also makes use of style galant which emphasizes light elegance in place of the Baroque's dignified seriousness and impressive grandeur. Variety and contrast within a piece became more pronounced than before, and the orchestra increased in size, range, and power.

The harpsichord declined as the main keyboard instrument and superseded by the piano (or fortepiano). Unlike the harpsichord, which plucks strings with quills, pianos strike the strings with leather-covered hammers when the keys are pressed, which enables the performer to play louder or softer (hence the original name "fortepiano," literally "loud soft") and play with more expression; in contrast, the force with which a performer plays the harpsichord keys does not change the sound. Instrumental music was considered important by Classical period composers. The main kinds of instrumental music were the sonata, trio, string quartet, quintet, symphony (performed by an orchestra), and the solo concerto, which featured a virtuoso solo performer playing a solo work for violin, piano, flute, or another instrument, accompanied by an orchestra. Vocal music, such as songs for a singer and piano (notably the work of Schubert), choral works, and opera (a staged dramatic work for singers and orchestra), was also important during this period.

Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia . . .

Franz Joseph Haydn 31 March 1732 – 31 May 1809) was an Austrian composer of the Classical period. He was instrumental in the development of chamber music such as the string quartet and piano trio. His contributions to musical form have led him to be called "Father of the Symphony" and "Father of the String quartet".

Haydn arose from humble origins, the child of working people in a rural village. He established his career first by serving as a chorister at St. Stephen's Cathedral, Vienna, then through an arduous period as a freelance musician. Eventually he found career success, spending much of his working life as music director for the wealthy Esterházy family at their palace of Eszterháza in rural Hungary. Though he had his own orchestra there, it isolated him from other composers and trends in music so that he was, as he put it, "forced to become original". During this period his music circulated widely in publication, eventually making him the most celebrated composer in Europe. With the death of his primary patron Nikolaus Esterházy in 1790, Haydn was free to travel, and augmented his fame—now as a performer before the public—in both London and Vienna. The last years of his life (1803–1809) were spent in a state of debility, unable to compose due to poor health. He died in Vienna in 1809 at the age of 77.