classical music eras

classical music eras

Classical music is a style of music attributed to Europe. Today, musicians divide classical music eras into several periods according to their historical evolution and different styles.In this article, we are going to briefly review seven important music periods.

Music has been a part of our lives for thousands of years. Man first learned music from nature and then produced musical sounds with the tools of life and work. The early era of music consisted of writings that were specific to the human voice. Gradually, over the centuries, music developed in different societies, including the West, and early composers formed classical music in Europe in the fifth century.

Before examining the music periods, it is better to know what classical music is and what style of music musicians call classical.

What is classical music?

Classical music is a style of music that is usually attributed to art music in Europe. This style of music has a principled, precise, and written structure. The beginning of this style of music dates back to the fall of the ancient Roman Empire.

Today, Classical music has complex musical form and harmonic organization. This type of music has a serious style and the characteristics of the piece such as composition, pace, and composers determine the speed of performance. Musicians and conductors play it seriously and perform exactly the same work.

Classical music eras include different periods of music. From these eras, we can mention the musical period of the Medieval, Renaissance, Romanticism, etc., which we will discuss in the following.

Medieval era

One of the classical music eras is the medieval era music, which started with the collapse of the Roman Empire and continued until the Renaissance period in the middle of the 15th century. During the Middle Ages, the church had a great influence on music. Therefore, because the composers were in the service of the church, most of the pieces of music written during that time were religious.

In the Middle Ages, composers wrote classical music pieces as a single melody line without accompaniment and called it monophonic. Among the monophonic pieces, we can mention the Gregorian Chant, which monks often sang. Over time, the pieces expanded from monophonic to polyphonic. Among the most common medieval instruments, we can mention the organ, recorder, and flute.

Renaissance era

The era of Renaissance music is one of the classical music eras. This era started in Italy in 1400 AD and continued until 1600. The pieces of music that composers wrote during the Renaissance period and monks sang them in the church as choral pieces and called polyphonic. One or more choirs without instrumental accompaniment sang these pieces, and for this reason, musicians also called the era of Renaissance music, the era of choral acapella.

This era was an era of discovery and innovation for musicians, and also with the invention of the printing press, music education and learning expanded. Music by the Renaissance was revived. As a result, along with religious songs, non-religious music also became popular. We can mention recorders and string instruments among the most important instruments of that time.

Baroque era

The baroque period music which flourished between 1600 and 1750 is one of the seven classical music eras. Many concepts and terms of classical music are related to this era. We can mention Concertos, operas, and sonatas among the important musical styles that flourished in the Baroque period. During this time, the role of the church in music decreased and non-religious music grew.

Baroque composers agreed on a system to tune their instruments to make it easier to play the instruments. Composers composed instruments in a standard way. Thus, for the first time, composers created the concept of an orchestra in the Baroque era, where stringed instruments were the core of it. one of the famous instruments of that time was the harpsichord instrument.

Among the most famous composers of classical music in the Baroque era, we can mention the great musicians Johann Sebastian Bach and Handel from Germany and Vivaldi from Italy.

Classical era

The classical era, which emerged between 1750 and 1820, is another of the seven classical music eras throughout history. During this period, there were fundamental changes in social values and people expressed the ideas of human rights and freedom of religion. For this reason, the classical era is also known as the Age of Enlightenment.

In this era, with the progress made in the order and structure of instrumental music, musicians created the symphony form. Along with that, sonata and concerto forms were also developed. In the classical era, great changes were made in the orchestras, and with the addition of wind instruments such as trumpet, flute, and clarinet, a new color was given to the sound of orchestras.

It was in this era, the piano replaced the harpsichord. In general, classical music in this era was simpler and clearer than in the Baroque era. In the classical era, the structure of music in most of the musical works had a dominant melody, which we call homophonic. During this period, the city of Vienna was one of the most important music centers in Europe.

Classical composers such as Haydn, Mozart musician and, Beethoven also traveled to Vienna to study and gain fame. Haydn wrote beautiful and wonderful pieces for choral, opera and orchestra and had great achievements in symphony. Beethoven emerged in the late 18th century and transcended the classical style. It was Beethoven composer who brought classical music to the Romantic era.

Romantic era

The era of romantic music that started from 1830 and continued until 1910 is another of the classical music eras in which emotions are strongly expressed. During this period, concerts and operas moved to concert halls and came out of the monopoly of the rich classes and royal families. In music from the Romantic period, emotions played a significant role and musical works became more extroverted.

Romantic composers tended to compose drum pieces. During the Romantic era, the relationship between classical music, literature, and theater became closer. Beethoven and Schubert were composers who tied the Classical period to the Romantic period. Opera and ballet flourished on the stage more than before.

This era includes more composers than other classical music eras. Among the Romantic composers, we can mention Chopin, Schubert, Schumann, Berlioz, Liszt, Wagner, Brahms, Verdi, and Puccini. Hector Berlioz, who is one of the most influential composers of this era.

Modern era

The modern classical music goes back to the years 1910 to 1975. In this era, music started with the continuation of romantic music works, and the modernism of the 20th century influenced on the music, like other arts. In the modern era, classical music underwent major changes in its style. These changes originate from the advancement of technology and political conditions. During this period, we see the development of styles such as jazz and folk music, which had a great impact on some 20th century composers.

In this period of the classical music eras, composers tried to create different works with innovation compared to the past styles. It was during this period that modernism, impressionism, serialism, and minimalism were born. Elgar, Debussy, Faure, as well as Holst, Shostakovich, Britten, Prokofiev, Stravinsky, Bernstein, Copland, Philip Glass, Satie, and John Williams can be mentioned among the prominent composers of this era.

Contemporary classical music era (21st century)

The contemporary era of classical music began in 1970 and continues until now. Now this era is the last one of classical music eras. Classical music since the 20th century has become much more intangible than before. In this era, composers tend to make minimal and abstract music. As time goes by, composers move away from the limits and rules of classical music.

Now contemporary classical music, unlike the sonatas and symphonies of the past, has more flexibility to create a work. Musical diversity in the contemporary era is more than any other musical eras. Different genres are combined with each other without any restrictions. Access to the Internet and advanced technology have had a profound impact on classical music.

Conclusion

In this article, we tried to briefly describe the seven classical music eras. As you read in this article, music has changed a lot during different periods of music according to the conditions of society. Great composers and musicians grew in every period. The works left by these composers are still among the most influential works of classical music.