AOS 1: Western Classical Music 1600-1899

Set work 1: G. F. Handel: Chorus: And the Glory of the

Lord from the oratorio Messiah (1741)
BAROQUE ERA (16001750)
This set work is one musical number from a large-scale work called an
oratorio.
What is an oratorio?
An oratorio is a large-scale work written for voices and orchestra. It is
like an opera, as it tells a story through music; however, unlike an opera
it is based on a Biblical story (from the Bible). They were performed as a
concert with no acting.
Features of the Baroque era
Functional harmony: diatonic chords (I, IV, V, ii, vi).
Use of continuo (organ and cello).
Use of ornamented melodies.
Pieces had one overall mood, or affection.
Clear use of different textures.
Use of small Baroque orchestra: strings with harpsichord/organ
playing chords.
Different textures used in And the Glory of the Lord
Monophonic (single line): only very short examples, e.g. first alto
entry.
Homophonic (four parts together): this can be heard whenever all
voice parts are singing the same words at the same time, e.g. last
3 bars hath spoken it.
Polyphonic
o Two ideas together: this can be heard whenever there are two
different lines of text being sung at the same time, e.g.
sopranos singing for the mouth of the lord hath spoken it; altos
singing and the glory of the lord.
o Simple imitation between parts: this can be heard whenever
parts imitate one another; this is a kind of polyphonic texture.
Doubling of parts is another texture used, whenever two voice
parts sing the same thing, e.g. tenors and basses for the mouth
*You may well be asked to describe the texture of an extract: remember to
use one of these words, but also describe what is happening and when, e.g.
The extract starts with a polyphonic instrumental introduction, then the altos
sing And the glory and the texture briefly becomes monophonic. After this

AOS 1: Western Classical Music 1600-1899

4 Melodic Themes
The melodic themes of this piece are based on the 4 lines of text:
1.

Syllabic
First three notes are notes of the tonic triad
Stepwise up to tonic note: Lord
Word Lord is repeated

2.

Melismatic at revealed
Sequence (2nd and 3rd bar)
Dotted crotchets and quavers
3.

4.

Melismatic at flesh, see and together

Repeated motif (all flesh shall see it together)
Crotchets and quavers
Rises by leap and then descends by step

AOS 1: Western Classical Music 1600-1899

Syllabic
Long repeated pedal notes: A (tonic)
Doubled by tenors and basses
Dotted minims, minims and crotchets

Instrumentation
This piece is written for:
Voices:
o soprano
o male alto
o tenor
o bass
Strings:
o Violin I
o Violin II
o Viola
Continuo: organ (not harpsichord) and cello
*You may be asked to spot the instrument.
Cadences
A cadence is a set of 2 chords used at the end of a phrase or section.
They can sound finished or unfinished.
*You may be asked to name a cadence by ear use the tips below.
Finished cadences
If the cadence sounds finished it will be either a perfect or plagal
cadence.
Perfect cadence: this is by far the most common cadence and uses
chord V to chord I (5-1)
Plagal cadence: this is the typical Amen cadence and uses chord
IV to chord I (4-1). It is only used at the very end of And the Glory.
Unfinished cadences
If the cadence sounds unfinished it will be an imperfect cadence.
Imperfect: chord I to chord V (1-5)

AOS 1: Western Classical Music 1600-1899

Set work 2: W. A. Mozart: 1st movement from Symphony

No. 40 in G minor (1788)
CLASSICAL ERA (17501830)
Features of Classical era
Functional harmony.
Graceful melody lines.
Periodic phrasing (balance).
Use of melody-dominated homophony.
Musical forms/structures were balanced and symmetrical (e.g.
sonata form).
Use of Classical orchestra (now larger, with no harpsichord).
Contrasts in dynamics.
Classical Orchestra
Strings:
o Violins
o Violas
o Cellos
o Double basses
Woodwind:
o Flutes
o Oboes
o Clarinets
o Bassoons

Brass:
o Trumpets (!)
o French horns

Percussion:
o Timpani (!)

What is interesting about the

instrumentation of this piece?
There are no trumpets and no
timpani.

Classical harmony and tonality

Classical harmony is functional: i.e. based on the

primary triads I, IV, V, ii and vi. This certainly reflects their desire
for things to be balanced and reserved.

Classical tonality is based on the relationships between

keys: i.e. when a piece modulates (changes key) it must modulate
to a related key. These are: the relative major/minor or the
dominant (V). However, in the development section of sonata form,
the piece does modulate to unrelated keys.

AOS 1: Western Classical Music 1600-1899

Sonata form
Sonata form is in 3 large sections: exposition, development and
recapitulation.
1. Exposition

First subject in tonic (G minor)

Bridge (modulates)
Second subject in relative major (B-flat major)
Codetta

2. Development:
Ideas from the first and second subject developed.
Different, unrelated keys explored.
3. Recapitulation: First subject in tonic
Bridge (doesnt modulate)
Second subject in tonic
Coda
Melodic themes
* The first and second subjects are very different and you will need to
recognise them by ear.
First subject:

Dramatic mood: minor tonality, short note-values, repeated motif.

Repeated opening motif (quaver-quaver-crotchet).
Played by string section: violins play melody in octaves; violas play
quaver accompaniment.
Short note-values.
Melody-dominated homophony.

AOS 1: Western Classical Music 1600-1899

Second subject:

Pathtique mood (melancholy): major tonality, gracefulness, use of

semitones.
Use of semitones chromatic.
Shared between strings and woodwind.
Longer note values.
Melody-dominated homophony.
Development
*You may need to describe the techniques of development based on an
extract practise by listening to this section at home but there are
some developments listed below.
Opening quaver-quaver-crotchet motif treated as a sequence.
Imitation between parts.
Lots of unrelated keys explored.

AOS 1: Western Classical Music 1600-1899

Set work 3: F. Chopin: Prelude No. 15 in D-flat major (1838)

ROMANTIC ERA (18001900)
Features of the Romantic era
Emphasis on expressing feelings/emotions.
Complex harmony: chromatic, extended chords.
Melody lines longer and more developed.
Use of rubato (being flexible with tempo).
Music more technically difficult: rise of the Virtuoso performer.
Strong and varied dynamics.
Development of the piano
The piano that we know today was developed in the Romantic era. It had
certain features which allowed performers and composers to express
emotion through music (this was, of course, really important in the
Romantic era):
The piano was enlarged to create a greater sound.
The range increased.
Pedals were invented: the soft pedal (to soften the tone), and the
sustain pedal (to allow smooth, emotive playing).
Chopins pianistic style
Melody lines are long and cantabile (in a singing style).
Use of graceful ornamentation (turn and acciaccatura).
Use of rubato (being flexible with tempo).
Simple chord accompaniments.
Prelude
A prelude is a short opening piece that comes before a fugue. It usually
sets the mood and tonality of the fugue to follow. However, Chopins
preludes do not come before anything else.
Ternary form
Ternary form is a form with 3 sections. The first and last are the same, so
we can say the structure is ABA. In this piece there is also a coda.
A. This lyrical and graceful section is in D-flat major. The raindrops
are the repeated A-flats played by the left hand as part of the
accompaniment. The texture is melody-dominated homophony.
B. This section is much more dramatic and is in C-sharp minor (the
tonic minor: D-flat and C-sharp are enharmonic equivalents). The
melody is now played by the left hand and is made up of chords.
The raindrops are now G-sharps, played by the right hand, and
sound more like a bell ringing than the rain falling. The dynamics
become much louder in this section. The texture is homophonic.
A. The repeat of the A section is much shorter that the first section.

AOS 1: Western Classical Music 1600-1899

CODA. The coda starts forte with a monophonic texture and ends
pianissimo with a chordal texture.
Melodic themes
*You may well be asked to recognise the themes by ear.
A.

(raindrops A-flats in left hand)

Lyrical cantabile melody.
Opens with fall by leaps; the melody then rises by step before
falling by step back to the tonic.
Turn and acciaccatura at end.
Dotted rhythms.
Played by right hand.
Played piano (softly).
D-flat major.
B.

(raindrops G-sharps in right hand)

Played by left hand.

Melody is made up of chords (2 notes together).
All crotchets even note values.
Dynamics increase (gets louder).
C-sharp minor.