Post # 11 Interviewing Julie Rivers

Yesterday I interviewed Mrs. Julie Rivers, an excellent keyboard professor that was kind enough to answer some of my Baroque inspired questions. She has comments on Glenn Gould, J. S. Bach and tips for pianists on interpreting Baroque music.  Have fun listening to the audio!

# 10 Mechanics of the Harpsichord Pt. 2

Now that you have a basic understanding of how a harpsichord string is plucked let's go over the aftermath of the process when the plectrum must be lowered without making another plucking noise.  And again a picture.  (Credit to Wikipedia)
The little yellow circle is the string. We're looking at this from the front or the back of the harpsichord. After the musician lets go of the key, the jack fall back to its original place due to its own weight. The plectrum is held by the "pink" tongue in the picture. It swivels on a little axis and has a spring next to it so it can move.  The plectrum is ever so carefully angled so that when it comes back down it hits the string forcing the tongue to swing back against the spring, relieving the weight that would otherwise pluck the string!  So, now you kind of understand how the harpsichord works. if you want a more detailed description check out this book on google: A Guide to the Harpsichord.  

Next week I will post an interview with a keyboard music professor.  So stayed tuned!

#9, Mechanics of the Harpsichord

To better understand the harpsichord I thought it might be helpful to actually explain to you how it works... at least the basics.  So hopefully you won't get bored, and let's get started!  (I'll split this into two posts since this topic is a bit tricky,)

Here's a nifty little chart for you visual learners. (Credit to Wikipedia)

To gain your sense of direction, the left side shows the actual key a musician would play.  When you press on the key, the key pivots down pushing the jacks upward.  Inside of the jacks is something called a plectrum.  Plectrums were originally made out of bird quill but are now usually made of plastic.  The plectrum juts out horizontally so that it can pluck the string, creating sound.  The key is stopped from moving farther upwards than necessary by a cushioned (to muffle the impact) jack rail.  That is the basic understanding of how the key is plucked.  The way the plectrum is lowered without plucking the string again will be explained in the next post.  

#8, Spinets and Virginals

As we have learned, the harpsichord is a keyboard instrument that produces sounds by plucking.  Two popular keyboard instruments under the harpsichord family were the spinet and the virginal.
Spinets were basically the more affordable option for musicians during the Baroque era in comparison to the harpsichord.  They were cheaper and took up less space but came with the sacrifice of tone quality.  Like every other instrument of the Baroque era, the number of pitches and tuning varied from instrument to instrument.  This made possible different price ranges.  The biggest difference in terms of build is that the strings come from the keyboard towards the right at a thirty degree angle.  The harpsichord's strings go straight from the keyboard and away from the player.  This unique design was what saved space since the instrument was "lopsided."  This was also the aspect that sacrificed tone quality.
Virginals were a low key, smaller, and more portable version of the harpsichord.  Like the harpsichord the wire strings are plucked by "plectra."  Essentially, this instrument has the same mechanics of the harpsichord.  The key difference is that it often does not have legs and is a rectangular box and the strings run parallel to the keyboard.  It was often placed on a table in order to be played.  Like the spinet it came in different sizes ranging from two and half feet to six feet long.  This of course led to different pitch variance from instrument to instrument.
If you are interested in hearing the difference between these tow, below is first a video of an Allemande (a slow dance) played on the spinet, and then a Scarlatti Sonata demonstrated on a virginal.

Post #6, Woodwinds Continued

We will now wrap up the study of woodwind instruments.  The Bassoon and three types of oboes are left to discuss.  The three types of oboes are the Oboe d'amore, the taille, and the Oboe da caccia.
The bassoon was mainly used to reinforce the bass line during this time period.  Jean-Baptiste Lully was one of the first who added the bassoon as well as the oboes to a primarily string orchestra.  One fascinating thing about this instrument is that it was invented and never evolved from anything else.
The Oboe d'amore first appeared in the early 17th century and enjoyed success at Bach's hands, fell out of disuse but again regained some importance through Richard Strauss and Claude Debussy.  Most oboists rent and do not own their own oboe d' amore due to the high price and lack of extensive repertoire.
The taille was used by Bach to double viola parts.  It was often used for jubilant parts due to its loud and piercing sound.  Due to its rarity and near disuse the cor anglais is often used as a substitution.
The oboe da caccia is an interesting case.  For many years musicologists thought that all of them had been lost or destroyed until Cary Carp, a museum curator in Stockholm Sweden, identified two of the instruments in the museum as oboe da caccias.  They are unplayable but in good condition and so have been replicated.  Bach and Fasch are the only known composers for this almost forgotten instrument.
The bassoon and oboes marked the beginning of the double reeds introduction into the orchestra.  Although most of them have fallen out of prominence at the time they were important for doubling inner melodies and the bass line.

Post #7, Harpsichords 1.

Tonight we will look at the harpsichord and the attributes of this amazing instrument. In the next post I will discuss the different types of harpsichords available to the people of the Baroque period. Basically, this will be an overview of the harpsichord. This instrument was popular during the 16th and 17th centuries and gradually fell out of popularity during the 18th century (everyone was too excited about the piano to care about the harpsichord.) During the 20th century an interest in the instrument grew and replicas were made to try to duplicate the music of the Baroque era accurately. It has even appeared in popular culture such as in "Slim Shady" by Eminem.

The harpsichord was used for solo pieces and often accompanied other instruments. Unlike the piano, the harpsichord has no dynamics. To compensate for this, many models had settings where more than one set of strings at a time would be plucked as you played increasing the volume. To imitate this, pianists will change dynamics suddenly instead of gradually changing dynamics with crescendos or decrescendos. Often the hands will play at completely different dynamics to bring out theme in pieces that have multiple voicings.  Many also had two separate keyboards in order to have a larger pitch range.
 So now you have a general idea of what harpsichords were all about. They were versatile; holding prominence in concertos for harpsichord but also could be used to accompany a violinist's sonata.

Post #5, Woodwind Instruments

 There are quiet a few woodwind instruments to discuss so I will be breaking this article into two posts.  Along with all of the popular brass and string instruments that we have discussed, woodwind instruments were also used.  Among the woodwind family six of them were influential or extremely popular at the time.  Recorders, flutes, bassoons, and three types of oboes were popular.  

Recorders belong to the iinternal duct flutes family.  This means that recorders have a whistle mouthpiece.  It has a thumb hole for the left hand and seven finger holes.  This was a popular instrument during the Medieval and Baroque period but has since waned out of popularity.  Recorders are generally split into bass, tenor, alto, and soprano voicings.  Curiously each instrument plays one octave higher than the voice it is named after.  For example a soprano usually sings from C4-C6 while the recorder plays C5-C7 although recorders were often not standardized and varied greatly in pitch potential.  The recorder was regarded as having a sweet sound (try to convince an elementary music teacher this) so Bach, Purcell, and Telemon among others used it to conjure images of miracles, shepherds, fields, birds, and anything to do with serene nature.  

The flute is an instrument with lasting popularity and found its way into the symphony from chamber music during the Baroque era.  During the Baroque period it was broken into three sections, instead of one or two during earlier times.  Often it was not a musician's primary instrument but by 1707 Jaques Martin Hotteterre wrote the first method book for flute.  

Below is a slideshow of these instruments plus a preview of the ones coming up next week!

And so you can hear a recorder sounding lovely as opposed to music class in elementary school...

Post #4, German and Italian Composers

Alright readers, I thought it would be nice to go over some composers.  Shake things up a bit.  We'll get back to the instruments next week.  The vast majority of  key composers come from two different countries in Europe.  This post will mostly be about which geographical areas offered what to music- with composers used as examples. Johann Sebastian Back and George Frederick Handel were from Germany as were most of the composers from this era.  Antonio Vivaldi was an Italian.

Let's start with the Germans-Bach and Handel.  German Baroque music is generally strong in structure.  The structure of each phrase is carefully and meticulously planned-it always makes sense.  Germans were also the kings of counterpoint.  Counterpoint is music that has been divided up into different voices which adhere to strict guidelines.  In "Strict Counterpoint" notes are subject to severe guidelines in which directions they may go or how big their intervals can be.  Bach's Fugues are a great example of counterpoint.  In each of his fugues there is a little theme that is a few measure long that happens in one voice (there are four voices).  Throughout the piece the motif switches around appearing in all of the other voices, sometimes even overlapping with another voice repeating the motif!  Although German, Handel implemented some Italian influence in his pieces.  He follows  German structure as seen in "The Messiah," but also uses lovely, floating melodies that accentuate and flatter the voice as was the Italians' habit.

Our Italian for today is Antonio Vivaldi (blog post 2 has a recording of one of his pieces).  Vivaldi enjoyed using rhythmic variance and established well structured harmony that had not been seen during the Renaissance.  This eventually trickled into Germany, heavily influencing Bach's work in terms of harmony.  Italian music in general loved accentuating the richness of different instruments. They wrote music to make an instrument sound beautiful, one of their favorites being the voice.  They also loved writing catchy songs that a listener might remember for weeks.  Below is an example of one of Vivaldi's "catchy" concertos (this one has been stuck in my head for years). Slower paced songs harped on beauty leading the heart through an entrancing emotional experience.  This phenomena was generally but not exclusively found in opera.



Below is one of Bach's Fugues.  It is harmonically sound due to the influences of Vivaldi but has savagely structured counterpoint throughout!  The right hand starts as one of the voices and presents the motif (theme the other voices will sing.)  At ( :19) the left hand begins playing the same motif the right hand was playing.



Germany and Italy were distinctly different but eventually combined to create music that is strong in harmonies, passion, and structure.  This period of time was the beginning of everything that we know about music.  Bach, Handel, and Vivaldi carved the way with their daring musical innovations.
Here is a map demonstrating the close proximity of Germany and Italy. A situation that created great music!

Blog post #3, Brass Instruments

Unlike stringed instruments, brass instruments were not near as popular.  One reason for this being the difficulty involved in playing these rather primitive instruments.  Later developments made them much more accessible to musical participants.  Music written during this time period was rather complex so playing any Baroque piece on top of one of these already difficult instruments would have been nearly impossible.

What is known as the “natural trumpet” became increasingly popular throughout the Baroque era.  Before the Baroque period it was used for military purposes such as announcing a retreat or breaking up camp.  Girolamo Fantini among others was one of the first that recognized this instrument’s capabilities in orchestral settings by changing the embouchure used.  By doing this he could add two notes therefore producing an entire harmonic scale.   Over the following years this instrument fell out of popularity because of its need for highly skilled musicians.  The

invention of the keyed trumpet around 1815 was the final straw of the natural trumpet’s demise. 

The natural horn, an extremely popular instrument of this time, has a similar story to the natural trumpet.  It also ended its commission during the early 1800s due to the introduction of the “keyed” version.  This instrument had several notes missing in its range.  To compensate, a musician had to use “bending” or “hand stopping” to produce the missing notes.  “Bending” is changing embouchure slightly to lower or raise a pitch by just a fraction.  “Hand stopping” is inserting a cup shaped hand into the bell.  This changes the pitch as well as the timbre.  Pretty complicated methods…

Although brass instruments were not always the most popular choice during the Baroque Period, this era was again the foundation for the modern orchestra by introducing two crucial orchestral instruments: the trumpet and horn.  

Post #2, Popular Stringed Instruments of the Baroque Period

As the first part of our venture let us discuss the popular stringed instruments of the Baroque Era.  During this time period instruments started the process of standardization and the basic instruments that make up classical music were established.  These included the violin, viola, cello and lute. 

The violin during the previous Renaissance era varied depending on the maker and the preferences of the musician both in size and register.  By the mid 1600s the violin became increasingly standardized although it still varied from the modern day violin that we have today.  It has been modified since then to carry sound farther and to allow for a larger note range.  For example, around 1600 the average violin’s E string could reach a C.  By 1700 the A an entire octave above the E string was achieved on the average instrument- a five-note difference from a hundred years earlier!  This was achieved due to a longer neck.  The strings were gut (sheep) strings instead of metal or synthetic that we use today.  Playing technique differed as well.  The violin was placed on the shoulder or collar bone instead of in between the chin and shoulder as we do today.  This made shifting up and down the strings almost impossible, not to mention uncomfortable.  Baroque technique also used vibrato very sparingly.  Only very long notes would use vibrato and phrases that ended in slurs would use no vibrato.

The viola did not enjoy the success that the violin did during this time period.  J.S Bach and Claudio Monteverdi both wrote a few pieces for this instrument creating a bridge for it to enjoy success later on.  The viola was never quiet standardized and varied in size and musical range.  By the 1730s as musicians approached the classical era a series of “sympathetic” strings were put underneath the already existing strings.  This created a warm sound which Mozart described as "especially charming in the stillness of the evening."

The early cello was an attempt to create a companion for the viola in harmony.  The gut strings would not allow the instrument to increase in size to create a low enough register.  Around 1660 wire-wound strings were invented and Bolognese instrument makers created the cello.  These strings still did not hold tune or resonate as loudly as the strings of today but it did allow the Baroque musicians to create a wonderful bass line for string ensembles, particularly for dances.  The bass sound of the cello helped dancers keep in time with the music and allowed for the complex musical qualities of Baroque music to develop.

            The lute was extremely popular during medieval times and was still strongly utilized until the end of the Baroque era for secular purposes.  Most instruments varied in size but by this time period they were tuned in D minor in series of octaves.  The strings and pitches are extremely stretched out but most of the music is played on open strings making playing relatively easy for the average musician of the time. 

            As we wrap up I would like to point out that the Baroque era was really the foundation to Western music as we know it today.  All of these instruments, excluding the lute, have become the basis for our modern day symphonies.  During this time period we became vastly closer to reaching the instrumental uniformity of today.  The idea of mixing similar instruments but with different ranges to create harmonies was a new and modern way of dealing with music.  Below I have attached a lovely lute piece by Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741), an extremely prestigious Baroque composer.   

Post #1, Hello music nerds!

With much passion and meticulous research, this blog will become a fountain of information pertaining to the best musical time period in history-the Baroque era (c. 1600-1750).  When I was seven, I began playing the piano.  Around the age of 17, a Ukrainian instructor taught me how to play Baroque music on the piano in a more authentic way, imitating Baroque standards.  After this instruction, I have always had an insatiable hunger to learn everything pertaining to the Baroque era.  The structure and power of the music is captivating.  This era was the foundation for Western music as we know it today.  It is the beginning of something wonderful.  We must thank the musicians of the past for our chordal progressions, beautiful harmonies, and the introduction of instruments we all adore.  In this blog the evolution and basic history of the popular musical instruments of this time period will be discussed, particularly the harpsichord. We will explore the brilliant men and women of the era and how they shaped and changed music forever.  New genres and techniques introduced in the Baroque era will be thoroughly researched and dissected.  Hopefully, this blog will become a valuable resource for musical nerds like myself who are particularly fascinated with this revolutionary era that changed music forever.