The Characteristics Of Baroque Style

When considering the differences between the Rococo and Neoclassic styles, it is striking how completely different they are from each other. In the area of architecture, it is easy to see how they diverge when looking at examples of the styles. The Ottobeuren Abbey in Bavaria, Germany is a true embodiment of Rococo with its countless gilded, vapor-like coils of plaster and stone, bright, playful colors, and heavily sculpted décor. The United States Supreme Court, a familiar study in Neoclassic architecture, is the polar opposite. Someone viewing its stately, symmetrical shape, understated coloration with an emphasis on natural materials like marble, and towering, stately pillars may wonder if it came from the same planet as the abbey in Germany.

The Editors of Encyclopædia Britannica. "Baroque Architecture." Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 23 Nov. 2015. Web. 25 Apr.

The Baroque Era and the Classical Era are two critical time periods in observing music. Some of the most famous composers have written pieces that are popular in the world today. The two periods share many similar characteristics, however new genres and forms developed throughout each period because of new ideas and knowledge spreading. My personal favorite is the Baroque period because of the abundance of new musical knowledge that was introduced, particularly in Vivaldi’s famous piece La Primavera, Concerto for Violin and String Orchestra, Op. 8, No. 1, I.

New ideas and art was being introduced everywhere. It was a time of personal expression and drama. There was controversy between Catholics and Protestants which caused long periods of religious war. It was also a time of scientific research and astronomical studies.

•The use of the basso continuo, also known as thoroughbass, is a bass line running

The era known as the Baroque period includes the seventeenth and most of the eighteenth centuries in Europe. The Baroque style was a style in which the art and artists of the time focused upon details and intricate designs. Their art often appeals to the mind by way of the heart. During this time the portraits began to portray modern life, and artists turned their backs on classical tradition. Much of the art shows great energy and feeling, and a dramatic use of light, scale, and balance (Preble 302). Buildings were more elaborate and ornately decorated. These works of art created history and altered the progress of Western Civilization. Architecture such as the palace of Versailles, and artists like

•The creation of the baroque style—an art style full of emotion, flamboyancy, symbolism, vigor, and subtlety—largely as a product of the Catholic Church patronage of the arts

Peter’s Basilica are architecturally different, yet they both unite those people who put their faith in the Catholic Church and into the hands of God by using these structures as propaganda. St. Peter’s Basilica is an excellent representation of Baroque and Renaissance style art and architecture due to the time period that construction began for this magnificent building. Gaudi’s La Sagrada Familia is unique even for other basilicas and cathedrals built in the Gothic style. He brings together new ways of architecture and construction that make La Sagrada Familia such an interesting and outstanding structure years before its completion. However, despite the differences in appearance between St. Peter’s Basilica and La Sagrada Familia, they both share similarities that tell the story of Catholicism and bring visitors from different backgrounds and religions to one meeting

Music has been categorized over time in different periods, each of which have their own characteristics, composers and music style. Two of those important periods were baroque and romantic, which had left an important musical legacy though history. The baroque was the period from about 1600 to 1750. It was called one of the best periods of the music history, because there was a huge change from the style of composition from antique and renaissance music which achieved great expectations about this music. Furthermore, Baroque music was written by great composers such as Bach, Handel, Rameau and Vivaldi who were the most representative composers of the period. In addition, Baroque music was characterized

The Baroque Period (1600-1750) was mainly a period of newly discovered ideas. From major new innovations in science, to vivid changes in geography, people were exploring more of the world around them. The music of the baroque period was just as extreme as the new changes. Newly recognized composers such as Bach, Handel, Vivaldi, and Monteverdi were writing entirely new musical ideas and giving a chance for new voices to be heard that were normally not thought of sounds. Their musical legacy is still recognized today, and is a treasured discovery of outstanding compositions being reiterated with every performance of them.

A number of modern artists have focused on reflecting personal perception of the world through a contemporary Baroque style in art. The increasing popularity of Baroque nowadays is due to the complex processes that took place in society and the solutions the modern culture has to offer to resolve them. Truly, through the history, the emergence of Baroque elements has always reflected the complexity of human life, followed by technological progress and cultural exchange. Eventually, Baroque, the style characterized by extravagance and drama, has been defined as anti-classical, innovative and experimental, intended to touch directly the beholder, individual of diverse and pluralistic society.

There are so many different types of art and different eras they come from that have developed after the Baroque period ended. Each with it’s own motive to express art, feelings, messages, views. But without one movement they do not expand. Each era has taken a little but of something from each other to make that time better

St. Peter Claver was a humble looking church, without the towering spires or detailed architecture that some churches possess in order to fill you with worshipful awe. In fact, it would have been almost unrecognizable as a church if it were not for the relatively small silver cross that hung above the door, not even raised above the line of the roof. Walking into the church did not change the sense of humility that the outside professed. Dark wood lined the walls and floor, and made up the pews. It felt almost like stepping into a cabin that had been built in the 1970’s. Along the walls there were small portrait sized depictions of the fourteen stations of the cross. Unlike St. Agnes’s eye catching and baroque decorations, St. Peter Claver’s artwork almost blended into the background, and was not immediately visible. It appeared that the artwork mirrored the nature of the building itself, almost as if the church wanted to dispense with frivolity and maintain its focus on the practice of its faith.

It is hard to believe that what began during the Renaissance would be followed by what we refer to as the Baroque period beginning in the 1600’s and later the Rococo. The term Baroque was first used in the eighteenth-century by critics in a negative way. “To the eyes of these critics, who favored the restraint and order of Neoclassicism, the works of Bernini, Borromini, and Pietro da Cortona appeared bizarre, absurd, even diseased—in other words, misshapen, like an imperfect pearl” (Camara, E., n.d. para. 12). Stylistic style differs in the Baroque period with the use of interrupted contours, dynamism, and instability. In addition, artists were moving toward a more realistic subject matter and not the idealized portrayals we saw in the Renaissance period.

At this time last year, I would have considered all music before the 20th century to be classical. However, after taking a Dual Credit Music Appreciation course, I realized that “old” music cannot simply be grouped into a single category. There are so many differences that I had no idea existed. Throughout the years, music has changed and evolved, meeting the needs of listeners and performers. Different composers have been catalysts in this change as they have developed new styles and genres. Even though the classical period is directly subsequent of the baroque period, baroque and classical music have countless different qualities and characteristics.