Study Guides

Unit Summary

This unit introduces pupils to the Western Classical Tradition. It explores chamber, orchestral and vocal ensembles, musical features and key composers from the Baroque, Classical and Romantic periods, and takes a broad look at tonality and harmony across these periods.

Lesson Summary

You will learn to explain the various ways that voices have been used throughout the periods of Western classical music.

Key Notes

• Composers have used voices in many different ways.
• Solo songs, such as lieder, were particularly common from the Romantic period onwards.
• They often used techniques such as word-painting and melisma.
• Opera used solo singers, a chorus and orchestra to tell epic stories, using arias and recitative.
• In the Baroque period, oratorios and anthems are two key genres of vocal music.

Vocabulary To Learn

• choir / chorus: a group of singers, often including soprano, alto, tenor and bass voices (SATB)
• lied: a solo song, most common in the Romantic period, usually with piano accompaniment (plural 'lieder')
• recitative: a vocal style that sounds semi-spoken, often used for dialogue in opera
• word-painting: where a vocal melody reflects the meaning of the words (e.g. a descending melody on the word 'falls')
• melisma: where multiple notes are sung during one syllable of a word

Common Mistakes To Avoid

• Oratorios and anthems are essentially the same - they are both religious, with similar musical features.

3 Quick Questions (With Answers)

More Lessons In This Unit

• An introduction to the Western Classical tradition Study Guide
• Harmony and tonality in Western classical music Study Guide
• Music for small ensembles Study Guide
• The orchestra Study Guide