Baroque vs. Modern Pop
MUSI200 27 January 2013 Baroque Vs. Modern Pop The Western music known today has its roots in the musical practices found in Europe and the Middle East over twenty centuries ago. These musical practices, in turn, have their roots in ancient Greek and Roman practices which are detailed in musical and philosophical treatises of the time. Greek civilization, with its political structures, its architectural and musical attainments, and its great achievements in philosophy and poetry, has influenced European culture and in turn American culture (Hansen, 2012).
I have taken two excerpts of music, Marin Marais (1656-1728) – Pieces a Une Viole du Premier Livre (1686) and a Pop group name R. E. M and there last concert at the BBC. I have chosen R. E. M because their music is based off of the Baroque era with a modern day flare. After listen to both pieces, I was touched by the Baroque era music. I enjoyed both concerts, but I think I enjoyed the Pop concert more than the Baroque concert. The Pop concert of course had more rhythm and the difference in instruments made a difference to me.
The drums where the biggest difference, had my foot tapping and my head bobbing, and the Baroque concert had me in a state of relaxation and peace of mind. The music differs from one another through the type of instruments used. The Baroque music used piano and chello unlike the modern day music using acoustic instruments and percussions. They even used electric guitars. I think the biggest difference was the singing; I stated previously that the drums were the biggest difference but the singing was definitely the biggest difference.
The Baroque had no singing in the entire concert. The music was similar in the instruments told a story even though the Baroque music did not have words it still told a story, you could almost imagine or maybe even visualize the story being told and at your own words to the music. The Pop music of course had words but even then if you remove the words from the music it had the same effect as the Baroque music. The roles of concerts in the Baroque era I think played a role in society that we lack today.
Back then in those times people went to concerts to escape the everyday life and learn something new, it was like a story being told or news being passed. Musicians were highly revered not role models like the musicians of today. Pop concerts today we attend as a form of entertainment, we go to see our favorite band or singer. We don’t attend for the appreciation of music like they did in the Baroque days. Today we have a different kind of appreciation of music, it’s whoever is hot at the time, whatever song is the big hit at the moment.
There are certain types of people that attend these types of concerts. The Baroque attendees, I would say a more intellectual type a person that loves the art of music, a person that really appreciate music. The Pop attendees, I would say are more care free and just want to have fun and not have to worry about anything but, having fun, a person that just wants to feel good and carefree for a moment. Our experiences with music are influenced by many factors. The biggest factor is the internet. We have access to things that we didn’t have back in the days before the internet.
We can easily move music around and get the sound out to the masses. In the Baroque era it may have taken a year for one composer to get his music heard by the masses. In conclusion, the Baroque era and the Pop era are so different but yet so similar, I guess it would come down to ones own opinion of each type of music. I would think that any music lover would appreciate both eras of music. Works Cited Bethanie Hansen, Cathy Silverman, and David Whitehouse, Music Appreciation, 2012. Website (http://www. youtube. com/watch? v=poCRFiaoCLA) Website (http://www. youtube. com/watch? v=uaYVa1r0nlA)
