Music Of Early Times Essay, Research Paper

Early music is based mainly on the music of the Medieval, Renaissance and

Baroque eras. Many people like to define Early Music as ending in 1750, with the

death of J.S. Bach. This is a handy date, but it misses the various stylistic

changes taking place around that time, i.e. the emergence of the gallant and

pre-classical idioms in close proximity to the final flowering of the baroque

proper. To add even more confusion, this is also not clear-cut. As with

everything else, Baroque music ended gradually and sporadically, if we are to

say that it ended all. Perhaps the significant factor defining these eras as

?early music? is that they do not have a continuous performance tradition.

In other words, this music ceased to be performed after its time had passed and

needed to be revived in our own era. This is not true of the ?classical?

music of Mozart, Beethoven, et al. Which possesses a continuous performance

tradition. This means that, to some degree, it is this revival which dominates

EM (that is, early music as a movement), at least in spirit. Of course, things

are not clear-cut here either. For instance, late Baroque composers like Bach,

Handel, Vivaldi, and etc. Were revived relatively early and therefore have a

fairly long performance tradition which is not dependent on the present early

music movement. Now we are seeing an increasingly large number of performances

of Mozart, Beethoven, and others in the content of early music; this further

muddies the waters. There is the question of pre-Medieval music. While early

musicians would undoubtedly be happy to claim it as their own, unfortunately

there is very little surviving evidence about music from earlier times. Indeed,

there are no music manuscripts from Western Europe at all. However, that

doesn?t stop some people from trying to recreate what might have been heard.

Since music has also been a performance tradition, classical concerts represent

divergences from that tradition, based upon a new look at the original context

of a composition. New composers sometimes talk about capturing the ?original

intentions? of an early composer. Although like any essentially psychological

object, these intentions can never be thoroughly concrete. As such, that

decision rests largely with the artistic intuition of the modern performer, and

should be judged on their own musical merits. Occurring mainly because society

today likes the different sound. In the case of pre-Baroque music, there are

really little choices but to attempt to recreate the sound world of the era, in

order to even approach the surviving compositions. Of course, that?s what many

?early music? performers are doing, and they are consequently reviving a

vast body of superlative music, which had previously been effectively last to

us. This is, probably, the core of ?early music.? Music today has been

influenced much by early music. From a broader perspective, it is also a

thoroughly modern idea that the ?composer?s intentions? should matter more

than what a performer chooses to do with the music in front of the composer. In

fact, it has been somewhat facetiously suggested that such an approach is not

the composer?s intention at all. Music is played very different, because

people interpret things differently, which is why music has changed so much over

time. Early music was the start of a great change in sounds. In the beginning,

with early music we can tell that the ideas were mainly from the composer. Over

time, people realized that they can interpret music in many different ways also.

This was the first movement into new music, and I believe that early music will

be played for well past my lifetime. ?We live in a time of great changes, a

time of transformation between major eras. Looking into the unsettling, the

unfamiliar, the senselessness of a world taking a dramatic turn towards the

unknown, people get lost and confused. Their fear, their need for survival even,

urges them to look inside for something big, something dramatic, something

inspiring, something that gives them courage to face the unknown and the

strength to shape it.? (Ewen, David, pg.40) Along with a great change, there

was Jazz. The start of the first real American music. With the culture change

from Early, classical music. Many things changed during this time, but mainly

was do to the changing in culture that influenced jazz. Some of the most

accomplished musicians of our time have devoted themselves to a lifelong study

of Jazz or classical music, and few exceptional musicians have actually mastered

both. A comparison of classical Jazz music will yield some interesting results

and could also lead to an appreciation of the abilities needed to perform or

compose there kinds of music. The music called classical, found in stores and

performed regularly by symphonies around the world, spans a length of time from

1600 up to the present. This time frame includes the Renaissance, Baroque,

Classical, Romantic and contemporary periods. The classical period of music

actually spans a time from of 1750 to 1800; thus, the term Classical is a

misnomer and could more correctly be changed to Early Music or European Art

Music. European because most of the major composers up till the 20th century

were European. Vivaldi was Italian, Bach was German, Mozart and Beethoven were

Austrian; they are some of the more prominent composers. Until the twentieth

century with Gershwin and a few others did we find American composers writing

this kind of art music. For the sake of convention, we can refer to Early Music

as Classical music. Jazz is a distinctively American form of music, and its

history occupies a much smaller span of time. Its origins are found in the early

1900s as some dance band leaders in the southern U.S. began playing music that

combined ragtime and blues. Early exponents of this dance music were Jelly Roll

Martin (a blues player) and Scott Joplin (ragtime). The terms of ?jazz? and

?jazz band? first surfaced in the year 1900. Some say this occurred in New

Orleans, although similar music was played at the same time in other places. The

most prominent exponents of this early music, called Dixieland Jazz, included

Louis Armstrong and Sidney Bechet. After World War I, Jazz music had evolved and

was aided by the development of the recording industry. The small dance band

ensemble grew into the larger orchestra known as the ?Big Band.? The music

of the Big Bands became known as ?Swing.? Two of the more famous Swing band

leaders were Tommy Dorsey and Harry James. In the late 40s and through the 50s,

a different kind of Jazz became popular. This music, played by a very small

ensemble, was much more sophisticated and complex . Its rich harmonic changes

and melodic counterpoint were not conducive to dance. It became known as

"Bop," with Charlie Parker and Dizzie Gillespie being the early

proponents. In the last twenty years there has been a combination of Jazz with

popular music of the US and Latin America. This modern Jazz music has been

called "Fusion." Present day exponents include Pat Metheny and Chic

Corea. There has also been a return to the sound of Bop in the last ten years by

such musicians as trumpeter Winton Marsalis and his brother Branford, a

saxophonist. Let’s focus on the instrumentation of the two kinds of music. In

Classical music, both large orchestras and small ensembles are used. Generally,

the greatest and most prominent compositions are for the larger symphony

orchestra. The largest part of the orchestra is the string section consisting of

violins, violas, cellos and string basses. These instruments were invented very

early in medieval times but really matured into their present form during the

late 18th century. The wind instruments, comprised of brass and woodwinds, took

longer to mature. The brass section in particular did not posses the ability to

play chromatically (in all keys) until the advent of valves which allowed the

length of the instrument to be changed while playing. This occurred around the

middle to late 19th century. Consequently, the brass instruments are less

prominent in the music of Bach, Mozart and Beethoven along with their

contemporaries. Late 19th and early 20th century composers make use of a very

large orchestra with all the fully developed wind instruments. Some of the

master composers of this time were: Wagner, Rimskey-Korsakov, Ravel and

Stravinsky. Currently, composers also make use of the full orchestra but with

the addition of increasingly larger percussion sections that add many unique and

unheard of sounds than in earlier music. While all these changes were happening,

many other situations changed the aspect of music to the tragedy around them.

World War II also influenced song, about Love and happiness, which was a major

start in rock music, which will be brought up later. Early Jazz music was played

in small ensembles making use of clarinet, tuba, cornet, baritone, drums, and

piano. Dixieland groups of New Orleans had similar instrumentation. During the

Swing era, larger groups were employed to achieve more of an orchestral sound.

The Big Bands of the this era were predominantly wind orchestras containing alto

and tenor sax sections, trumpet and trombone sections, along with piano and

drums. When Bop music arrived, the alto saxophone and trumpet were the preferred

instruments of the major soloists who were backed up by piano, string bass and

drums. With the advent of Fusion, electric instruments such as the electric

guitar and keyboard synthesizer became prominent. How has each of these kinds of

music been transmitted to later generations of musicians? Early in the evolution

of classical music, a system of notation was gradually developed which for the

most part remained stable from the Renaissance on. This gave the composer

control over how his compositions were to be played. Throughout the history of

Jazz, however, notation was more like a rough sketch. This was because the

syncopated rhythms of ragtime and the melodic riffs of the blues were not easily

notated. Also, early Jazz musicians were not formally trained; they usually

learned by ear. Some songs were transcribed and written down, but not in precise

ways. Jazz music became more of a passed on tradition that a musician learned

through interaction with other players. In a similar way, the modern Jazz

musician must rely on previous recordings to get a feel for the style and

technique that he desires to learn from. But in classical music, one composer

can learn from an older composer by looking at and analyzing the music that the

previous composer wrote down. Likewise, classical musicians can master the parts

they must play by practicing the music that has been written or published

beforehand. These two approaches to passing on tradition are both valid.

However, without the recording medium Jazz music might have developed much

differently than it has. The major element that keeps a musical group together

is also an interesting contrast. In Classical music, the conductor uses a baton

and plays the orchestra as if it were his instrument; he looks at a complete

score of all the events happening in the composition and interprets these events

based on his knowledge and intuition of what the composer intended. Jazz groups

rarely utilize conductors. The swing era employed them for the sake of keeping

the larger sized group together but other jazz styles did not and do not to this

day. The drummer of the Jazz ensemble provides the beat that keeps the group

together but even he is interacting with the other soloists as the song is

performed. Perhaps the most interesting point of comparison between the two

types of music is in improvisation. Improvisation is the ability to play and

compose spontaneously "on the spot" (Christy Max) while the music is

playing. This has been an important element of Jazz from its inception. Although

improvisation was less prominent during the swing era, it regained importance

with Bop and onward. Early Jazz was improvised, using ragtime and blues as a

loose structure. In the swing era, an arranger arranged popular songs and

soloists played improvisations over the repeating sections in order to lengthen

the song for dancing. With the advent of Bop, improvisation assumed great

importance. The musicians memorized the chord changes to a song, along with the

melody, but then played very loosely and in the end substituted new chords along

with greatly embellishing the original melody to the point of being

unrecognizable. These factors, along with the ability to interact with each

other, became important and remains so in the Fusion music of today. In

Classical music, modern listeners are mostly unaware of the fact that many of

the great composers of the past were not only excellent performers but also

great improvisers. Starting with J.S. Bach (1685-1750), the greatest composer of

the Baroque era, he in fact made his living through his great skill as an

improviser. It was common for the Lutheran Church organist of his day be able to

improvise on choral melodies and Bach was considered one of the greatest at

this. There are written accounts of other composers? improvisational abilities

including Mozart (1756-1791), Beethoven (1770-1829), and Franz Liszt

(1811-1886). Yet, as time went on, improvising gave way to the composer’s desire

to exert complete control over his music. By the late 19th century, improvising

was rare and not used at all in public performances of classical music. We can

say that Jazz and Classical music represent two approaches to Art Music. The

Classical composer or performer has a long and rich body of music in written

form that he uses to learn from while the Jazz musician uses a body of recorded

music to learn. Because of it’s small size, the modern Jazz ensemble allows

loose interaction while the symphony orchestra’s large size and diversity of

instruments provides many different sounds and wide dynamic range. In classical

music the composer strives for control; he uses printed music to guide and

direct the musicians through the conductor. In Jazz music, the songs are loosely

composed, thus forming a basis for individual expression within an ensemble,

which is growing in our society. When you go to hear a symphony, you hear an

orchestra conducted by the conductor playing a composition. When you go to a

Jazz club you hear a small jazz ensemble interacting and improvising a song.

They take different paths to reach their final form but give a person equal

opportunities to appreciate the creative output of each. Along with new ideas

and changes in music, rock bands were the new way to protest against society.

Among all of the rock groups, one will be remembered for their voices and the

songs of power that was a ?revolution? in the changing of music. The Beatles

were very in tune with the world around them and were greatly influenced by many

ideas, cultures, and religions. In turn, their innovations and music influenced

the world, even today. Early in their career, The Beatles were strongly

influenced by American music. They especially idolized artists such as Bill

Haley (?Rock Around the Clock Tonite?), Buddy Holly (?Peggy Sue?), and

many Rhythm and Blues artists such as Willie Dixon. It?s clear in The Beatles

evolution that these roots were a strong influence on the music that The Beatles

created. With this combination of styles and origins, the music that The Beatles

played and composed was a revolution in itself, something that hadn?t been

thought of before. Some precise examples of these earth-shattering compositions

are the #1 hit ?Please, Please, Me?, and also a #1 hit ?She Loves You?.

These early Beatles tunes were instrumental in crafting their own musical style.

As The Beatles matured, they began to be more perceptive to events all

throughout the world and their tremendous popularity was growing day by day. The

exponential growth rate of fans was so large that The Beatles were the first

rock group permitted to play in, not to mention sell out the London Palladium, a

grand achievement. The Palladium, until then, was a very exclusive and elegant

concert hall usually reserved for the likes of the London Symphony Orchestra.

Although selling out the Palladium was quite a feat, the 15 million viewers that

watched the concert on the BBC was an even greater one. This was the first time

in England that a rock group had established so much credibility that The

Beatles were invited to play at a Royal Command Performance for the Queen. The

influences of traditional British society, although already evident in their

choice of attire, began to permeate their music. For example, ?Yesterday?

began as a heavy rock tune, but the poetic influences of Brits such as William

Shakespeare turned it into the love ballad it is today. Another good example of

the London influence on The Beatles in ?Yesterday? is the string quartet

from the London Symphony Orchestra that plays the melody. This was indicative of

the influence that The Beatles had on the English music, social, and political

scenes, as well as the ways in which traditional English society influenced The

Beatles. 1966 began a new Beatles trend full of psychedelic drugs. Their recent

release of Revolver marked the beginning of this new trend. Revolver was

strongly influenced by American Professor Timothy Leary. Leary was an

exceptional influence on The Beatles, especially John Lennon. Dr. Leary

popularized the hallucinogen LSD, and was a major American proponent of peace

and free will. Interestingly enough, when Timothy Leary decided that he was

going to run for governor of California, in order to have the influence needed

to truly make peace in the world, John wrote ?Come Together? for Leary?s

campaign. Leary also sang ?Give Peace A Chance? with John and Yoko Ono. The

strong drug influences are evident particularly in ?Strawberry Fields

Forever?(written by John Lennon), in phrases such as ?Nothing is real and

nothing to get hung about? and ?Living is easy with eyes closed,

misunderstanding all you see.? These key phrases are obvious descriptions of

their recent experimentation with LSD. Songs describing John?s trips are great

in number on the Magical Mystery Tour album that was released in 1967. Examples

of these are ?Penny Lane? and ?I Am the Walrus?. ?Penny Lane? deals

with John?s interpretation of a trip while crossing Penny Lane, and while in

the park on Penny Lane. ?I Am the Walrus? is one of the first true examples

of Paul?s drug use and identifies with his fantasy of being a walrus. Drugs

had a strong influence on The Beatles, and their musical interpretations caused

by drugs helped to influence drug culture in the world, not just among their

fans, but among many youths. Another Beatles innovation was the utilization of

Indian instruments in their music. They began to implement use of the sitar and

tabla in many songs, especially on the White Album, which was released in 1968,

a year coinciding with a Beatles visit to India. Cultures and people influenced

these changes in music. I chose to expand on the Beatles because they are the

absolute best example of how rock music is different than Classical, but they

were just due to changes in time. Meditation and finding oneself also became an

important part of Beatles life. This Hindu and Buddhist ritual appealed to the

band because it helped them to write better songs. This led to the downfall of

The Beatles as they began to argue over songs and styles; their excursions

within themselves had backfired and turned them against each other. The Beatles

were the most influential rock group in all of history, but they couldn?t have

had such a great effect on the world without their many inspirations. They

seemed to take the best of different cultures and combine them in their music to

create a diverse and interesting sound. Without The Beatles, the world would be

a much different place today. Over time we can tell that music changed for many

reasons. I am sure that there are many other groups, other than the examples

above that influenced the change in music. From Early music, to Modern Rock and

Jazz there is a major difference in the sound, but it is still influenced by

classical music.