7. Introduction to the Baroque

Overview

This lecture introduces the brilliant and exuberant Baroque Era. In a series of comparisons between Renaissance and Baroque music, this lecture differentiates between the measured elegance of Renaissance music and the often extravagant emotionalism of Baroque music. Special attention is paid to the scientific and investigative spirit of the Baroque and its impact on the arts of the era. The Baroque artistic duality of emotional extravagance and intellectual control is examined as a manifestation of the scientific and philosophical currents of the time. The lecture concludes with an examination of magnificence in Baroque art, using as a musical example the genre of French overture.

Cast