The period in music and art history from about 1600-1750 is known as the baroque. The word baroque was adopted by art historians in the 20th century and was an 18th century jewelers' term used to describe large pearls of irregular shape, derived from the Italian word barocco, meaning bizarre. The baroque period produced such composers as Johann Sebastian Bach, George Frederick Handel and Antonio Vivaldi. The ancient Greek influence of Renniassance humanism made its way into music, beginning with a small group of philosophers, musicians and poets known as the camerata ("the associates"). The camerata in Florence, Italy converged to try and set ancient Greek drama to music, which eventually lead to opera.

Absolutism

The baroque age is also known as the age of absolutism or the divine right of kings. A monarch had absolute power over the state. In the 17th and 18th centuries, most of the European regions were not established as countries as we know them today. Germany and Italy, for example, consisted of a tight patchwork of states. Each state functioned much like a separate country, having its own monarchy.

France was one of the first European regions to have a single identity with one monarch. Louis the XIV of France reined from 1638-1715 and was one of the most influential and ruthless rulers in history. Much of the king's daily routine involved pomp and ceremony and all of the people he employed in his court (including artists and musicians) revolved around these daily routines. Pomp and splendor was such a priority in Louis's court, he had a palace constructed outside of Paris that had some 1300 rooms, including an 80-yard long hall of mirrors. Soon other rulers tried to adopt Louis's style, which eventually became the norm.

With the exception of opera, music played a subsidiary role in courts throughout Europe. Composers were employed not much above servant status to provide music for specific ceremonies or even background music while the king and his subjects were eating (Louis the XIVth employed a musician partly for the purpose of playing him to sleep at night). Composers were also employed to compose and stage operas. Although the subject matter of these operas were usually taken from Ancient Greece or Roman antiquity, there would often be some heroic reference to the king in the opera's storyline (libretto)

The Age of Science

The Baroque period is also considered the age of scientific discoveries. Galileo made new astronomical observations with his newly perfected telescope. Newton developed his theory of gravity and Leeuwenhoek observed microorganisms for the first time. Galileo and Johannes Kepler supported the idea of a heliocentric (sun centered) universe, as opposed to the commonly accepted earth-centered (geocentric) universe.

The development of scientific observation affected the way artists, composers and philosophers approached their work. Baroque artists such as Caravaggio and Jan Vermeer developed a style of painting that is known for its accuracy in depicting light. In music, rhythm became more consistent and measured. This was a departure from music of the Renaissance where beats were often obscured. To mark time more clearly, music directors would often beat time with a stick or staff against the floor. Jean Baptist Lully (1632-1687), actually died from blood poisoning because he accidentally jabbed his foot with a staff while furiously beating time. The baroque composers approach to rhythm was extremely measured, not to mention dangerous.

The French philosopher Rene Descartes developed a systemized analysis of different emotions that made its way into music. Composers would use certain scales, melodies and keys to depict specific emotions or affections, such as rage, excitement and grandeur.

Response question: Listen to the baroque sound clips on the music appreciation Web site and view at least two baroque paintings at the following link: http://www.artlex.com/ArtLex/b/baroque.htmlIn your own words, describe how these works might depict or represent the trends of absolutism and/or scientific development in the baroque era.