Alessandro Stradella (1639-1682)
Alessandro Stradella was an Italian composer of the middle Baroque period. He wrote operas, cantatas, oratorios, and instrumental pieces (mostly for stringed instruments and basso continuo).
Chare Jesu suavissimo (Dear Sweet Jesus) is a song to Jesus. It is performed in this recording by contralto Gérard Lesne and the ensemble Il Seminario musicale. I hope you enjoy this beautiful music!
John Dunstable (1380-1453)
John Dunstable was an English composer of polyphonic music (a style of music which consists of two or more relatively independent musical lines that sound simultaneously). Dunstable was active as a composer from the late medieval period until the early Renaissance. He was very well known as a composer in England and across Europe.
The motet Sancta Maria by Dunstable is full of triadic harmony (chordal harmony) and sounds quite modern for its time. A lot of music back then was based on modes (early scales), and harmony as we now know it didn’t exist at that time. The main musical line in the motet is taken by the Tenor voice.
Johann Joseph Fux (1660-1741)
Johann Joseph Fux was an Austrian composer, music theorist, organist to three emperors at the Imperial Court in Vienna, and important pedagogue during the late baroque period (1660-1741). He is most well known as the author of a treatise on counterpoint entitled Gradus ad Parnassum. Fux composed sacred music, instrumental pieces, oratorios, and a few operas.
Emilia’s aria is from an opera by Fux entitled Julo Ascanio. In this recording it is sung by Radu Marian who is a “natural castrato.” His voice did not break during puberty, so what you hear in this recording is his natural singing voice.
Charles-Marie Widor (1844-1937)
Charles-Marie Widor was a French organist, composer, and teacher. He wrote works for various instruments and ensembles. He is mostly known today for his ten organ symphonies.
Here is the Agnus Dei from Widor’s Mass op.36 for choir and organ. It is performed by the Schola Cantorum of Saint Agnes based in New York City. James D. Wetzel is the organist and choirmaster. David Enlow is the guest organist. The music is very skillfully composed. Listen to how the voices meld together and how well the organ accompaniment fits and provides a mood for the piece. Enjoy!
Max Bruch (1838-1920)
Max Bruch was a 19th century German composer, pianist, and violinist. He is most well known for his violin compositions. Bruch also composed a few pieces for the piano. His six pieces for piano (op.12) are fairly early works, but are full of beautiful melody. They are charming pieces that are short and lyrical.
Bruch played both the violin and the piano. He performed in public a few times as a pianist but claimed that he liked the violin more than the piano. According to Bruch the violin could “sing a melody better than the piano can, and melody is the soul of music.”
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart is known as a child prodigy (as a performer and as a composer). He played the piano, viola, violin, harpsichord, and organ. Mozart began composing around the age of 5. He is known today for works such as the “Eine Kliene Nachtmusik” suite, the “Jupiter” Symphony, his piano sonatas, and his Requiem among other works.
Mozart also composed pieces for the pipe organ. Mozart only wrote a few organ compositions, and among those compositions the Fantasie in f minor is a masterpiece. The Fantasie is a massive piece that can hold its own alongside the great organ works of J.S. Bach. It is a very difficult piece to play musically. Listen to all the changes of mood and the various tonal colours the organist in this recording gets out of the organ.
Here is a recording of Mozart’s Fantasie in f minor for pipe organ. I am not sure who is playing the piece in this recording. I hope you enjoy this piece.
Teodorico Pedrini (1671-1746)
Teodorico Pedrini was an Italian priest, musician, composer, and missionary. He served as a missionary at the Imperial Court of China for 36 years. Pedrini was the music teacher to three sons of one of China’s emperors. He was the co-author of the first treatise on Western Music theory written in Chinese.
The Sonata no.10 is written for Violin and continuo. Here is a recording of it played by a group called Le Baroque Nomade. It is one of several sonatas written for the Kangxi Emperor. Enjoy!
Johann Schobert (c.1735-1767) was a harpsichordist, fortepianist, and composer. He was an important influence on the young Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Mozart borrowed melodies from movements of Schobert’s harpsichord sonatas and used them in some of his earliest piano concertos. He also borrowed other musical ideas from Schobert and built on those ideas in his earliest piano sonatas.
Here is a recording of Johann Schobert’s Piano Concerto in G major.
Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741) was an Italian composer and violin virtuoso. Today he is best known as the composer of 4 violin concertos called the Four Seasons.
Vivaldi composed around 550 concertos. About 350 of his concertos are for a solo instrument, and of those roughly 230 are violin concertos. Vivaldi also composed some interesting concertos for multiple solo instruments with orchestra (about 30), and nearly 60 concertos for orchestra without a solo instrument (the orchestra is the solo instrument).
Here is a recording of one of Vivaldi’s concertos for diverse instruments (a concerto for multiple instruments) played by the famous baroque ensemble Europa Galante. It is full of rhythmic drive and it is lively. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.
Vivaldi Concerto with multiple instruments:
Joseph Haydn (1732-1809) was an Austrian composer. He has often been referred to as the the “Father of the Symphony” and the “Father of the String Quartet.” Haydn wrote about 104 symphonies and 80 string quartets. He also wrote music for the church, large scale works for orchestra, soloists, and choruses (such as masses and oratorios), and around 50 piano sonatas. It has been said that when he had an idea for a composition (whatever the instrumentation) he would sit down at the keyboard and improvise and work out musical ideas.
For over 30 years Haydn worked for the Esterhazy family. In 1790, Prince Nicolaus Esterhazy died. Haydn was invited to go to London, England by the impresario J.P. Salomon. It was only once he was out of the Esterhazy court and in London that Haydn received his first real recognition, and gratitude from people for all the fruits of his labour.
Works by Joseph Haydn and his brother Michael Haydn (also a composer) have been unjustly neglected and overshadowed by other composers such as W.A. Mozart.
Some of the music by Joseph Haydn and Michael Haydn is very interesting and in some ways better than some of W.A. Mozart’s music.
Here is a recording of two movements of a Haydn Piano Sonata played by the famous Russian pianist Vladimir Horowitz live in Carnegie Hall in 1966.
Horowitz plays Haydn (1):
Horowitz plays Haydn (2):
Musical Treats 