Baroque period, (17th–18th century) Era in the arts that originated in Italy in the 17th century and flourished elsewhere well into the 18th century. It embraced painting, sculpture, architecture, decorative arts, and music. The word, derived from a Portuguese term for an irregularly shaped pearl and originally used derogatorily, has long been employed to describe a variety of characteristics, from dramatic to bizarre to overdecorated. The style was embraced by countries absorbed in the Counter-Reformation; artworks commissioned by the Roman Catholic church were overtly emotional and sensory. The period’s most notable practitioners were Annibale Carracci (see Carracci family), Caravaggio, and Gian Lorenzo Bernini. A spectacular example of the Baroque arts is the Palace of Versailles. In music, the Baroque era is usually considered to extend from c. 1600 to c. 1750, when such significant new vocal and instrumental genres as opera, oratorio, cantata, sonata, and concerto were introduced and such towering composers as Claudio Monteverdi, J.S. Bach, and George Frideric Handel flourished.
FAQs
Baroque period summary? ›
The Baroque period refers to an era that started around 1600 and ended around 1750, and included composers like Bach,
The Baroque style used contrast, movement, exuberant detail, deep color, grandeur, and surprise to achieve a sense of awe. The style began at the start of the 17th century in Rome, then spread rapidly to the rest of Italy, France, Spain, and Portugal, then to Austria, southern Germany, and Poland.
What is Baroque period short summary? ›The Baroque is a highly ornate and elaborate style of architecture, art and design that flourished in Europe in the 17th and first half of the 18th century. Originating in Italy, its influence quickly spread across Europe and it became the first visual style to have a significant worldwide impact.
What is the Baroque period in a nutshell? ›Baroque period, (17th–18th century) Era in the arts that originated in Italy in the 17th century and flourished elsewhere well into the 18th century. It embraced painting, sculpture, architecture, decorative arts, and music.
What best describes Baroque period? ›Some of the qualities most frequently associated with the Baroque are grandeur, sensuous richness, drama, dynamism, movement, tension, emotional exuberance, and a tendency to blur distinctions between the various arts.
What is the main focus of Baroque? ›Baroque emphasizes dramatic, exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted, detail. Due to its exuberant irregularities, Baroque art has often been defined as being bizarre, or uneven.
What is Baroque period music known for? ›Baroque music expanded the size, range, and complexity of instrumental performance, and also established the mixed vocal/instrumental forms of opera, cantata and oratorio and the instrumental forms of the solo concerto and sonata as musical genres.
How do you explain Baroque? ›Did you know? Baroque came to English from the French word barroque, meaning "irregularly shaped." At first, the word in French was used mostly to refer to pearls. Eventually, it came to describe an extravagant style of art characterized by curving lines, gilt, and gold.
What would the Baroque period be described as? ›Characteristic of the baroque period was its grandiosity and use of sophisticated details to create a sense of drama and contrast. Some new musical forms of the Baroque period include opera, oratorio, cantata, concerto, and sonata.
What was the reason for the Baroque period? ›The Baroque started as a response of the Catholic Church to the many criticisms that arose during the Protestant Reformation in the 16th-century. The seat of the Catholic Church in the Vatican saw in art an opportunity for reconnecting with the people.
What was happening in the Baroque period? ›
The Baroque period refers to an era that started around 1600 and ended around 1750, and included composers like Bach, Vivaldi and Handel, who pioneered new styles like the concerto and the sonata. The Baroque period saw an explosion of new musical styles with the introduction of the concerto, the sonata and the opera.
What are 3 characteristics of the Baroque era? ›What are the main characteristics of the Baroque Era? The main characteristics of Baroque Era society were humanism and the increasing secularization of society. The music characteristics of the Baroque Era included fast movement, ornamentation, dramatic alterations in tempo and volume, and expressiveness.
What was life like in the Baroque period? ›Most people worked for the nobility (kings, queens and their families) or for the church and most kids didn't go to school. The church was a very important part of people's lives. The most popular instrument was the harpsichord. Music had many independent voices and lots of ornaments.
What characteristic best describes the arts of Baroque period? ›Some of the qualities most frequently associated with the Baroque are grandeur, sensuous richness, drama, dynamism, movement, tension, emotional exuberance, and a tendency to blur distinctions between the various arts.
What important movement occurred during the Baroque period? ›The most important factors during the Baroque era were the Reformation and the Counter-Reformation, with the development of the Baroque style considered to be linked closely with the Catholic Church.
What is the main theme of Baroque art? ›The Baroque was a movement that exhibited tremendous themes as monumental spectacles: intense light, grand visions, ecstasies and death, religious conversions, martyrdom, and a commitment to religious commemoration.
What is the aim of Baroque style? ›The goal of Baroque art was to reflect the social turmoil in Europe and the influence of the Catholic Church. The key characteristics of Baroque style include dramatic colors, intense piety, use of light and dark, and theatrical physical poses.
What is the basic philosophy of the Baroque period? ›The characteristic feature of Baroque thinking is that the basic concepts – for metaphysical considerations – of possibility, necessity and contingency are framed in formulas referring to the feasibility for God.