classical concerto

• Classical Solo Concerto


  During the Classical Period, the Baroque Concerto Grosso went "out of fashion" and Classical composers continued to write SOLO CONCERTOS for a single solo instrument with more difficult and technically demanding solo parts (VIRTUOSIC), accompanied by a now, much larger and more developed, orchestra
• Classical Solo Concerto period

  1750-1820
• Classical Solo Concerto


  • SIMPLE HARMONY making use of mainly PRIMARY CHORDS – I, IV and V, DIATONIC harmony in either clear MAJOR or MINOR tonalities, MODULATIONS to RELATED KEYS (relative major/minor, subdominant major and minor and dominant major/minor)
• Venue


  Performance spaces were becoming larger than in the Baroque period due to size of orchestras, Recital and Concert Halls and Opera Houses were popular venues for performing Concertos
• Classical Solo Concerto form

  THREE MOVEMENTS – contrasted by TEMPO and style/mood, RONDO form now popular (ABACADA...) where A is the recurring THEME between contrasting EPISODES (B, C, D...) and SONATA FORM (EXPOSITION, DEVELOPMENT, RECAPITULATION, CODA) now popular, Classical Solo Concertos often have long orchestral sections before the soloist enters – "delayed entry of the soloist", Movements longer than Baroque
• Classical Solo Concerto movements

  • 1st Movement: Sonata Form, Brisk and purposeful
  • 2nd Movement: Slow and lyrical
  • 3rd Movement: Rondo or Sonata Form, Fast and virtuosic
• Virtuosic solo parts


  • Accompanied by a now much larger and more developed orchestra
• Simple harmony


  Making use of mainly primary chords - I, IV and V
• Diatonic harmony


  In either clear major or minor tonalities
• Modulations


  To related keys (relative major/minor, subdominant major and minor and dominant major/minor)
• Performance spaces


  • Becoming larger than in the Baroque period due to size of orchestras
  • Recital and Concert Halls and Opera Houses were popular venues for performing Concertos
• Classical Solo Concerto structure

  1. Three movements - contrasted by tempo and style/mood

  2. Rondo form now popular (ABACADA...) where A is the recurring theme between contrasting episodes (B, C, D..)

  3. Sonata form (exposition, development, recapitulation, coda) now popular

  4. Long orchestral sections before the soloist enters - "delayed entry of the soloist"

  5. Movements longer than Baroque
• Characteristics of the three movements

  • 1st Movement: Sonata form, brisk and purposeful
  • 2nd Movement: Ternary or variation form, slow, lyrical and song-like
  • 3rd Movement: Rondo, variation form or sonata form, fast and cheerful
• Rhythm, tempo and metre


  • Contrasted between the three movements - fast-slow-fast
  • Some changes of tempo for effect/expression
• Texture


  • Busy Baroque polyphonic textures now replaced with clearer homophonic (melody and accompaniment) textures
• Dynamics


  • Wider range - pp, ff, mp, mf
  • Crescendos and decrescendos or diminuendos used, showing increasing range and more emphasis on expression
• Melody


  • Light, simple and elegant
  • Use of sequences and ornaments (although not as much as Baroque)
  • Balanced and even phrases (e.g. 4 or 8 bars)
  • Some question and answer phrases
• Cadenza


  • Integral to the end of the 1st movement (and sometimes last movement)
  • Very difficult and virtuosic unaccompanied sections allowing the soloist to show off technical skill
  • Often containing fast scale passages, broken chords and decorated/ornamented melodies
  • Often ending with a long, held trill to signal the orchestra to enter again for the final coda section
  • Cadenzas were improvised by soloists during performance, but composers like Beethoven wrote them out
• Soloist's part


  • More technically demanding and virtuosic than Baroque Concertos
• Soloist vs. orchestral accompaniment

  • Sections performed in dialogue with each other
  • Conductor follows the soloist and the orchestra follows the conductor depending on the soloist's interpretation (which requires rehearsal)
• Classical Solo Concerto composers

  • Haydn
  • Mozart
  • Beethoven
• Instrumentation


  • Harpsichord declined, no more continuo parts
  • Conductor established to lead the orchestra
  • Orchestra grew in size, new instruments like clarinet added
  • Typically 30-60 players
  • Strings (1st/2nd violins, violas, cellos, double basses) main section
  • Woodwind - 2 each of flutes, oboes, bassoons, clarinets
  • Brass - 2 horns, 2 trumpets
  • Percussion - timpani
• Classical composers wrote solo concertos for a variety of instruments including piano, violin, cello, flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon and French horn