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Chapter 18
George Frideric Handel
Messiah, selections
Chapter at a Glance
Listen to This First
Form: Paired Movements
Word-Music Relationships: Virtuosic Word Painting
A Single Melody
Homophonic Texture
A Stark Timbre
Sectional Form
The Same Melody for the Same Words
Varied Textures
Varied Timbres
Connect Your Playlist: Varied Textures
Listening Guide: Messiah, selections
(1
Chapter Objectives
After reading the chapter and listening to the work, students should be able to:
18.2 Identify the distinguishing features of recitative, aria, and chorus.
1
trasting musical textures in each of these three
movements from Messiah.
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Key Concepts
Chapter Highlight: Oratorio
An oratorio, like an opera, is a dramatic work performed by orchestra, choir, and
Chapter Summary
During the Baroque Era, the church could not sanction opera performances during Lent
or Advent, meaning that operas could not be done for 30 days during late fall and 50
days during early spring. Audiences resented this stance. Opera had become a spectacle:
audiences loved the fluid melismatic passages of the singers as well as the set designs
and costumes. The problem was solved when composers began writing oratorio. An
oratorio is essentially the same as an opera, minus the set designs and costumes.
Oratorio is usually done with a biblical text. The same singing styles can be used with
orchestra and chorus. There are arias and recitatives. The most well-known oratorio is
Listening Guide
The Listening Guide covers three pieces, and the timing begins anew with each:
horus:
chronologically, instructors and students will notice that Chapter 18 analyzes more
elements than any of the previous chapters, and the discussion covers more pages. In
the recitative, the timbre typifies recitatives in this period, allowing flexibility for the
they will have heard it before. However, why it is so popular might be explained in part
MyMusicLab Resources
Automated Listening Guide: George Frideric Handel: Messiah
Discussion Topics and Critical Thinking Questions
1. Describe the differences between opera and oratorio.
2.
essence of the ritornello principle?
3.
works you have studied in this course?
Activities and Exercises
1. Design a poster to advertise the London premier of Messiah. Design it so that church
leaders and those concerned about the spectacle of opera will not be upset, but, at the
Journaling Prompts
If you knew any of the classical pieces in the textbook before taking this class, it was
public?
c is usually considered easier than that of Bach the harmonies change
less quickly, the melodic lines flow more naturally, and the textures alternate to provide
more variety. Nevertheless, we have three examples of music by Bach in the textbook
and only one by Handel. Why do you think that is?