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What To Know About The Main Eras of Classical Music

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Written by Super User

Category: Uncategorised

Published: 10 December 2015

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Are you a “Classical Music” fan?

Did you know that what most people refer to as simply ‘classical music’ actually encompasses over 400 years of composition, and 5 major styles of music.

Though they may get lumped together in the public eye, there’s a huge difference between Monteverdie, Mozart, and Mahler, so let’s take a quick tour through the main eras of classical music.

Renaissance Music

Let’s move chronologically. As you might suspect, the style of Renaissance music began in, well, the Renaissance Era.

Generally used to categorize music after the Middle Ages but before the 17th century (and even music as late as 1685), this is a huge genre of music and, like everything else in this list has a number of different styles within it.

You’re probably most familiar with the madrigal styles, especially those pioneered by Monteverdi, with their flowing, mellifluous contrapuntal lines.

Baroque Music

The Baroque Era of music is often cited (incorrectly) as beginning in 1685, the year of Bach’s birth. Academic historians more commonly place the beginnings of the Baroque Era closer to 1600.

J.S. Bach is by far the poster child of this movement, though many don’t realize that he was also one of the last Baroque composers, and his style wasn’t particularly new or inventive. Instead, he’s hailed as perfecting the craft, after which music had to evolve.

Classical Music

Yes, there is a style of classical music known as Classical Music. This explains why musicians might often look confused when you say you like classical music and then put on Tchaikovsky or Bach.

The Classical Era is from the mid 18th century (around 1750) through the early 19th century (1803, to be exact), and is the stomping ground of greats like Mozart and Haydn.

Romantic Music

The Romantic Era of music isn’t just about love songs. Beethoven is largely credited with kicking off this massively important century, which corresponds roughly with the 19th century.

In the Romantic Era, music became about more than simply following form, harmony, or counterpoint. It became a full expression of the soul.

Most of the “classical” composers you’ve heard of, actually fall into this era, including greats like Beethoven, Brahms, Schubert, Mendelssohn, Berlioz, Tchaikovsky, Wagner, Verdi, and others.

20th Century Music

Finally, there’s 20th century music. This era started in the second decade of the 20th century, around the time of WWI, as music moved into a more academic, rather than emotional sphere.

Ideas like twelve-tone harmony took off with Berg and his troupe, and in the later half of the century music became much more experimental, with the likes of Cage, Stockhausen, and Adams.