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Scan 185

Harvard Dictionary Of Music(1950), 1950

12 lines. Read by computer on 18 September 2026. No printed page number was found. See the scan on archive.org.

1CONCERTO
3Baroque in which the soloist aspect is much less pronounced than in the modern concerto. These concerti approach the old form in the use of a chamber orchestra, in their emphasis on "motoric" rather than emotional impulse, and on linear design rather than massed sound or orchestral effects (Stravinsky, Concerto en mi b, 1937/38). Some of them introduce the Baroque *concertino, i.e., a group of three or two solo instruments alternating with the full ensemble, e.g., Kaminski, Concerto grosso (1923), E. Krenek, Concerto grosso I, II (1921, 1925), P. Hindemith, Konzert für Orchester, op. 34 (1925), W. Piston, Concerto for Orchestra (1933).
5III. History. The term "concerto" was first used for vocal compositions supported by an instrumental (or organ) accompaniment, in order to distinguish such pieces from the then current style of unaccompanied *a-cappella music. To this category belong the Concerti ecclesiastici (church concertos) by Andrea and Giov. Gabrieli (1587; cf. HAM, no. 157), Adriano Banchieri (1595), both for double-chorus, as well as those by Ludovico Viadana (1602; cf. HAM, no 185; SchGMB, no. 168) and Hortensio Naldi (1607; cf. RiHM ii.2, 313f), both for solo parts in the then novel monodic style. The use of the name concerto for accompanied vocal music persisted throughout the Baroque period, e.g., in Schütz's Kleine Geistliche Concerten of 1636, and in several cantatas by Bach which he calls "Concerto."
7In the field of purely instrumental music the term adopted a more characteristic significance, viz., that of contrasting performing bodies playing in alternation. This style which some writers of the 17th century called stile moderno is one of the most typical traits of Baroque music. On the basis of the above definition, the history of the concerto prior to Mozart may conveniently be divided into three main periods, one from 1620 to 1670, the second from 1670 to 1750, the third from 1750 to 1780. It should be noticed that, particularly in the first period, the presence or absence of the name concerto, concertante, is not decisive, as various names, such as *canzona, *sonata, *sinfonia, were used without clear distinction for a variety of styles and types.
9(a). 1620-70. While Viadana's Sinfonie musicali a otto voci (1610) show the instrumental application of Giov. Gabrieli's double-chorus style, the Sonate concertate in stilo moderno by Dorio Castello (1621, '29) mark the beginning of an important literature, namely of *canzonas (i.e., one-movement pieces written in a number of short sections in contrasting characters) with solistic passages, mostly for the violin. (For a slightly earlier example, by Uspen, see A. Einstein, in Kretzschmar Festschrift, 1918.) This type, the concerto canzona, as it might be called, was further cultivated by Steffano Bernardi (Sonate in sinfonia, 1623), Gio. Batt. Fontana (d. 1630), Tarquinio Merula (Canzoni, overe Sonate concertate per chiesa, 1637; also Canzoni da sonare, 1651), Massimiliano Neri (Sonate et canzoni, 1644; Sonate, 1651; cf. RiHM ii.2, 150ff; also Wasielewski, Instrumentalsätze), Vincenzo Albrici (Sinfonia à 6, 1654), Antonio Bertali (MS sonatas, 1663).
11(b). 1670-1750. In this period the Baroque concerto arrived at its peak. The main advance over the previous period is the replacement of the sectional canzona structure by a form in three or four different movements, and the adoption of a fuller, more homophonic style, with increasing melodic emphasis on the upper parts. Within the large literature of this period three types can be distinguished (according to A. Schering): the concerto-sinfonia, the concerto grosso, and the solo concerto. The first category, which is of only passing importance, uses contrasting technique (sections in tutti-character and others in a more brilliant style) rather than contrasting instrumental bodies and, therefore, deserves mention here only because it preceded the other two types and because it contributed to the development of a virtuoso violin style. It was cultivated first by the members of the *Bologna School, e.g., Cazzati, Bononcini, Aldrovandini, Torelli, later by Albi-

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