HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL

Wednesday, April 18, 2007

hahax please ignore my posts if you don't wanna read it i'm just typing for revise sake hahx taken from Roger Kamien's textbook

The Concerto Grosso and Ritornello Form

In a concerto grosso, a small group of soloists is pitted against a larger group of players called the tutti (all). Usually two and four soloists play with anywhere from eight to twenty or more musicians for tutti. The tutti consists mainly of string instruments, with harpshichord as part of the basso continuo. A concerto grosso presents a contrast of texture between the tutti and the soloissts, who assert their individuality and appeal for attention through brilliant and fanciful melodic lines. The soloists were the best and highest-paid members of the baroque orchestra, because their parts were more difficult than those of the other players. Concerti grossi were frequently performed by private orchestras in aristocratic palaces.
A concerto grosso consists of several movements that contrast in tempo and character. Most often there are three movements: (1) fast, (2) slow, (3) fast. The opening movement is usually vigorous and determined, clearly showing the contrast between tutti and soloists. The slow movement is quieter than the first, often lyrical and intimate. The last movement is lively and carefree, sometimes dancelike.
The first and last movvements of concerti grossi are often in ritornello form, which is based on alternation between tutti and solo sections. In ritornello form the tutti opens with a theme called the ritornello (refrain). This theme, always played by the tutti, returns in different keys throughout the movement. But it usually returns in fragments, not complete. Only at the end of the movement does the entire ritornello return in the home key.

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