A new concept of artistic genius was evolving at the time, and Beethoven crystallized this concept powerfully for his own age. He still exemplifies it today. No longer a mere craftsman, to artis...

The Sonata a piece for a small number of instruments or a single one. Opening Movement tempo: fast/moderate form: sonata form Slow Movement tempo: slow/ve...

The symphony is rightly viewed as the crowning achievement of Viennese Classical music. Opening Movement tempo: fast/moderate form: sonata form (sometimes preceded by a slow In...

In the second part of the eighteenth century, the Classical style emerged in Europe. It had important pioneers in Italy and northern Germany, but was developed particularly by several great compose...

Opera the principal genre of secular vocal music. Italian Opera Seria The principal type of Italian Baroque opera, serious opera. The text of an opera is called the libretto (“little book”), an...