Galant

Chamber Orchestra of the Budapest Philharmonic Society Miklós Erdélyi

A triplet is a rhythmic feature in which a beat is subdivided into three. Triplets were a common feature of the galant style of the eighteenth century.

This excerpt includes 15 examples of triplets played by violins, both ascending and descending.

Blaine Brubaker

This example shows the drastic dynamic changes between two utterances of the same thematic motive using an excerpt from Count Ferdinand Waldstein’s Sinfonie in D, movement one. The first iteration of the theme is performed forte, or loud. The same theme is repeated and then performed piano, or soft, creating a type of “echo effect.” This was a popular eighteenth century technique as it demonstrated the musical organization and precision of the ensemble and emphasized certain musical phrases for the listeners.

Blaine Brubaker

A trill is an ornament performed by moving rapidly between the main note and the note above it. It is normally notated in music by placing a “tr” in superscript above the note that is trilled. In the example from the first movement of Count Ferdinand Waldstein’s Sinfonie in D, the trill is played by the oboe and first violin parts as an ending to the reprise to the second theme. Trills were often used to exaggerate the resolution of a phrase in the eighteenth century.

Blaine Brubaker

Syncopation, in music, is the displacement of rhythms so the musical emphasis is on the weak beat. In this excerpt from Count Ferdinand Waldstein’s Sinfonie in D, movement one, the first and second violin parts use a syncopated rhythm to emphasize the off-beat of the music while the bass line keeps a steady eighth note pulse. Eighteenth century galant composers commonly used syncopation in their music, giving their compositions musical interest.

Lucas Robatto, flute. Pedro Robatto, clarinet. Orquestra Sinfonica da Bahia, Luiz Malheiro, conductor

This is an example of the thin texture preferred in the galant style. It is an excerpt from the 18th century work Sinfonia Concertante for flute, clarinet and orchestra by Franz Danzi. The accompaniment is homophonic and has little activity going on behind the melody. This is a change from the previous baroque style, which often featured dense polyphonic accompaniment. 

This is an example of a 9-8 suspension from an 18th century sinfonia concertante by Franz Danzi. This MIDI recording plays the first three measures of the adagio, which features a 9-8 suspension between the oboe and bassoon part. After this, the recording repeats the suspension passage with only the oboe and bassoon playing. A suspension is a type of dissonance. It begins as a consonant note usually in an upper voice and is sustained through a change of bass note that makes the consonant note in the upper voice a dissonant suspended note. This usually occurs on a strong beat. The suspended note resolves down by stepwise motion into a new consonant harmony. In this case, the suspended note is a ninth above the bass and resolves to an octave, creating a 9-8 suspension.

Orion Chamber Orchestra

Detaching the bass line from the melody and using repeated notes instead of contrapuntal ideas was a compositional technique commonly used in 18th century galant style music. This excerpt shows a bass line that is doing just that. Often the bass repeats the same note throughout an entire bar, while the melody moves above without directly interacting with it.

The Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin conducted by Marcus Creed; CAPRICCIO

Throughout the eighteenth century and well into the nineteenth it was standard performance practice for the trill to be begun on note above the written note and rapidly move between the two pitches.

Mechthild Georg (Mezzo-Soprano) and Axel Köhler (Countertenor) with the Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin conducted by Marcus Creed; CAPRICCIO

This recording provides example of a common format used within eighteenth century oratorio. Duo soloists would commonly introduce text, and the choir would then enter and often restate this same text.

Bay, Rudolf, Bombelle, Toke Lund Christiansen, Domenico Cimarosa, Inger Dam-Jensen, Gaetano Donizetti, Dorthe Dreie; Hong Kong: Naxos Digital Services Ltd.

In Galant style music commonly there was only on melodic line present at a time, often accompanied by fast rhythmic harmony. In this example the Flute has the melody while being accompanied by the strings. After several seconds, the two switch roles.

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