Chapter 11: Vocal Music for Chamber and Church in the Early Baroque

MULTIPLE CHOICE

	1.	Ground refers to what type of bass movement?
a.	movement by leap	d.	movement by step	
b.	an ascending tetrachord	e.	circle-of-fifths by root movement	
c.	a repeating pattern	

ANS:	C	DIF:	Medium	REF:	202	TOP:	Vocal Chamber Music
MSC:	Factual

	2.	Ritornello refers to
a.	a recurring instrumental interlude.	d.	movement by step.	
b.	ABA form.	e.	rapid reiteration of a single note.	
c.	strophic variation form.	

ANS:	A	DIF:	Easy	REF:	201	TOP:	Vocal Chamber Music
MSC:	Factual

	3.	All of the following are characteristic of Giovanni Gabrieli’s large-scale sacred concertos except
a.	large polychoral ensembles.	d.	a unified compositional style.	
b.	instruments with diverse timbres.	e.	organs.	
c.	multiple soloists.	

ANS:	D	DIF:	Medium	REF:	205	TOP:	Catholic Sacred Music
MSC:	Factual

	4.	What is the primary difference between the oratorio and the sacred concerto?
a.	compositional style	
b.	performing forces	
c.	nationality of composer	
d.	subject matter	
e.	presence or absence of narrative elements	

ANS:	E	DIF:	Medium	REF:	205 | 207-08	TOP:	Catholic Sacred Music
MSC:	Applied

	5.	What musical technique became associated with laments during the early Baroque era?
a.	repetition of an ascending tetrachord	
b.	repetition of a stepwise descent that spans a fourth	
c.	concitato genere	
d.	polychoral writing	
e.	circle-of-fifths root movement	

ANS:	B	DIF:	Medium	REF:	203	TOP:	Vocal Chamber Music
MSC:	Factual

	6.	Why does Heinrich Schütz use dissonance in Saul, was verfolgst du mich?
a.	to break the rules of counterpoint	
b.	to increase the difficulty for the singers	
c.	to reflect the meaning of the text	
d.	to emphasize the harshness of the stile moderno	
e.	to demonstrate German avant-garde techniques	

ANS:	C	DIF:	Easy	REF:	209-11	TOP:	Lutheran Church Music
MSC:	Applied

	7.	Which of these genres is not based on a biblical or religious text?
a.	historia	d.	oratorio	
b.	madrigal	e.	large-scale sacred concerto	
c.	Passion	

ANS:	B	DIF:	Easy	REF:	205 | 211-12	
TOP:	Catholic Sacred Music| Lutheran Church Music	MSC:	Factual

	8.	A concerted madrigal is one that is written for
a.	solo voice or small vocal ensemble with basso continuo and/or other instruments.	
b.	solo instrument or small instrumental ensemble with larger instrumental accompaniment.	
c.	unaccompanied solo voice or small vocal ensemble.	
d.	divided choirs with instrumental accompaniment.	
e.	vocal ensemble with string quartet accompaniment.	

ANS:	A	DIF:	Easy	REF:	201	TOP:	Vocal Chamber Music
MSC:	Factual

	9.	All of the following are traits of the air de cour in the early 1600s except
a.	homophonic texture.	d.	syllabic text-setting.	
b.	diatonic harmonies.	e.	lute accompaniment.	
c.	through-composition.	

ANS:	C	DIF:	Difficult	REF:	204	TOP:	Vocal Chamber Music
MSC:	Factual

	10.	What is the general name for a repeating pattern in the lowest voice of a composition?
a.	basso continuo	d.	fugue	
b.	cantus-firmus variation	e.	figured bass	
c.	basso ostinato	

ANS:	C	DIF:	Easy	REF:	202	TOP:	Vocal Chamber Music
MSC:	Factual

	11.	Barbara Strozzi is primarily known for
a.	composing operas.	
b.	singing in public.	
c.	composing and publishing her vocal works.	
d.	teaching other singers.	
e.	hosting discussions of music, art, and literature.	

ANS:	C	DIF:	Easy	REF:	203	TOP:	Barbara Strozzi (1619-1677)
MSC:	Factual

	12.	Which composer studied in Italy and then established Germany as a center of musical activity in Europe?
a.	Samuel Scheidt	d.	Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck	
b.	Heinrich Schütz	e.	Dieterich Buxtehude	
c.	Luigi Rossi	

ANS:	B	DIF:	Easy	REF:	208 | 210 | 212		
TOP:	Lutheran Church Music| Heinrich Schütz (1585-1672)	MSC:	Conceptual

	13.	What was the primary aim of church music in the seventeenth century?
a.	to promote artistic appreciation and development among parishioners	
b.	to bring pleasure to the listener	
c.	to maintain a pure and recognizably sacred style	
d.	to fill the silent gaps in church services	
e.	to communicate the church’s message effectively to the people	

ANS:	E	DIF:	Medium	REF:	205	TOP:	Catholic Sacred Music
MSC:	Conceptual

	14.	The stile antico (“old style”) is associated primarily with which musical technique?
a.	unprepared dissonances	d.	word-painting	
b.	chromaticism	e.	counterpoint	
c.	improvisation	

ANS:	E	DIF:	Easy	REF:	205	TOP:	Catholic Sacred Music
MSC:	Factual

	15.	At the end of his career, Heinrich Schütz advocated that composers
a.	return to setting Latin sacred texts.	
b.	focus on theatrical styles that incorporate basso continuo.	
c.	continue to study and use counterpoint.	
d.	not use so many dissonances.	
e.	write more organ music based on modes.	

ANS:	C	DIF:	Medium	REF:	209	
TOP:	Vignette: Schütz Advocates a Balance of Old and New Styles	
MSC:	Conceptual

	16.	Which composer is best known today for his or her Latin oratorios?
a.	Alessandro Grandi	d.	Luigi Rossi	
b.	Giacomo Carissimi	e.	Barbara Strozzi	
c.	Orazio Benevoli	

ANS:	B	DIF:	Easy	REF:	208	TOP:	Catholic Sacred Music
MSC:	Factual

	17.	Why were Lodovico Viadana’s sacred concerti so popular?
a.	They were written so that many churches could use them.	
b.	They were easy for amateurs to play and sing.	
c.	They incorporated popular tunes that people knew.	
d.	They were light-hearted and entertaining.	
e.	Viadana was the most popular composer of his day.	

ANS:	A	DIF:	Medium	REF:	207	TOP:	Catholic Sacred Music
MSC:	Conceptual

	18.	In what context was the stile antico most likely to be heard in the middle of the seventeenth century?
a.	chamber music	d.	solo music	
b.	dance music	e.	church music	
c.	theater music	

ANS:	E	DIF:	Medium	REF:	205	TOP:	Catholic Sacred Music
MSC:	Applied

	19.	Large-scale sacred concertos were often written for what occasions?
a.	rulers’ birthdays	d.	feast days in large churches	
b.	commemorative events	e.	public parades	
c.	public celebrations	

ANS:	D	DIF:	Easy	REF:	205 | 207	TOP:	Catholic Sacred Music
MSC:	Conceptual

	20.	What type of work sets the story of Jesus’s crucifixion?
a.	cantata	d.	mass	
b.	historia	e.	Passion	
c.	oratorio	

ANS:	E	DIF:	Easy	REF:	211	TOP:	Lutheran Church Music
MSC:	Factual

	21.	In the 1600s, most people probably encountered the newer vocal styles during
a.	public concerts.	
b.	private parties.	
c.	operas.	
d.	church services.	
e.	public celebrations involving the nobility.	

ANS:	D	DIF:	Medium	REF:	205 | 207	TOP:	Catholic Sacred Music
MSC:	Factual

	22.	Which of these publications gives instructions on writing counterpoint?
a.	Componimenti musicali	d.	Musikalische Exequien	
b.	Symphoniae sacrae	e.	Gradus ad Parnassum	
c.	Fiori musicali	

ANS:	E	DIF:	Difficult	REF:	205	TOP:	Catholic Sacred Music
MSC:	Conceptual

	23.	Monteverdi, Gabrieli, and Grandi were all associated with what institution?
a.	Saint Peter’s Basilica in Rome	
b.	Saint Mark’s Church in Venice	
c.	the Dresden court	
d.	the Mantuan court	
e.	Christina of Sweden’s court in exile	

ANS:	B	DIF:	Easy	REF:	205 | 207	TOP:	Catholic Sacred Music
MSC:	Applied

	24.	Oratorios are so called because they originally
a.	replaced the homily (or sermon) during Mass.	
b.	frequently used a narrator.	
c.	were performed in a separate building known as the oratory.	
d.	used mostly speechlike music.	
e.	replaced speeches during governmental celebrations.	

ANS:	C	DIF:	Medium	REF:	208	TOP:	Catholic Sacred Music
MSC:	Conceptual

	25.	Early oratorios often
a.	presented the Christmas story.	
b.	emphasized themes of suffering because they were performed during Lent.	
c.	derived their plots from Greek plays.	
d.	stressed unrequited love.	
e.	were performed at funerals.	

ANS:	B	DIF:	Medium	REF:	208	TOP:	Catholic Sacred Music
MSC:	Factual

TRUE/FALSE

	1.	In the seventeenth century, the stile moderno (“modern style”) completely replaced the stile antico (“old style”).

ANS:	F	DIF:	Medium	REF:	205	TOP:	Catholic Sacred Music
MSC:	Factual

	2.	Claudio Monteverdi wrote only secular music.

ANS:	F	DIF:	Medium	REF:	207	TOP:	Catholic Sacred Music
MSC:	Factual

	3.	Theatrical styles of music were not permitted in Christian church services.

ANS:	F	DIF:	Easy	REF:	205-08	TOP:	Catholic Sacred Music
MSC:	Factual

	4.	Barbara Strozzi was one of the most prolific composers of chamber music in the early 1600s.

ANS:	T	DIF:	Easy	REF:	203-04	
TOP:	Vocal Chamber Music| Barbara Strozzi (1619-1677)	MSC:	Factual

	5.	The large-scale sacred concerto was written only in Italy.

ANS:	F	DIF:	Easy	REF:	209	TOP:	Lutheran Church Music
MSC:	Factual

	6.	The libretto for Giacomo Carissimi’s Jephte is unusual because it uses only biblical texts.

ANS:	F	DIF:	Difficult	REF:	208	TOP:	Catholic Sacred Music
MSC:	Factual

	7.	Bernini’s sculptures can be likened to silent operas because they convey action, reaction, and intense emotional states.

ANS:	T	DIF:	Easy	REF:	206	
TOP:	In Context: The Ecstasy of Saint Teresa		MSC:	Conceptual

	8.	In the 1600s, French airs de cour sometimes were performed during ballets.

ANS:	T	DIF:	Medium	REF:	204	TOP:	Vocal Chamber Music
MSC:	Factual

	9.	Seventeenth-century French composers, like Italian ones, employed overt word-painting.

ANS:	F	DIF:	Difficult	REF:	204-05	TOP:	Vocal Chamber Music
MSC:	Factual

	10.	The repeating bass patterns used by early Baroque composers built upon well-established musical traditions.

ANS:	T	DIF:	Medium	REF:	202	TOP:	Vocal Chamber Music
MSC:	Conceptual

SHORT ANSWER

	1.	List three ways in which oratorio differs from opera.

ANS:	
It is sacred, with religious subject matter. It is seldom staged, with the action described vocally. It often uses a narrator, while the chorus assumes different roles (e.g. narrating, meditating, or reflecting on events, or representing groups of people).

DIF:	Medium	REF:	207-08	TOP:	Catholic Sacred Music
MSC:	Conceptual

	2.	Why did Heinrich Schütz focus on the small-scale rather than the large-scale sacred concerto, especially in the 1630s and 1640s?

ANS:	
For economic reasons: a lack of funds due to the Thirty Years’ War and the corresponding lack of available musicians.

DIF:	Medium	REF:	209	TOP:	Lutheran Church Music
MSC:	Conceptual

	3.	What repetitive musical technique does the musical example below employ?

ANS:	
Ground bass or basso ostinato

DIF:	Medium	REF:	202	TOP:	Vocal Chamber Music
MSC:	Applied

	4.	In the mid-seventeenth century, a secular work, usually for solo voice or vocal ensemble with continuo, was referred to as a

ANS:	
cantata.

DIF:	Medium	REF:	203	TOP:	Vocal Chamber Music
MSC:	Factual

	5.	What is the purpose of the concitato genere (“excited style”)? What musical technique does it incorporate? What composer devised it?

ANS:	
Its purpose is to convey anger, violent actions, and thoughts. It incorporates the rapid reiteration of a single note, either vocally or by the strings (tremolo). Monteverdi devised it.

DIF:	Medium	REF:	202	TOP:	Vocal Chamber Music
MSC:	Conceptual

	6.	How did Giovanni Gabrieli take advantage of the architecture of Saint Mark’s Church in Venice in his motets and sacred concerti?

ANS:	
He composed polychoral works and used multiple choirs. He frequently separated instruments and choirs into two or more groups, using the opposing choir lofts and the unusual acoustics to achieve striking antiphonal effects.  The church also had multiple organs.

DIF:	Medium	REF:	205	TOP:	Catholic Sacred Music
MSC:	Applied

	7.	What musical form is characterized by repeating the same melody with slight modifications for successive stanzas of poetry?

ANS:	
Strophic form

DIF:	Easy	REF:	201	TOP:	Vocal Chamber Music
MSC:	Factual

	8.	In Jephte, Giacomo Carissimi draws on a variety of musical genres and techniques, both sacred and secular.  List at least four of them.

ANS:	
Recitative; aria; polychoral writing; madrigalistic word-painting; laments (or descending tetrachord to depict lamenting). The contrast between floridity and arioso writing is common
in sacred recitative, and the chorus responds as in a Greek tragedy (similar to early operas).

DIF:	Medium	REF:	208	TOP:	Catholic Sacred Music
MSC:	Conceptual

	9.	List three traits of Barbara Strozzi’s music that are evident in Lagrime mie.

ANS:	
The text is about unrequited love. Strozzi’s music blurs the boundaries between aria and recitative. She uses word-painting, such as prolonged dissonances and a descending tetrachord (to depict lamenting). Frequent changes in style depict images and moods expressed in the text. Musical repetition (a refrain) creates structure.

DIF:	Difficult	REF:	204	TOP:	Vocal Chamber Music
MSC:	Factual

	10.	Why was Schütz influenced by Gabrieli and Monteverdi? How does his music reflect their influence? List two specific techniques.

ANS:	
Schütz studied in Venice on two occasions.  Among the techniques he adopted from Gabrieli and Monteverdi are polychoral writing, the use of dissonance to express the text, and the combination of recitatives, arias, and concerted madrigal styles. He composed large-scale sacred concertos and adapted techniques from Italian monody to the German language.

DIF:	Medium	REF:	208-11	
TOP:	Lutheran Church Music| Heinrich Schütz (1585-1672)	MSC:	Conceptual

MATCHING

Match each composer to the genre for which he or she is best known.
a.	Giovanni Gabrieli	d.	Giacomo Carissimi	
b.	Alessandro Grandi	e.	Barbara Strozzi	
c.	Claudio Monteverdi	

	1.	concerted madrigal

	2.	large-scale sacred concerto

	3.	solo cantata

	4.	solo motet

	5.	oratorio

	1.	ANS:	C

	2.	ANS:	A

	3.	ANS:	E

	4.	ANS:	B

	5.	ANS:	D

Match each item to the correct description below.
a.	Combattimento di Tancredi e Clorinda	
b.	cori spezzati	
c.	In ecclesiis	
d.	Kleine geistliche Konzerte	
e.	stile moderno	

	6.	a grand work composed for multiple choirs and specific tone colors

	7.	refers to monody, basso continuo, and other up-to-date techniques

	8.	blends mime, dance, and dramatic music

	9.	a collection of small-scale sacred concertos

	10.	“split choirs”; fosters antiphonal singing

	6.	ANS:	C

	7.	ANS:	E

	8.	ANS:	A

	9.	ANS:	D

	10.	ANS:	B

ESSAY

	1.	Choose either Italian vocal music or sacred music and explain how composers combined the innovative and the traditional in their works. Use specific examples.

ANS:	
Answers will vary.

	2.	Compare and contrast opera and oratorio. How is oratorio similar to opera? How does it differ? Consider musical and dramatic elements, purpose, and performance venues.

ANS:	
Answers will vary.