Aesthetics of Music

The first era of music we start in is the Middle Ages. Medieval music is what music is referred to from the Middle Ages. Most of the music from the middle ages was music of the church and for religions. The music was secular and sacred to the people of this time era. As far as the music theory, the primary form was monophonic. Sheet music was formed in this era based on the chants of the time. Instruments of the time included hand made woodwinds and string instruments. The aesthetics of this time include the devotion to religion, a Theo centric type of society. The next era is the renaissance. The meaning of the word renaissance is rebirth of old ideas, primarily old Greek and Roman ideas. The renaissance is a time of rebirth. Aesthetics of this time period include art in the form of architecture. A main structure of this era is the roman column and symmetry

in structures. Music of the time was liturgical and still somewhat secular. The printing press was invented during this time so written music was spread easily. The spread of music was a great influence of different areas because new ideas spread quickly. One of the most significant changes was the change of music to polyphony. Music was becoming more advanced and elaborate, leading us into the next era. Next comes the Baroque era. This era was all about elaborate art. The art of the time and the architecture was very asymmetric and fancy. This was a form of aesthetics of the age. Music was based around improvisation. For example, Bach played the fugues in churches on elaborate organs and used improvisation in his music. Handel also lived during this era. Large audiences were the ones listening to the music of this time. The opera was introduced in this time so music playing groups became bigger introducing small orchestras and chamber music.

The next era is the Classical era. The classical era has architectures form the classical Greek ideals. Homophonic music was primary in this time era. Harmony was a large part of this time era elaborate chords were used in the classical era. The two main composers of this time were Mozart and Haydn and Beethoven. Symmetry and contrast were a big part in architecture was prominent too in music.