I recently had the privilege of attending a lecture on Baroque music by Prof. Paul O’Dette, an award winning lutenist, conductor, and musicology expert (see Wikipedia). Prof. O’Dette’s informed advice completely changed the way I view early music. By focusing on the art and purpose of performance in the 17th and 18th centuries, as well as different social trends, Prof. O’Dette was able to shed light on the richness of the Baroque era.

Prof. O’Dette characterized the Baroque era as an exciting time of art and experimentation by emphasizing the fact that performers in the 17th and 18th centuries were some of the best of the best. He explains that Baroque music served a dramatic role in people’s lives and was not placid. Performers wanted to create an emotional response in the audience members rather than just giving them something nice to listen to. In this way, Baroque performers took a very active approach towards entertaining.

As Prof. O’Dette clarified, Bach never intended that people follow his scores and markings literally. The composer excluded a lot of unnecessary notations because it was understood that the performer was allowed to improvise and embellish the music. As such, Baroque music is actually a flexible and fun art form, engaging both the performer and listener. Prof. O’Dette noted that it was in the 20th century and rise of Contemporary writing when musicians started taking a strict stance towards trueness to the score and following the composer’s intentions. This was necessary to accurately depict the musical and technical complexities of Contemporary writing. However, it was inappropriate to apply the idea of strict score reading to earlier genres, especially Baroque music. Again, the performer was in charge of “bringing the music to life.”

In light of this evidence, I have been rethinking my approach to studying Baroque music. Prof. O’Dette has inspired me to place myself in the shoes of a baroque performer, an approach I had never considered, to search for musical meaning, harmonic drive, and interesting melodic contour at all moments. Rather than taking an external and indifferent approach to playing Baroque music, I will strive to push the boundaries of dynamics and musical effects to harbor excitement in the listeners.

I really appreciated Prof. O’Dette’s use of video and audio samples to emphasize his appreciation and excitement for Baroque music and performance. We discussed the popularity of theater and drama in the Baroque era, as well as the unique orchestral sound effects and vocal techniques used by musicians. We even considered the dance elements of many of Bach’s pieces, in particular, his Suites, and how the performer should make the audience wish they were dancing! From solo recordings, to ensembles and even French Baroque orchestra samples, Prof. O’Dette masterfully rejuvenated my interest and excitement for the genre.

As musicians in an ever-changing world, we often view Baroque music as being antiquated and set in its traditional ways. However, Prof. O’Dette urges us to remember the obvious but often over looked fact that “these composers wrote the music when they were alive!” As I continue my musical studies, I aspire to bring Baroque music to life and rejuvenate a sense of thrill in the audience.

I’ll leave you with an exciting video clip that Prof. O’Dette recommended of French countertenor Philippe Jaroussky and Ensemble Artaserse performing a Vivaldi aria:

Works Cited