♬ Make me what I never was..

Music’s increased demand in the 17th century

As we enter into the midst of the 21st century, music has been proven to not only be simply a hobby: but a lifestyle and society looks up to it as a role model. It was a given for many people to enjoy the music in life wherever it came up: whether it was in the subway, streets or the park. Music is a vocal or instrumental sound to express emotion or a message. It is embodied in today’s culture. Although music seems to be automatically appreciated by all in today’s society, this was not the case in the earlier eras. It took years for music to be in such high demand by society as a whole, and the 17th century was the beginning of it all.

Music had begun to develop in the prehistoric era where it passed through three different stages of development: the drum, pipe, and the lyre stages. The first stage consists of instruments from the drum family, or as we now refer to as the percussion family, such as the rattle, gongs, triangles, and tambourines. The second stage includes the wind instrument family: horns, and bugles. Finally, the last stage of music in the prehistoric era consists of the string instrument family: violin, piano, violin, and the lyre. As we step into the 100-200 A.D., otherwise known as ancient music, musical notes were discovered and made it convenient to preserve the music. Music was used during this era for rituals and healing ceremonies. Singing and instrumental music is beneficial to social behavior and attention which creates a positive turn in a dementia diagnosed patient. The rhythm and harmony helps the communication among others.  This is the era when music started becoming popular due to the arousing benefits music gave.

Many different forms were created and built off of each other. The Roman Catholic Church as we progress into time, is what brings it all together. Society grew to be more religious and often went to Church to worship God. Of course, there were several reasons to go to Church. Some went only because they wish to go to heaven after death or some went purely because they need to rid their sins of the day. Some people may look for Jesus mentally and pray for guidance, but at the same time can turn it music for comfort. Music was apart of the culture and helps spread the religious ideas that many people shared during this time. It was a crucial part to one’s spiritual growth in life. Not only was Church important for spiritual reasons, it was also viewed as a source of entertainment when church choirs came together and performed their versatile style of music.

As the different forms of music were combined together: we end up with medieval and Renaissance music. Medieval music comes across as spiritual and was expressed usually in chants in the Christian Church. Renaissance music continued the use of spiritual moods and instruments such as the cornett, but introduced new instruments as well. Some new instruments that were introduced are the violin, and the trumpet.

Music has changed tremendously throughout the eras and the 17th century was when music took a turning point and society had begun to demand for music. Since demand was so high, a modern economics student may think that the supply for music would decrease and it would stay the same. However, music expanded and there are countless ways for one to express their emotions vocally and instrumentally. Baroque music emerged during this time era. People viewed it just how it was defined: bizarre. There were different instruments and styles being experimented with such as the lute and opera.

Music was definitely a controversial topic in the 1600s as it emerged from a hobby during someone’s free time to a serious career. If music was considered a short- term hobby: the individual most likely did occasional performances at the Court or the operahouse for fun. On the other hand, if one planned for music to be a long- term career: most likely they were hired by a royal family to be a Court jester for daily entertainment. Some musicians were treated as jesters in the court, and called this a career. While other musicians were more driven and had a desire to spread music farther than the typical audience of the royal families.

The Baroque period was a combination of all the instruments and music forms starting from the prehistoric era with the help of the Church. According to Edward I. Bleiberg, “Performers”, not only did the Church serve as a place for a gathering of musicians to share their music alongside worshipping God, but as a new source of employment for society:

“The Church was also another venerable source of employment for professional musicians and composers in the Baroque world. Music was common in all the churches of seventeenth- and eighteenth-century Europe, although the Protestant Reformation had affected the use of music, producing very different kinds of musical forms in Protestant Europe than those that flourished in Catholic countries. By the seventeenth century the kind of music that was heard in churches varied according to religious confessions. In Catholic churches priests regularly chanted the mass and other liturgical services. Catholics might hear an organ as part of religious services, and on special occasions, more elaborate performances with choirs and other instruments.” (218)

Religion shaped music in all kinds of ways: the tunes, the lyrics, and even the mood that the music sets. In order to ensure everyone attending church worships God, music in the form of chanting is useful so everyone can participate. The spiritual mood of music is appropriate since the setting is in church. The choir is mixed with several musicians that gather together to share their love for it. In Catholic countries, many people used music in funerals because it was a belief that it helped the dead live a happy afterlife.

Frans Hals portrayed this bizarre music perfectly in his portrait, “Boy with a Lute”. In the period that Frans Hals created this portrait, Baroque was the most popular form of art between the 17th and early 18th centuries. The theme of appearance vs reality was repeated in this style of art. The artist purposely included a subtle message behind the portrait so the viewer would remain pondering about what the artist is portraying. This keeps the portrait popular throughout time.

This portrait was created in the 1600s, when music emerged as something more than simply a rare luxury but is a reflection of society’s culture and values. Frans Hals illustrated this young musician as a happy fellow who has just ended his final note of a song. The musician is dressed as a jester which suggests that he is part of the few that the Court is paying for entertainment. He is having a pleasant time expressing his emotions through instrumental form based on the drawing of the final drop of wine spilling out of the glass cup.

Frans Hals portrayed music in the 17th century on the surface as enjoyable due to the sign of the last wine drop from the glass. This suggests that the musician was having such a good time playing music for the audience and that time is up. However, since the painting was shown in dark colors, this suggests two things. One being: something bad must’ve occurred with music during this time frame. Or, music has gone through difficult obstacles in order for it to become something appreciated by society. The 17th century served as a surplus of demand for music. People had a desire to hear more of a variety of compositions.

A select group of musicians who were lucky enough to be hired by a royal family to be a source of entertainment, or a jester received one reward: which was a steady living and high pay. Although high pay was desired in the old days, just like how it is now, happiness during the job plays a big factor as well. Some people settled for the high pay, while some wanted to be appreciated as a true musician rather than a simple source of entertainment. They moved into the commercial venues such as the opera houses.

Musicians wished to spread music outside the Church to the ordinary townspeople and on the back of several performances: it wasn’t hard to spread positive reviews about the music. The invention of printing and the what we now call the newsperson, both played a large role in spreading music outside the Church. Printing the music sheets preserved the form of music and could be enjoyed by anyone anywhere in the world. The newsperson screamed daily news or sang popular songs to the townspeople all around. More townspeople grew to appreciate music now because they were exposed to Baroque music now. This completed the other half of society to appreciating music.

Music was considered the dark horse in a race. Something as simple as transmitting an emotion in a creative way can be so versatile and is still being expressed in different forms each day. There was a new and increased demand for music. Society wanted to hear new styles and compositions when they attended a performance at an opera house or other public areas around the village.

Music reflected the time era’s values. In the prehistoric and ancient times, music was a side component of rituals which suggested that traditions were taken very seriously and was part of their culture. As we go into the Renaissance period and Baroque period, religion is dominant in the songs presented because the tone it sets is spiritual and surrounds around the idea of worshipping God and not committing sins.

The demand for music during this Baroque period grew larger and larger. More courts, churches and opera houses demanded music to be played. From being viewed as an optional show for the royal family to being appreciated by society as a whole including the townspeople who was considered the lowest level of the social pyramid. Music came a long way and it has stuck to being a lifestyle for most people up until this day.

Works Cited:

1) Hals, Frans. Boy with a Lute. 1625. Oil on canvas. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York  City.

2) Brigstocke, Hugh. “The Oxford Companion to Western Art: Baroque.” Oxford University Press.  Oxford, 2001. Web. 2003

3) “Music During the Rococo: Arts and Humanities Through the Eras.” Detroit: Gale, 2005. 252-253.  Gale.

4) “Performers, Performances, and Audiences.” Detroit: Gale, 2005. 218-223. Gale.

5) “Certain Reasons for Believing that the Art of Music in Prehistoric Times..” J.F. Rowbotham. The Journal of the Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland, Vol. 10, (1881), pp. 380-389.

6) “Dining rituals and music.”Aldridge, David. Aldridge, D. (2007) Dining rituals and music.

Music Therapy Today (Online 1st April) Vol.VIII (1) 26-38.

7) Wuthnow, Robert. All in Sync: How Music and Art Are Revitalizing American Religion. Berkeley, CA: U of California, 2003. Web. 09 May 2014.

8) Vaubel, Roland. “The Role of Competition in the Rise of Baroque and Renaissance Music.” Journal of Cultural Economics Volume 29. Issue (2005): Pages 277-297. PDF. 22 April 2014.

9) Gasenzer, E., and E. Neugebauer. "Die Beziehung Von Musik Und Medizin in Geschichte Und Gegenwart." DMW - Deutsche Medizinische Wochenschrift 136.51/52 (2011): 2644-651. Print.

Translated.

10)Buelow, George J.. The Late Baroque Era: From the 1680s to 1740. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice Hall, 1994. Print

11) “Origins and Elements of the Baroque Style.” Arts and Humanities Through the Eras

Ed. Edward I. Bleiberg, James Allan Evans, Kristen Mossler Figg, Philip M. Soergel, and John Block Friedman. Vol. 5: The Age of the Baroque and Enlightenment 1600-1800. Detroit: Gale, 2005. p214-218. COPYRIGHT 2005 Gale, Cengage Learning