Western classical music originated from the Latin word classicus. The music has enriched over 800 years. Western Classical music has derived two forms. The Church music and the Secular Music. Church music included Gregorian chants, Carols, etc. Secular music includes sonatas, concertos, symphonies and opera.
Medieval (c.1150 – c.1400) The earliest form of written secular music dates from the 12th century troubadours (in the form of virelais, estampies, ballades, etc.), but most notated manuscripts emanate from places of learning usually connected with the church. Gregorian chant and plainsong which are monodic (i.e. written as one musical line) developed during the 11th to 13th centuries into organum (i.e. two or three lines moving simultaneously, it was the beginning of harmony.
Renaissance (c.1400 – c.1600) The fifteenth century witnessed vastly increased freedoms, most particularly in terms of what is actually perceived as ‘harmony’ and ‘polyphony’. The four most influential composers of the fifteenth century were Dunstable, Ockeghem, Despres and Dufay. The second half of the 16th century witnessed the work of composers organize into major and minor scales. Composers of particular note include Dowland, Tallis, Byrd, Gibbons, Frescobaldi, Palestrina, Victoria, Lassus, Alonso Lobo, Duarte Lobo, Cardoso and Gesualdo.
Baroque (c.1600 – c.1750) The idea of the modern orchestra was born, along with opera (including the overture, prelude, aria, recitative and chorus), the concerto, sonata, and modern cantata. Of the many 17th century composers who paved the way for this popular explosion of ‘classical’ music, the following were outstanding: Monteverdi, Corelli, Alessandro Scarlatti, Schutz, Buxtehude, Purcell and Lully. Yet, the most popular composers of the period, indeed those who seem to define by their very names the sound of Baroque music at its most colourful and sophisticated are Johann Sebastian Bach, Handel, Telemann, Rameau, François Couperin, Domenico Scarlatti, and Vivaldi, all of them at their creative peak during the first half of the 18th century.
Classical (c.1750 – c.1830) The Baroque era witnessed the creation of a number of musical genres which would maintain a hold on composition for years to come, yet it was the Classical period which saw the introduction of a form which has dominated instrumental composition to the present day: sonata form. With it came the development of the modern concerto, symphony, sonata, trio and quartet to a new peak of structural and expressive refinement. If Baroque music is notable for its textural intricacy, then the Classical period is characterised by a near-obsession with structural clarity. 18th century through two composers of extraordinary significance: Joseph Haydn and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.
Early Romantic (c.1830 – c.1860) As the Classical period reached its zenith, it was becoming increasingly clear (especially with the late works of Beethoven and Schubert) that the amount and intensity of expression composers were seeking to achieve was beginning to go beyond that which a Classically sized/designed orchestra/piano could possibly encompass. The six leading composers of the age were undoubtedly Berlioz, Chopin, Mendelssohn, Schumann, Liszt and Verdi.
Late Romantic (c.1860 – c.1920) With the exceptions of Brahms and Bruckner, composers of this period had their natural inspiration of free rein, often pacing their compositions more in terms of their emotional content and dramatic continuity rather than organic structural growth. It was highlighted by the extraordinarily rapid appearance of the national schools, and the operatic supremacy of Verdi and Wagner. The eventual end of Romanticism came with the fragmentation of this basic style, composers joining ‘schools’ of composition, each with a style that was in vogue for a short period of time.
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770–1827)
Famous German composer and pianist Ludwig van Beethoven is acclaimed as the greatest composer who ever lived. He innovated the style of the Classical traditions of Joseph Haydn, one of his teachers, and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and created a new style, a characteristic that had influenced the Romantic composers who succeeded him. His life and career were marked by progressive deafness, yet that did not prevent him from composing some of his most important works during the last 10 years of his life when he was nearly unable to hear. Innovating the sonatas, symphony, concerto, and quartet, Beethoven’s famous works include Symphony No. 9 in D Minor, Op. 125, Symphony No. 5 in C Minor, Op. 67, Moonlight Sonata, and Für Elise.
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685–1750)
He was a German composer and organist of the Baroque period. His compositions were old-fashioned but he was a great musician. He rediscovered his work in the early 19th century led to the so-called Bach revival, in which he became one of the greatest composers of all time. His famous compositions include Brandenburg Concertos, The Well-Tempered Clavier, BWV 846–893, Suites for Unaccompanied Cello, BWV 1007–1012, Orchestral Suites, BWV 1066–1069, and Mass in B Minor, BWV 232.
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–91)
He was an Austrian composer of the Classical period, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart is widely recognized for his greatest compositions of Western music. Rumored to have had the ability to play music at age three and to write music at age five, Mozart began his career as a child prodigy. Notable compositions include The Marriage of Figaro, Elvira Madigan, and Clarinet Quintet in A Major, K 581.
Johannes Brahms (1833–97)
He was a German composer and pianist of the Romantic period, he wrote in many genres, including symphonies, concerti, chamber music, piano works, and choral compositions, many of which reveal the influence of folk music. Some of his best-known works include Symphony No. 3 in F Major, Wiegenlied, Op. 49, No. 4, and Hungarian Dances.
Richard Wagner (1813–83)
He was a German composer and theorist extended the opera tradition and revolutionized Western music. His dramatic compositions are particularly known for the use of leitmotifs, brief musical motifs for a character, place, or event, which he skillfully transformed throughout a piece. Among his major works are the operas The Flying Dutchman, Tannhäuser, Lohengrin, Tristan and Isolde, Parsifal, and the tetralogy The Ring of the Nibelung, which includes The Valkyrie. One of the most controversial figures in classical music, his work transcends his character, which was defined by megalomaniac tendencies and anti-Semitic views.
Claude Debussy (1862–1918)
He was a famous French composer is often regarded as the father of modern classical music. His major works include Clair de lune, La Mer, Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun, and the opera Pelléas et Mélisande.
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840–93)
Writing music with broad emotional appeal during the Romantic period, he became one of the most popular Russian composers. He adopted in the western European tradition and took elements from French, Italian, and German music with a personal and Russian style. Some of his best-known works were composed for the ballet, including Swan Lake, The Sleeping Beauty, and The Nutcracker, Op. 71, but they also include Piano Concerto No. 1 in B-flat Minor, Op. 23 and Marche Slave, Op. 31.
Frédéric Chopin (1810–49)
He was a Polish French composer and pianist of the Romantic period. He was one of few composers to devote himself to a single instrument, and his approach to the keyboard allowed him to exploit all the resources of the piano, including innovations in fingering and pedaling. He is thus primarily known for writing music for the piano, notably Nocturne, Op. 9 No. 2 in E-flat Major, Nocturne in C-sharp Minor, B. 49, and Heroic Polonaise.
Joseph Haydn (1732–1809)
The Austrian composer was one of the most important musical figures in the development of the Classical style of music during the 18th century. He helped establish the forms and styles for the string quartet and symphony. Haydn was an excellent composer, and some of his most well-known works are Symphony No. 92 in G Major, Emperor Quartet, and Cello Concerto No. 2 in D Major. His compositions are often characterized as light, witty, and elegant.
Antonio Vivaldi (1678–1741)
He was an Italian composer and violinist of the Baroque period. He wrote music for operas, solo instruments, and small ensembles, but he is famous for his concerti, in which virtuoso solo passages alternate with passages for the whole orchestra. He wrote about 500 concerti, of which his best-known work is the group of four violin concerti titled The Four Seasons. His Mandolin Concerto in C Major, RV 425, Concerto for Four Violins and Cello in B Minor, Op. 3, No.10 and Concerto for Two Trumpets in C Major are equally playful and complex.
References :
http://www.columbia.edu/itc/music/ito/history/
https://www.naxos.com/education/brief_history.asp
https://www.britannica.com/list/10-classical-music-composers-to-know
https://www.classical-music.com/composers/50-greatest-composers-all-time
