Classical PeriodThe Orchestra InstrumentsThe Concerto

Began around 1750At that time, composers worked for

royalty and aristocratsPaid to write music for official

events, church services, and entertainment

Patrons (employers) had to approve

Society changed – middle class people had more money and wanted entertainment

Public concert halls were built By the 1800s, composers could earn good

money from ticket sales More freedom to compose for the

audience instead of pleasing their employers.

WOOO HOOO!!!

At first, composers wrote for small orchestras Mainly strings, with horns and oboes.

Later on, the woodwind section grew Clarinets were invented and included Bassoons were introduced too

The brass section grew too Trumpets were added

So did the percussion section Timpanis were also included

Harpsichord (remember the Baroque era?)

Some early Classical music still had it To fill in the harmonies

But soon, composers stopped using it because of extra woodwind instruments

Most important section in the Classical orchestra is the strings Dominant sound in most Classical music

Violins generally play most of the tunes Tunes refer to the melody parts

Wind instruments play extra notes To fill out the harmony If they get a tune, they mostly double

the strings In later Classical music, woodwinds

started to play the tune aloneHowever, the strings were still really,

really, really important though

Healthy Harpsichord

This is a typical layout for a later Classical orchestra: