While many orchestral and solo pieces today fall under the genre of classical music the differences in the periods pieces were created in greatly affected their style, technique, expressiveness, and much more. Orchestral and solo pieces should be recognized by their respective periods instead of just putting them in the same category. For example you can’t really compare a piece from the Modernist era like 4’33’’ composed by John Cage to a piece from the Classical era, like Beethoven’s famous Symphony No. 5. Even pieces separated by 1 or two eras can sound extremely different from each other like the Baroque Period (1600-1750) and the Romantic Period (1830-1900).

Baroque music is defined by its grand, dramatic, and energetic spirit. It also is the first period where the concept of melody and harmony become a thing, and the practice of basso continuo which is a continuous bass line with improvised harmonies. Baroque also is defined by different musical forms like opera, oratorio, sonata, cantana, and concerto. Concerto, a musical compassion with a soloist and orchestra, especially was an important part of this period. Concerto was made in the late Baroque period and influenced future periods of music.

Romantic period music however is defined by its expressiveness, storytelling nature, intense energy and passion. Music in this period was more expressive in its sound and in the way music began to be used, like in theater, literature, and other artforms. The Romantic era also gave new ideas to pre-existing musical forms like opera. Richard Wagner played a big role in the development of the opera genre, he wrote his operas as long continuous sweeps of music, and characters would be given musical motifs. The Romantic period is also known for other musical forms like the rhapsody, the nocturne, the concert etude, the polonaise, the mazurka, the overture, program music, ballet, along with sonata and symphony. 

The Baroque era originated in Italy with composers like Claudio Monteverdi,Girolamo Frescobaldi, and Antonio Vivaldi. Monteverdi’s music especially marked the end of the Renaissance and start of the Baroque era, and wrote some of the greatest works of opera that are still being performed today, like his opera Orfeo .   Vivaldi also created many famous works like The Four Seasons. Vivaldi also wrote many of his works for talented musicians at the orphanage, Ospedale della Pietà, he wrote 500 concertos, 46 sinfonias, 73 sonatas for these talented musicians. Besides Italy many famous composers include George Frideric Handel and Johann Sebastian Bach. You might recognize Handel from his works like Water Music Suites Nos. 1-3 , and English oratorios like Judas Maccabeus, Israel in Egypt, and his most famous work, Messiah. 

The Romantic era and movement started in Western Europe with the famous Classical era musician, Ludwig van Beethoven, who revolutionized music, especially the symphony to start a whole new era. Other notable Romantic era composers include Frédéric Chopin, Franz Liszt, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, and Sergei Rachmaninov. Chopin especially is notable for his discography of solo piano pieces like Chopin's 24 Preludes, Chopin's 27 Etudes, and Nocturne No. 2 in E flat. Chopin also was known as and considered the greatest Polish composer.  Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky is also a notable Romantic era composer. He created nine operas, six symphonies, four concertos, three string quartets, and much more, however he is most known for his ballet scores. Many of the famous ballets today are by Tchaikosky, like Swan Lake, The Nutcracker, and The Sleeping Beauty. 

While these eras of classical music and others are very different from each other they all influenced one another in some way. But even because of their similarities doesn't  mean they should be in one genre, even art is separated and defined by eras, so why can’t music?

Works Cited
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“Baroque Music | Britannica.” Www.britannica.com, 24 May 2023, www.britannica.com/art/Baroque-music#:~:text=Baroque%20music%2C%20a%20style%20of.

Classic FM. “Classic FM.” Classic FM, 2023, www.classicfm.com/discover-music/periods-genres/romantic/#:~:text=The%20Romantic%20period%20started%20around.

“Claudio Monteverdi.” Www.roh.org.uk, www.roh.org.uk/people/claudio-monteverdi#:~:text=Italian%20composer%20Claudio%20Monteverdi%20(1567.

“Frederic Chopin - Music, Death & Facts.” Biography, 26 Mar. 2021, www.biography.com/musicians/frederic-chopin.

“Major Baroque Composers - Music of the Baroque.” Baroque.org, 2015, www.baroque.org/baroque/composers.

Newman, William S. “Concerto | Definition, History, & Examples.” Encyclopædia Britannica, 9 Mar. 2017, www.britannica.com/art/concerto-music.

Rusnak, Brandon. “Who Is Tchaikovsky?” San Francisco Ballet, 5 Nov. 2021, www.sfballet.org/discover/backstage/who-is-tchaikovsky/.

Solutions, Scaleable. “Romantic Period Music.” Vida Art Management, vidaartmanagement.com/blog/-romantic-period-music#:~:text=New%20genres%3A%20In%20addition%20to.

“What Is Baroque Music? - Music of the Baroque.” Baroque.org, 2019, www.baroque.org/baroque/whatis#characteristics.