The Baroque period gave rise to 2 new large scale vocal genreswhich many consider to be polar reflections of each other: Opera(based on a mythological or historical story) and Oratorio (basedon a sacred story or scripture text). We will be discussing theseat the beginning of class on Thursday and I'll want you to weigh inon the similarities and differences of each genre.
Watch these excerpts and try to determine what kinds of thingsthe two genres have in common and what things are different.Consider setting, topic, musical aspects such as texture,instrumentation, and voice types as well as other performingconsiderations such as acting, costumes, dancing, use of musicalscores or not, performance locations, etc...
Opera Ensemble or Chorus
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tf16_lGs7Ss
Oratorio Ensemble or Chorus
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IUZEtVbJT5c
