Basso Continuo, often shortened to just continuo can be the underlying structured music - used many times when, for instance, a Bach cantata is performed - the continuo part is usually played on an organ or other period instrument.
Basso Continuo
Basso continuo
Canon in D by Johann Pachelbel was originally scored for three violins and basso continuo.
They're completely different.The violin is a melody instrument that often plays a solo part.The thorough bass is more usually called the "basso continuo," or "continuo" for short. It consists of an instrument, and usually two instruments, that play the bass line and the harmony. The expression is used in baroque music.The continuo is typically a cello or viola da gamba, which plays the bass line, and a harpsichord, which plays the bass line and harmony. The continuo may also be played on a small organ, theorbo, lute, harp, double bass or violone.Thus a Handel sonata for violin will be played by a violin on the solo part, with cello and harpsichord as the continuo group.
Basso Continuo, often shortened to just continuo can be the underlying structured music - used many times when, for instance, a Bach cantata is performed - the continuo part is usually played on an organ or other period instrument.
Basso Continuo
Basso continuo
The ensemble that could play basso continuo is a Baroque ensemble.
Canon in D by Johann Pachelbel was originally scored for three violins and basso continuo.
They're completely different.The violin is a melody instrument that often plays a solo part.The thorough bass is more usually called the "basso continuo," or "continuo" for short. It consists of an instrument, and usually two instruments, that play the bass line and the harmony. The expression is used in baroque music.The continuo is typically a cello or viola da gamba, which plays the bass line, and a harpsichord, which plays the bass line and harmony. The continuo may also be played on a small organ, theorbo, lute, harp, double bass or violone.Thus a Handel sonata for violin will be played by a violin on the solo part, with cello and harpsichord as the continuo group.
Basso continuo is a type of musical notation. It was very prevalent in the Baroque era which lasted from 1600-1750. Basso continuo is when chords, intervals, and non-chord tones are written above or below the bass line in a piece of music.
The basso continuo became obsolete in the classical era because composers started writing more detailed and specific musical notation, which made the need for improvisation by the continuo players less necessary.
bass continuo, also called figured bass
generalbass
The Baroque period
The basso continuo is the "underpinning" of a piece. The cello would have played the lowest voice line. A harpsichord or another keyboard instrument would have added chord figures along with the bass line to support the other music being played along with it.