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Being Raucous with Royer, or Baroque Music for Kids at Home
I can’t help myself. Whenever I read an article about how calm and soothing classical music is, I think of pieces like Vertigo by Joseph-Nicolas-Pancrace Royer (c1705–1755), which is anything but. If you want to share some exciting Baroque music with your kids while you’re stuck at home, check out this piece by Royer!
Vertigo is the kind of crazy cool music that was happening in France between the 1730s and 1750s, at the end of the Baroque period (roughly 1600–1750). It is fire, it is fury. These are emotions that kids should be exposed to in music, too.
This music is anything but relaxing, but that’s what makes it so great. I think its intensity is part of what draws my one-year-old son, Little M, to it. Hopefully your children will be drawn to it, as well, and will find it as interesting as Little M does.
Before we get to the music, here’s a short bio about Royer to get you up to speed.
Royer’s Bio
Joseph-Nicolas-Pancrace Royer (c1705–1755) was a French composer during the late Baroque period of classical music. In addition to being a composer, he also played the harpsichord and organ and was known for being a great musician. He worked at various musical locations in Paris, as well as at the French court at Versailles.
Royer is best remembered (when he’s remembered at all) for his harpsichord music. But he actually wrote a lot of operas, which are like plays but with singing instead of speaking. He was a very well-known musician during his lifetime even though he has mostly been forgotten today.
The Music
As promised, the selection my son, Little M, and I wish to share with you today is Royer’s Vertigo. This music is great to share with your kids at home because it is not only interesting to listen to but also fascinating to watch. My son is very intrigued by the harpsichord and its unique sound, so he finds pieces like this fascinating.
While we’re on the topic, a few notes about the harpsichord, which is the only instrument in today’s video. Despite its appearance, the harpsichord is not very much like the piano. The technique used to play it and make it sound its best is completely different from piano technique. The unique sound of the harpsichord is created by little pieces of bird quill–like the part of a bird feather people used to write with!–plucked the strings when the keys are played.
If you want to learn more about the harpsichord and how it’s different from the modern piano, check out our Guide to Baroque Instruments.
This music was intended to shock and amaze and I think it does that as much for the player as it does for the audience. It’s full of devilish surprises that challenge the harpsichordist’s technique and the listener’s ear. It is virtuosic harpsichord music.
The fabulous harpsichordist in this video is Jean Rondeau. Go check out his website or his YouTube channel! A bunch more videos of his playing can be found on the Warner Classics YouTube channel.
If you want to check out the whole CD, you can find it on Amazon by clicking the image below. (Disclaimer: We may receive compensation [at no extra cost to you!] when you click on the links to this CD.)
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Reveling in Rossi, or Classical Music Songs for Kids
My one-year-old, Little M, loves vocal music! He is always very interested in watching videos of people singing.
Songs–even classical music songs–are great for kids because they introduce new words and sounds while reinforcing familiar ones. Songs in other languages, such as our selection for today (which is in Italian), are also great. They introduce the words and sounds of other languages and help babies and kids learn more about the world around them.
Today’s selection is by the classical music composer Luigi Rossi (1597?–1653). You probably don’t know who Rossi is since he’s no longer that famous, but he was a big deal in his day. He wrote two Baroque operas and a ton of other great vocal music to prove it!
One of Rossi’s operas, Orfeo, was based on the ancient Greek myth of Orpheus and Eurydice. It was premiered in Paris in 1647 and became an important turning point in the French acceptance of Italian music!
To get you up to speed on Rossi before we dive into his music, here’s a short bio.
Orphée ramenant Eurydice des enfers (1861) by Jean-Baptiste Camille Corot Luigi Rossi’s Bio
Born near the end of the 16th century, Luigi Rossi was an Italian Baroque composer who loved to write music for singers. Almost all his works include voices and it is for these pieces that he is remembered today.
He lived in Rome by the 1620s and worked for various wealthy patrons there before landing a position as a church organist. His music became popular in France in the 1640s and he was invited to write an opera, Orfeo, to be premiered in Paris. After a few more trips to Paris, he returned to Rome for good, by that time lauded as one of the very best composers in Italy.
After his death in 1653 he was remembered as an amazing composer and virtuoso for a least another half-century before falling into obscurity. His music was “rediscovered” (thankfully!) in the 20th century.
The Music
My one-year-old son, Little M, helps me pick out music for this blog–only pieces he’s interested in get posted! And so the selection he and I would like to share with you today is Luigi Rossi’s “Dopo lungo penare.”
This is a canzonetta–or a short, lighthearted vocal piece (i.e. song)–in which the singer is having an argument with “Love.” Their argument is about whether or not he will again fall into the clutches and torments of love, or if he’ll escape and be happy. (This is admittedly a rather dark take on love by someone who had unfortunately been hurt before.)
The singer here is a fabulous countertenor. A countertenor is a male singer who sings in the high vocal range normally associated with female singers.
It’s a very playful piece that makes you want to move around to the music!
If you want to know more about any of the instruments you see, check out our Guide to Baroque Instruments. The instruments in this video are called “period instruments” because they were made at the same time period (i.e. hundreds of years ago!) as the music being played, or they are exact copies of instruments from that time period.
Little M and I hope you enjoy this song! Let us know what you think by leaving a comment below!
This performance is by countertenor Jakub Józef Orliński and the ensemble L’Arpeggiata. Go check them out!
