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The Musical Language: Introduction |
The baroque took the principal of note
symbolism from the Renaissance, and expanded it. Musical
things also have extra-musical meanings:
- Note names and syllables for names, like
b-a-c-h
- The sharp sign (#) for christ's cross, also
notes forming a cross
- number sumbolism: 3 for the holy trinity,
completeness, spirit; 4 for the elements, the world;
and 12 for the apostles, the church; also the
number alphabet A=1, B=2, etc.
- structures like canon for following after
(caccia, hunt, fuga ), but also lawfulness and
righteousness;
- figures which have more direct meanings than
symbolism. musica poetica (see next chapter)
In this example by Monteverdi, the
three voices join together to form a unison: 'and these
three are one'.
Shortly before his death, Bach dictates the
death chorale Vor deinen Thron tret ich hiermit, into which
he weaves his own name using the number alphabet and adding
8 ornamental notes to the original melody (14,
mirror image of 41). In his Orgelbuchlein the chorale has
158 notes (in this case the title is Wenn wir in Hochsten
Nothen sein).
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