The
French overture is a
musical formThe term musical form is often loosely used to refer to particular musical genres or styles , which may be determined by factors such as harmonic language, typical rhythms, types of musical instrument used as well as historical and geographical origins...
widely used in the
BaroqueBaroque music describes a style of European classical music approximately extending from 1600 to 1750. This era is said to begin in music after the Renaissance and was followed by the Classical era...
period. It is in three parts: the first is slow, often with over-dotted (i.e. exaggerated dotted rhythms, not strict double-dotting), the second is quick and fugal, and the first part returns at the end.
When written for orchestra, the French overture is often scored with
trumpetThe trumpet is a musical instrument with the highest register in the brass family. Trumpets are among the oldest musical instruments, dating back to at least 1500 BC...
s and
timpaniTimpani are musical instruments in the percussion family. A type of drum, they consist of a skin called a head stretched over a large bowl traditionally made of copper, and more recently, constructed of more lightweight fiberglass. They are played by striking the head with a specialized drum stick...
, and aims at grandeur. The form was thus highly suited to an era in which all orchestras were employed by royalty or other aristocracy.
The name is acknowledgement of the importance of
Jean-Baptiste LullyJean-Baptiste de Lully , was a French composer of Italian birth, who spent most of his life working in the court of Louis XIV of France. He became a French subject in 1661.-Biography:...
, the French baroque composer, in developing the form.
The
French overture is a
musical formThe term musical form is often loosely used to refer to particular musical genres or styles , which may be determined by factors such as harmonic language, typical rhythms, types of musical instrument used as well as historical and geographical origins...
widely used in the
BaroqueBaroque music describes a style of European classical music approximately extending from 1600 to 1750. This era is said to begin in music after the Renaissance and was followed by the Classical era...
period. It is in three parts: the first is slow, often with over-dotted (i.e. exaggerated dotted rhythms, not strict double-dotting), the second is quick and fugal, and the first part returns at the end.
When written for orchestra, the French overture is often scored with
trumpetThe trumpet is a musical instrument with the highest register in the brass family. Trumpets are among the oldest musical instruments, dating back to at least 1500 BC...
s and
timpaniTimpani are musical instruments in the percussion family. A type of drum, they consist of a skin called a head stretched over a large bowl traditionally made of copper, and more recently, constructed of more lightweight fiberglass. They are played by striking the head with a specialized drum stick...
, and aims at grandeur. The form was thus highly suited to an era in which all orchestras were employed by royalty or other aristocracy.
The name is acknowledgement of the importance of
Jean-Baptiste LullyJean-Baptiste de Lully , was a French composer of Italian birth, who spent most of his life working in the court of Louis XIV of France. He became a French subject in 1661.-Biography:...
, the French baroque composer, in developing the form. He often used it to open his operas (tragédies en musique). Later examples can be found as the opening movement of each of
Johann Sebastian BachJohann Sebastian Bach was a German composer and organist whose ecclesiastical and secular works for choir, orchestra, and solo instruments drew together the strands of the Baroque period and brought it to its ultimate maturity...
's
orchestral suitesThe four Orchestral Suites or Ouvertures BWV 1066–1069 are a set of compositions by Johann Sebastian Bach, probably composed between 1725 and 1739 in Leipzig...
, 4th partita, C minor cello suite and as an opening to many
oratorioAn oratorio is a large musical composition including an orchestra, a choir, and soloists. The oratorio was somewhat modeled after the opera. Their similarities include the use of a choir, soloists, an ensemble, various distinguishable characters, and arias...
s by
George Frideric HandelGeorge Frideric Handel was a German-English Baroque composer, who is famous for his operas, oratorios, and concerti grossi. His life and music may justly be described as "cosmopolitan": he was born in Germany, trained in Italy, and spent most of his life in England...
(including
Messiah). The 16th of Bach's
Goldberg VariationsThe Goldberg Variations, BWV 988, are a set of an aria and 30 variations for harpsichord by Johann Sebastian Bach. First published in 1741 as the fourth in a series Bach called Clavier-Übung, "keyboard practice", the work is considered to be one of the most important examples of variation form...
is a French overture in miniature.
The French overture should not be confused with the
Italian overtureThe Italian overture is a piece of orchestral music with which in the late 17th and early 18th centuries several operas, oratorios and other large-scale works opened....
, a three-part quick-slow-quick structure.
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