Musicianship Monthly #12: The Baroque Period

What better way to kick off a new year of teaching than with another installment of the "Musicianship Monthly" series?

What is "Musicianship Monthly?" Each month, I share links to free resources you can use to focus on a specific musicianship skill with your students. (Want to see past skills we have covered? Click HERE!)

This semester, the Musicianship Monthly series will be focused on music history! For the month of January, we will be learning about the Baroque period. Keep reading for fun, accessible resources you can use to introduce your students to this interesting period in music history.... 

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​Let's start with an overview of the Baroque period! Here is a handy information sheet that will introduce students of all ages to the main characteristics of this style period and a few of the most important composers living and working during this time.

Be sure to encourage your students to check out the listening examples at the bottom of the page! How many of these famous Baroque compositions do they recognize?

Download your free PDF copy of this information sheet HERE.

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Next, here are a few resources from around the web you can use with your students! I've included resources from my own "Free Stuff" page, as well as a few of my favorite sites for finding free resources: Classics for Kids, G Major Music Theory, Making Music Fun, and IMSLP. Many thanks to the creators of these websites for generously providing these free resources!

Kid-Friendly Biographies

• Biographies and links to podcast shows for many composers from the Baroque period are all available at the Classics for Kids website HERE.
• Several printable biographies of Baroque composers, along with worksheets and games, are available at the Making Music Fun website HERE.

Activity Sheets and Listening Activities

• Practice packets for J.S. Bach and Antonio Vivaldi are available on my "Free Stuff" page HERE.
• Handel's "Hornpipe" Activity Sheet from the Classics for Kids website: PDF available HERE.
• Vivaldi's "Spring" Activity Sheet from the Classics for Kids website: PDF available HERE.
•  J.S. Bach's "Brandenburg Concerto No. 2" Activity Sheet from the Classics for Kids website: PDF available HERE. 

Free Sheet Music
J.S. Bach

• Minuet in G from the Anna Magdalena Bach notebook (Arr. Chrissy Ricker): HERE
• Several pieces at a variety of levels available from G Major Music Theory HERE.
• ​IMSLP has an extensive list of free scores by J.S. Bach HERE. For intermediate-level students, I would suggest checking out the Anna Magdalena Bach Notebook or the Little Preludes and Fugues.​

Vivaldi

• Theme from the Spring Concerto (Arr. Chrissy Ricker): HERE
• Two additional arrangements from  "The Four Seasons" available from G Major Music Theory HERE.

Handel

• Several pieces at a variety of levels available from G Major Music Theory HERE.​
• Theme from the Hallelujah Chorus available from Making Music Fun HERE.
• Theme from Water Music available from Making Music Fun HERE.

Finally, one of my favorite activities to really help students get the flavor of the Baroque period is to watch a performance of a dance from a Baroque dance suite. Here are a few of my favorites:

What do you think? Any tips or favorite resources you use to introduce the Baroque period to your students? I would love to hear from you in the comments!