Compared to the concerto grosso in the Baroque style, solo concertos in the Classical period has the following differences

Question

Compared to the concerto grosso in the Baroque style, solo concertos in the Classical period has the following differences: (check all that apply)
A. Solo concerto means one soloist plays against the orchestra.
B. The solo part is much more showy than the orchestra part.
C. Solo concertos focuses more on the orchestra part.
D. A small team of talented performers will play the solo part.

Answer 1

Hi, Lola! The term "concerto grosso" is similar to saying "large concerto" - performed with a group of soloists - and "solo concerto" is similar to saying "individual concerto" - having only one soloist. Both the baroque & classical forms used orchestra (though the baroque orchestra is believed to have been smaller), but featured solo parts. While the baroque concerto grosso had two or more soloists & carefully integrated, solo-like orchestra parts, the classical solo concerto featured a flashy individual soloist - and the orchestra parts were mundane background accompaniment.

 

So, you can see that the correct answers should be A & B. It's easy to eliminate C, as solo concerto do not "feature" the orchestra at all - the orchestra was a mere accompanist. D is also incorrect, as solo concertos were written typically for individual players. Some classical concertos were written for more than one soloist, but these were not at all the norm. It was in the concerto grosso where a team of players performed solo parts - and sometimes every part was a solo part.

 

Good luck with your music courses!