Baroque pop
Baroque pop (sometimes called baroque rock) is a fusion genre that combines rock music with particular elements of classical music.[1][4][5] It emerged in the mid 1960s as artists pursued a majestic, orchestral sound[4] and is identifiable for its appropriation of Baroque compositional styles (contrapuntal melodies and functional harmony patterns) and dramatic or melancholic gestures.[3] Harpsichords figure prominently,[6] while oboes, French horns, and string quartets are also common.[5]
Baroque pop
- Baroque rock
- chamber pop[1][2]
1960s, United Kingdom and United States
Although harpsichords had been deployed for a number of pop hits since the 1940s, some record producers in the 1960s increasingly placed the instrument in the foreground of their arrangements.[6] Inspired partly by the Beatles' song "In My Life" (1965), various groups were incorporating baroque and classical instrumentation by early 1966.[7] The term "baroque rock" was coined in promotional material for the Left Banke, who used harpsichords and violins in their arrangements[8] and whose 1966 song "Walk Away Renée" exemplified the style.[6][9]
Baroque pop's mainstream popularity faded by the 1970s, partially because punk rock, disco and hard rock took over; nonetheless, music was still produced within the genre's tradition.[9] Philadelphia soul in the 1970s and chamber pop in the 1990s both reflected the spirit of baroque pop,[4] while the latter incorporated much of the period's low fidelity musical aesthetic.[10]
History[edit]
Precursors (early 1960s)[edit]
The Boston Globe's Matthew Guerrieri credits the origins of baroque pop to American pop musicians and record producers like Phil Spector and the Beach Boys' Brian Wilson placing the harpsichord in the foreground of their arrangements.[6] Harpsichords were widely available in recording studios, and had been used in popular music since as early as the 1940s, but the instrument did not gain prominence until the 1960s.[6] One of the first pop rock hits to use a harpsichord was the Jamies' "Summertime, Summertime" (1958).[17] Later examples cited by Guerrieri range from the Beach Boys' "I Get Around" (1964) and "When I Grow Up (To Be a Man)" (1965) to the Righteous Brothers "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'" (1964) and the Mamas & the Papas' "Monday, Monday" (1966).[6] Guerrieri speculates that the harpsichord may have been desirable for its buzzing, stinging timbre, which suited "the treble-heavy pop soundscape" of the time.[6][nb 2]
The 1964 single "She's Not There" by the English band the Zombies marked a starting point for baroque pop, according to Stanley. He writes that the song "didn't feature any oboes but stuck out rather dramatically in 1964, the year of 'You Really Got Me' and 'Little Red Rooster'", and its refined qualities were emphasised by singer Colin Blunstone having an enunciation that was "pure St Albans grammar".[9]