Classical Music – Sheet Music & Scores

“Where words fail, music speaks.” Hans Christian Andersen, Danish Author

What do we mean by “Classical Music”? There are classics in every artistic discipline, and music is no exception. Here at Stretta, you can find sheet music and scores from all periods of music history, and all musical forms! If you would like to know more about the meaning and origin of the term “Classical Music”, click here:

The Term “Classical Music”

The term classical music, in a broader sense, separates what is often called “Serious Music” from Music for Entertainment and Folk Music . Classical music encompasses all periods of modern history, driven by Western composers from the Medieval Period, through the Baroque and Romantic Periods, to the modern classical music of today.

“The Classical Period”

In a more narrow sense, The Classical Period means the historical period of classical music from around 1750 to 1800. It was a long period of musical development, from “Pre-Classical”, to “ Musical Sensibility”, through to “Music of the Enlightenment”. Baroque tonality continued to develop and transform, and became more complex, perfectly demonstrated through the music of the three“ Viennese Classics” Joseph Haydn, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Ludwig van Beethoven. There was a departure from figured bass and counterpoint, and a move towards clearly defined melody and accompaniment. Many important musical works, such as the symphony and the string quartet developed, and really came into their own in the classical period, and classical music itself also began to be more and more accessible, moving out of the court and church, and into the public eye.

The Term “Classic”

In Ancient Rome, the term “classicus” was reserved for a citizen in the highest tax bracket. In a figurative sense, something exemplary or immaculate is called ’classic’, a good literary example being the ’Weimar Classics’ of Schiller and Goethe. One of the highest of accolades, being named a ’classic’, is almost always awarded posthumously, an artist is very rarely referred to as a ’classic’ during their lifetime.

Forms of Classical Music

• Sonata
• Symphony
• Concerto
• Opera
• Operetta
• Art Song
• Oratorio
• Sacred Music
• Chamber Music

The Periods of Classical Music

• The Renaissance Period (1400-1600)
• The Baroque Period (1600-1750)
• The Classical Period (1750-1800)
• The Romantic Period (1800-1900)
• Impressionism & Verismo
• Classical Modernism (1900-1945)
• Contemporary Classical Music (after 1945)
• Modern Classical Music (after 1945)