L段ncoronazione di Poppea
J. Tyler Walker Anita Ip, Tuesday, 12:30 Music Paper #1 This work is hard to classify because it falls into either one of two very similar genres. Without any context, it is impossible to tell whether this piece is from an opera or was written as a cantata. Elements of both of these Baroque genres are present such as the basso continuo and defined sections of recitative and aria. The piece is entirely secular meaning that if it is a cantata it is Italian in the style of Strozzi. Even without details like these, one can still make educated conclusions and assumptions about the piece, its origin, and its composition. The basic materials of music can easily be extracted from this as well as any other piece. The range of this piece is small. There are not many drastic changes in tone in any parts of the song so the melody is conjunct.