A key component to baroque music is expression. You might say it’s an important concept in all musical forms and historical periods, really, but I think what really set baroque music apart was a transformation and codification of affect into musical formulae and the imitation of the human spirit into instrumental sound.

I seemingly have a thing with this concept, looking back. Not one, not two, but three works under my pen on the topic of musical expression.

• Musical Expression in the Renaissance (PDF)
• Musical Expression at Both Ends of the Baroque (PDF)
• Music Expression and Bach’s Brandenburg Concertos (PDF)

These were all written between 1996-1999. The writing of all three papers reflect my intense interest in baroque music, and helped me personally develop my skills for scholarship and academic writing.