Galant music

On the other hand, the term found a narrowing in musicology in the 19th and 20th centuries: the focus is on compositions that can be seen as moving away from the Baroque in its more rhetorical formal language, but which at the same time only display qualities that can be attributed to the pre-classical period to a limited extent.

This meant simpler, more song-like melodies, decreased use of polyphony, short, periodic phrases, a reduced harmonic vocabulary emphasizing tonic and dominant, and a clear distinction between soloist and accompaniment.

[citation needed] Not every contemporary was delighted with this revolutionary simplification: Johann Samuel Petri, in his Anleitung zur praktischen Musik (1782) spoke of the "great catastrophe in music".

[citation needed] This simplified style was melody-driven, not constructed on rhythmic or melodic motifs as so much classical music was to be: "It is indicative that Haydn, even in his old age, is reported to have said, 'If you want to know whether a melody is really beautiful, sing it without accompaniment'".

[5] The affinities of galant style with Rococo in the visual arts are easily overplayed, but characteristics that were valued in both genres were freshness, accessibility and charm.