Early and Middle Baroque

We have moved on from the music of the Renaissance to Early and Middle Baroque. The term Baroque is taken from the Portuguese word barroco, which means a pearl of irregular shape. The music of Early and Middle Baroque has been enjoyable. Operas have never tickled my fancy because they have never been explained to me. Reading about Monteverdi's Orfeo and following along with the listening guide was great. I wish everything was written in English so it didn't have to be translated. I love the music of the toccata because it really does feel like the action is about to begin. Act II was hard to tell recitative apart from arioso because they sound so close; recitative was more spoken, but it was still hard to tell the difference. In Act III it was easier to distinguish aria because it had more vibrato and passion. I could feel the pain in Orfeo as he pleaded for his love. I really have enjoyed listening so far and am excited to listen to the next song The Secret Lover.