Baroque pop

Baroque pop (sometimes called baroque rock) is a fusion genre that combines rock music with particular elements of classical music.^[1][4][5] It emerged in the mid-1960s as artists pursued a majestic, orchestral sound^[4] and is identifiable for its appropriation of Baroque compositional styles (contrapuntal melodies and functional harmony patterns) and dramatic or melancholic gestures.^[3] Harpsichords figure prominently,^[6] while oboes, French horns, and string quartets are also common.^[5]

Although harpsichords had been deployed for a number of pop hits since the 1940s, some record producers in the 1960s increasingly placed the instrument in the foreground of their arrangements.^[6] Inspired partly by the Beatles' song "In My Life" (1965), various groups were incorporating baroque and classical instrumentation by early 1966.^[7] The term "baroque rock" was coined in promotional material for the Left Banke, who used harpsichords and violins in their arrangements^[8] and whose 1966 song "Walk Away Renée" exemplified the style.^[6][9]

Baroque pop's mainstream popularity faded by the 1970s, partially because punk rock, disco and hard rock took over; nonetheless, music was still produced within the genre's tradition.^[9] Philadelphia soul in the 1970s and chamber pop in the 1990s both reflected the spirit of baroque pop,^[4] while the latter incorporated much of the period's low fidelity musical aesthetic.^[10]