If the eras of musical evolution were to be compared to the eras of evolution in architecture, then the Middle Ages would be symbolized by the Notre Dame cathedral in Paris, the Renaissance by a Florentine building, and the Baroque by Louis XIV's palace at Versailles. Baroque music is very rich and textured, especially in comparison with the music that came before it.

At the beginnign of the Baroque age, around the year 1600, a new musical form was developed - opera. This form combined poetry, theater, the visual arts, and music. It arose as a result of the efforts of a group of Italian intellectuals in Florence who wanted to recreate the drama of the ancient Greeks, in which music played a key role. The first big opera was Orfeo, by Claudio Monteverdi, and it was first performed publicly in 1607. The ability of music to express human emotion and tp depict natural phenomena was truly discovered in the Boroque period. Vivaldi's The Four Seasons is the mos t well-known example of this. Although imitational polyphony remained very substantial, homophony became more and more important. Homophonic music advanced a clear difference between the melodic line and the secondary accompanying parts. This style was very important in opera and in solo vocal music, where it helped listeners to locate the expressive melody of the vocal part.
The style of homophony became more widespread in instrumental music as well. Many baroque pieces contain a continuo part, in which the keyboard (a harpsichord or organ) and the bass instruments produce a harmonic point, which accompanies the melodic line or lines.

New polyphonic forms were devised, and just as during the Renaissance there was an art of the counterapoint that was an essential skill for every baroque composer. Canons and fugues, two very strict forms of imitational polyphony, were extremely popular. It was even commonly expected of a composer of the period to be able to improvise a fugue anytime on the spot, if he wanted to be considered a real composer.
The orchestra was another creation to arrive at the beginning of the Baroque era, evolving from the accompaniment to opera and vocal arrangements. The most popular baroque musical genre was the concerto, in which solo musicians (or small groups of soloists) played "in concert" with an orchestra, which brought about interesting contrasts in dynamic and melody.
Many musical composers were also virtuoso musicians. For example, Archangelo Corelli was known for his ability on the violin and Johann Sebastian Bach was famous in his day for his ability on the organ.