Continuo 2 Orchestration

Hi,

Let's suppose you can compose and play a continuo on the keyboard, how do you orchestrate it? How do you give a little paint to the drawing?

What are the source of the epoch that can give you some tips to go?

Thanks

Get scores of Bach and all baroque pieces are in this style including continuo, the other instruments (at least strings) can double part of continuo or do something else based on same harmony, can have solo parts, many different things.

Get scores of Bach and all baroque pieces are in this style including continuo, the other instruments (at least strings) can double part of continuo or do something else based on same harmony, can have solo parts, many different things.

I get the idea. The truth is that I am not so confident with the solo part above yet, even less with a duet, I am a bottom-up kind of guy it's like that. The better for now should be to look for orchestral settings with 6 or 7 players: figured keyboard, 4 parts spreads of the continuo, solo or duo on top, and see what happens with the middle guys. 

Thanks.

 how do you orchestrate it

Usually FB realizations were improvised on a keyboard instrument. If you wanna learn orchestration, get an orchestration textbook.

The best primer on through bass (which is essentially its own craft, not something you can learn in an afternoon) that i know of is "the true art of keyboard playing" by cpe bach

Usually FB realizations were improvised on a keyboard instrument.

 

The best primer on through bass (which is essentially it's own craft, not something you can learn in an afternoon) that i know of is "the true art of keyboard playing" by cpe bach

Thanks, but this is not the meaning of the question. :facepalm:

Was, once you have the chords on the keyboard, as figured, how do you arrange them as separate lines for the orchestra? In particular, and ouside of the repertory as mentioned by SYS65, is there any book from the 18th century about it ?

Sometimes it's by asking questions that you get a better overall picture.
 
After examinig the second half of the first measure of Bach's Brandeburghese concerto n²5, here is what i've found,
 
 

beat num:   1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8
6) violino: C# D  C# B  A  G  F# E
5) viola:   E     D     E     C#
1) bass:    A     B     C#    A
0) fig:                 6

A standard do-ré-mi-do progression on A major dominant in the key of D major.

On beat number 1, A major

On beat number 5, A6 as figured.

What is interesting is what happens between the chords, in particular on beat 3 - B D C# - a 93 triad resolving to 83 on the next beat - B D B.

This is not what is expected here, canonically it should be a 643, a little sixth, so I suppose we're more in a Fuxian type of approach at this level of linearity.

So problem solved, I should read the Fux more closely, no espcape. Unless there is a school of counterpoint sctrictly based on figured bass, but I have a doubt about it. There is the diminution paradigm, but how does it apply to multiple lines? Fux again, I guess.