Basso continuo (thoroughbass, “continuous bass”) is a fundamental principle of the musical texture of the Baroque era, a kind of “sonic support” for almost all the music of that time. It is performed by a group of instruments: a bass instrument (cello, bassoon, viola da gamba) leads a continuous bass line, while a keyboard (harpsichord, organ) or lute builds chords above it.
The composer wrote out only the bass voice with figures beneath the notes (the figured bass), which indicated the required chords, and the performer had to “decode” them skilfully and improvise the harmonic accompaniment. In this way, basso continuo demanded of the musician a deep knowledge of harmony and good taste. This system dominated music from roughly 1600 to 1750, so the whole of that epoch is often called the “age of thoroughbass.”
