When we first heard that Fort Worth Opera would be doing its first fully staged Baroque-era production at this year's festival -- Handel's Julius Caesar -- our immediate reaction was, of course, "Great! But, wait, what exactly does that mean?" When was the Baroque era, and who were its musical stars? What does Baroque music sound like? And how is all that related to Baroque art and architecture?

We decided to go for Baroque and dig into history. Here, we present this brief primer for readers who, like us, could use a little refresher on this particular patch of time, a time that celebrated grandeur, power and complexity.

To read more, click here.