In connection with these movements the theory of composition made steady advance, especially in the freedom and solidity of harmony proper as distinguished from counterpoint, in the production and varied embellishment of pure melody, and in the establishment of 'form' in general and of certain forms in particular. Dance-types pushed more and more into evidence in serious writing, with their clearness of plan, individuality of figures and energetic momentum. Out of them, it was clear, were to come still further enrichments of style. Already the 'sonata' and the overture were settling down into complex series of movements in which larger conceptions could find expression than are possible in an extended work without such separated and contrasted divisions.
Meanwhile, the pursuit of choral styles and of organ music was not given up, but, especially in the latter, was keeping alive that feeling for counterpoint and thematic development generally which in the 18th century was to attain a fresh culmination under Bach and Handel. In this field German musicians proved themselves more apt than all others, thus laying deep the foundations on which their country's later eminence was to rest. In these more serious and thoughtful sides of the art, the leadership had already passed from Italy to northern Europe.
