Classical Music was largely influenced by a period of time in which society was more contemporary and ancient. The music itself would show the changes happening towards society, so in a way it's not how the music was shaped, but how the music shaped others.
Thanks to Classical Music, music was more accessable due to public concerts, church, courts, operas, concerts, and symphonies.
Musicians today, such as Led Zepellin and the Beatles, are still influenced by classical music. The Beatles' "Eleanor Rigby:, you can hear a string quartet playing, which could almost sort of be a callback to the time period, but definitely influenced by the era (saying this as a generalization to give an example).