Renaissance Period Music

In the beginning You know the story, the Renaissance brought on a renewed interests in the arts which included music. Unfortunately the banjo was still man years away from obtaining popularity.

Playa

Back to Renaissance Humanist (people who believed in the value of people, community, and man’s ability) urged musicians to expression emotions in their music

Name that emotion

For the first time in history Greek music was being translated into Latin and made available to Europeans

Back to the Renaissance Again This was a period of scientific revolution, religious reform, and artistic change.

So where/when did it begin? Its hard to say. People living in the age didn’t know that they were in the Renaissance. There was just an exciting change in the air. However, most everyone agrees that the Renaissance originated in Florence Italy

Renaissance Man

Just a smidgen of art Sculptors relied on classic Roman models and themes People began to appreciate their artistic past, which in turn revived it.

Music Pasts views on music changed. During the Middle Ages the interval of a third was considered a dissonant (unpleasant) interval but was later accepted as a consonant (pleasing) interval during the Renaissance

Inter.. What? Interval: a combination of two notes, or the ratio between their frequencies. 

Oh A complex style of polyphony became increasingly smoother with a wide range of voices

Musical styles Most compositions that have endured past the Renaissance were sacred masses and motets, along with the development of the secular madrigal.

It’s late, lets ask Wikipedia A madrigal is a secular vocal music composition, usually a partsong, of the Renaissance and early Baroque eras. Traditionally, polyphonic madrigals are unaccompanied; the number of voices varies from two to eight, and most frequently from three to six. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ctci_zhGh vY

Kicking it Old School

Many composers thought that ancient Greek modes (scales) were the same as church modes, and believed stories that a divine power was in those modes

Musicians developed rules for counterpoint (melody against melody) that were based on consonance (harmonies pleasing to the ear) and dissonance (harmonies that sound harsh to the ear).

During this period composers and singers gave more attention to the relationship between lyrics and the melodies they were applied to.

Back to Italy Important period in the Italian city-states tried to glorify themselves with art. Musicians and artists were imported from other countries to create works for these people, thus greatly influencing art and music in Italy.

OK I like Assassin's Creed II Italians unfortunately imported too many lute players

Oh yeah The invention of the printing press with its movable typeset was kind of a big deal. Thanks to this a composer’s work could be more widely circulated.

It’s Banana's B-A-N-A-N-A-S. Ahem Thou ain’t no holla back girl

Giovanni Palestrina

Giovanni Palestrina Greatest composer of liturgical church music of all time Musical life began as an organist and choirmaster in Palestrina

Reputation increased and he was summoned to Rome in 1551 to direct a musical formation of choirboys at St. Peters. That same year he advanced to the position of choirmaster

In 1554 he dedicated his first compositions to Pope Julius III. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_rAwHgop VkQ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K8- IrXDAm8I&feature=related

Was known for his use of counterpoint and polyphony

Counterpoint Art of combining two simultaneous lines of music.

Polyphony Means many sounding Many sounds or melodies played at a time. If more than one independent melody is occurring at the same time, it is polyphonic http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oxgwCIwc 5js

On a side note In addition to sacred choral music, secular choral music began to emerge during the Renaissance along with secular instrumental music with recorders, viols, and lutes

I hate lute players