Part iI: The Middle Ages and renaissance Music: An Appreciation, Brief, 8th edition | Roger Kamien Part iI: The Middle Ages and renaissance

time line Middle Ages (450 – 1450) Rome sacked by Vandals 455 Beowulf c. 700 First Crusade 1066 Black Death 1346 – 72 Chaucer, The Canterbury Tales 1387 – 1400 Joan of Arc executed by English 1431

time line Renaissance (1450 – 1600) Gutenberg Bible 1456 Columbus reaches America 1492 Leonardo da Vinci, Mona Lisa c. 1503 Michelangelo, David 1504 Raphael, School of Athens 1505 Martin Luther’s 95 theses 1517 Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet 1596

the Middle Ages A thousand years of European history Early – a time of migrations, upheavals, and wars Later – a period of cultural growth Romanesque churches & monasteries; Gothic cathedrals; Crusades to recover the Holy City from the Muslims Class distinctions Nobility sheltered in fortified castles; knights in armor; amused themselves with hunting, feasting, & tournaments Peasants: vast majority of population; lived miserably; subject to feudal overlords Clergy: Roman Catholic church exerted power; monks held a virtual monopoly on learning

the Renaissance Rebirth of human creativity Time of exploration & adventure voyages of Christopher Columbus, Vasco da Gama, and Ferdinand Magellan Age of curiosity and individualism Leonardo da Vinci Intellectual movement—Humanism captivated by ancient Greek & Roman cultures Visual arts depicted realism with linear perspective and illusion of space & depth Catholic Church was far less powerful Education was a status symbol for the aristocracy & upper middle class

music in the Middle Ages Church was the center of musical life Important musicians were priests Women were not allowed to sing in church, but did make music in convents Only sacred music was notated Music was primarily vocal and sacred Instruments were not used in church Few medieval instruments have survived Music manuscripts did not indicate tempo, dynamics, or rhythm

Gregorian chant The Church Modes Official music of the Roman Catholic church No longer common since 2nd Vatican Council (1962 – 1965) Represents the voice of the church rather than an individual Monophonic melody set to Latin text Melodies tend to move by steps in a narrow range Flexible rhythm: without meter and sense of beat Named for Pope Gregory I (r. 590 – 604) Later the melodies were notated Notation developed over several centuries The Church Modes Basic scales, consisting of seven tones, comprised of unique whole and half-step patterns

Listen, then follow the vocal music guide to this selection in CONNECT MUSIC Note: Gregorian chant Monophonic texture Ternary form: A B A LISTENING Alleluia: Vidimus stellam (We Have Seen His Star)

Listen, then follow the vocal music guide to this selection in CONNECT MUSIC Note: Gregorian chant Originally written without accompaniment (this recording includes a drone) Extended range of melody LISTENING O successores (You successors) Hildegard of Bingen

secular music in the Middle Ages Composed by French nobles who were poet-musicians troubadours (southern France) trouvères (northern France) Performed by jongleurs (traveling minstrels) Song topics: love Crusades dancing spinning songs Instrumental dances

LISTENING Listen to this selection in CONNECT MUSIC Note: Medieval dance music Strong beat (for dancing) Single melody line is notated Performers improvised instrumental accompaniment LISTENING Estampie

the development of polyphony: organum Between 700 and 900, a 2nd melody line was added to chant Additional part initially improvised, not written Paralleled chant line at a different pitch 900 to 1200, the added line grew more independent Developed its own melodic curve (no longer parallel) c. 1100 note-against-note motion abandoned 2 lines with individual rhythmic and melodic content New part, in top voice, moved faster than the chant line School of Notre Dame (Paris): Measured Rhythm Leonin & Perotin developed notation of precise rhythms Chant notation had only indicated pitch Medieval theorists considered interval of 3rd as dissonant Modern triads, built from 3rds, are considered consonant

Fourteenth-century music: the “new art” in Italy & France Secular music more important than sacred Changes in musical style, known as new art (ars nova, Latin) New music notation system evolved Beats could be subdivided into 2 as well as 3 Syncopation became important rhythmic practice

Listen, then follow the vocal music guide to this selection in CONNECT MUSIC Note: Vocal melody accompanied by two lower parts Syncopation LISTENING Puis qu’en oubli sui de vous (Since I am forgotten by you) (around 1363) Guillaume de Machaut

Listen, then follow the vocal music guide to this selection in CONNECT MUSIC Note: Polyphonic Triple meter Syncopation Ternary form: A B A (form results from text) LISTENING Agnus Dei from Notre Dame Mass Guillaume de Machaut

music in the Renaissance Invention of printing widened the circulation of music Musicians worked in churches, courts, and towns Church remained an important patron of music Growth in size of church choirs (all male) Musical activity shifted to the courts Town musicians played for civic processions, weddings Musicians enjoyed higher status and pay Composers sought credit for their work Italy became leading music center

characteristics of Renaissance music Words and Music Vocal music was more important than instrumental Word painting Wide range of emotion without extreme contrasts Texture Polyphonic Imitation among the voices Sounds fuller; expanded pitch range; consonant chords are favored with use of triads Rhythm and Melody Rhythm was a gentle flow rather than sharply defined beat Melodic line has greater rhythmic independence Melody usually moves along a scale with few large leaps

sacred music in the Renaissance Motet – Josquin Desprez Short polyphonic choral work Latin text usually overlaid with vernacular text Mass – Giocanni Pierluigi da Palestrina Polyphonic choral composition of the Catholic church Made up of 5 sections: Kyrie Gloria Credo Sanctus Agnus Dei

Listen, then follow the vocal music guide to this selection in CONNECT MUSIC Note: Four voice motet Polyphonic imitation Overlapping voice parts LISTENING Ave Maria…virgo serena Josquin Desprez

Listen, then follow the vocal music guide to this selection in CONNECT MUSIC Note: Rich polyphonic texture (6 voices) Vocal imitation Spirit of Gregorian chant Palestrina’s work because the model for mass composers LISTENING Kyrie from Pope Marcellus Mass Palestrina (1525 – 1594)

secular music in the Renaissance VOCAL MUSIC Music was an important leisure activity Particular arrangement of note lengths Madrigal For several solo voices set to a short poem, usually about love Combined homophonic and polyphonic textures Word painting and unusual harmonies Renaissance Lute Song Song for solo voice and lute (plucked string instrument) Popular instrument in the Renaissance home Homophonic texture Lute accompanies the vocal melody

Listen, then follow the vocal music guide to this selection in CONNECT MUSIC Note: Madrigal Pitches rise on “ascending” Pitches fall on “descending,” “running down,” “two by two,” “three by three,” “all alone” LISTENING As Vesta was Descending (1601) Thomas Weelkes

Listen, then follow the vocal music guide to this selection in CONNECT MUSIC Note: Very popular lute song Recorded by Sting (rock star) Expression of melancholy—descending four-note pattern Three brief musical sections: A B C LISTENING Flow My Tears (about 1600) John Dowland (1563 – 1626)

Still subordinate to vocal music Instrumentalists accompanied voices INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC Still subordinate to vocal music Instrumentalists accompanied voices harpsichord, organ, or lute More music written specifically for instruments Instrumental music intended for dancing Pavane or passamezzo in duple meter Galliard in triple meter Distinguished between loud and soft instruments Outdoor (loud): trumpet, shawm Indoor (soft): lute, recorder