Characteristics  In Renaissance music, rhythm is more a gentle flow than a sharply defined beat  Each melodic line has great rhythmic independence  Pitch patterns in Renaissance melodies are easy to sing, usually they move along a scale with few large leaps

Sacred Music  The two main forms of sacred Renaissance music are the motet and the mass  Both forms are similar in style, but a mass is a longer composition

The Motet  The Renaissance motet is a polyphonic choral work set to a sacred Latin text other than the ordinary of the mass  The composer that was most famous for the motet is Josquin Desprez  Deprez lived from  He was a master of Renaissance music

The Motet  Desprez was born in the province of Hainaut, which is part of Belgium  He sepent most of his life in Italy, serving in dukes’ private chapels and in the papal choir at Rome  In his later years he worked for Louis XII of France and held several church posts in his native land

The Motet  Desprez’s compositions included masses, motets, and secular vocal music  All his compositions strongly influenced other composers and were praised enthusiastically by music lovers

The Mass  The Renaissance mass is a polyphonic choral composition made up of five sections: Kyrie, Gloria, Credo, Sanctus, and Agnus Dei  The main composer for the mass during this time period is Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina  Palestrina was from Italy

The Mass  Palestrina lived from about 1525 to 1594  He devoted himself to music for the Catholic Church  His career was centered in Rome, where he held important church positions, including that of music director for St. Peter’s cathedral  Palestrina’s music includes 104 masses and about 450 other sacred works

The Mass  The Jesuit order (1540) and the convening of the Council of Trent ( ) attacked church music  The arguement was that it used secular tunes, noisy instruments, and theatrical singing  Some complained that complex polyphony made it impossible to understand the sacred texts

The Mass  The council wanted only monophonic music, Gregorian chant, for the mass  The council finally decreed that church music should be composed to inspire religious contemplation, not to please the ear  The restraint and serenity of Palestrina’s works reflect this emphasis on a more spiritual music