Medieval and

Renaissance Music

c. 500 - 1600

Life in the Middle Ages

Peasant Male, Peasant Female, Noble-Woman, Nobleman, Monk, Nun

Life in the Middle Ages: Homes

Most homes were damp, cold, and dark

Windows were very small to allow only small amounts of light Prevents theft as well

Most homes only had one or two rooms

Life in the Middle Ages: Homes

Wealthy homes were generally larger and highly decorated with blankets and throws. Includes many colors

Life in the Middle Ages:

Government Small communities were ruled by a King or a Lord.

Life in the Middle Ages

Time of War

Exploration

Religion and Education

Artand

Literature

Time of War Crusades: The crusades lasted from the 11th to 13th

centuries. It was a religious war between the European Christians and the Middle Eastern Moslems. The Europeans eventually failed to win what they termed the “Holy Lands.”

Feudalism: A system of hierarchy during the Middle Ages. The king lent land to noblemen. In return, the noblemen supplied knights for battle. The knights, servants, and peasants gave loyalty to the lords.

Exploration Marco Polo

1254-1324 Traveled from Europe to China and back. He opened up trade with China for silk, spices, and new ideas.

Christopher Columbus1492

Traveled to the “New World.”

Churches and Universities

Notre Dame Cathedral

• Early, the church was the center for learning.• Priests, monks, and nuns were among the only people who could read.• Later, universities were founded. They taught religion, law, medicine, and the arts.

Arts and Literature Leonardo d

a Vinci

Raphael

Michalangelo

Arts and Literature

Chaucer wrote the famous Canterbury Tales.

William Shakespeare wrote famous works like Romeo and Juliet and Hamlet.

Medieval Composers

Magnus Liber - Alleluya

Leonin1150’s - 1201?

He was choirmaster of the Cathedral of Notre Dame in the 1100’s.

He composed important choral works for the entire church year.

Medieval Composers

Viderunt omnes

Perotin1200 - ?

He was a choirmaster at the Cathedralof Notre Dame in the 1100’s.

He held the position of choirmaster After Leonin.

He is credited with inventing the motet.

Medieval Composers

Hildegard Von Bingen1098 - 1179

She was elected a Magistra by her fellownuns in 1136.

She founded monasteries, wrote theological,botanical and medicinal texts, as well as

letters, liturgical songs, and poems.

She wrote over 100 letters, 70 poems, and 9 books. She composed 72 songs.

Ordo Virtutum

Medieval Composers

Messe de Notre Dame

Guillaume de Machaut1305-1377

He was a French composer who worked at the age of twenty for a warrior king.

He traveled much of his life around Europe, accompanying the king to military battles.

At the time of his death, he was considered

One of the most important religious leaders

Of his time. In fact, he composed one

of the oldest surviving masses written in four parts.

He is best-known for his secular music.

c.1450-1600

The word Renaissance means “rebirth.”

Merchants and professionals began to gather wealth.

With their leisure time, they began to broaden their interests beyond

church music and art. This resulted in the “rebirth” of

interest in the values of Greek and Roman cultures.

Music c. 500 - 1600

Sacred: Music composed for the church.

•Gregorian Chant / Plainchant•Polyphony•Motet•Canon / Round

Secular: Non-church (popular) music• Music of the troubadours• Music of the jongleurs

Sacred MusicGregorian Chant

• Very simple songs.• A single line melody• No accompaniment• Sung by men’s choirs or soloists• No instruments• Sung in Latin• Music and rhythm were simple. Almost as if the the singer was speaking the words.

• Also known as Plainchant. • Named after Pope Gregory I

Sacred MusicPolyphony: Musicians began singing different parts instead of everyone singing the same notes.

Motet: A short religious piece that might have plainchant for one line, a love song in another part and a hymn for a third. The different parts can even be sung in different languages.

Canon: Singers perform the same music but come in at different times.

Secular MusicTroubadour: Members of nobility, many were knights. They composed musical poems about courtly love knightly adventures, and chivalry but often left the performance of their works to less

aristocratic musicians.

Jongleur: Working musicians. They wandered from townto town. They sang, played instruments, danced, juggled, and performed magic tricks.

Medieval and Renaissance Instruments

Lute Crumhorn Recorder

Medieval and Renaissance Instruments

Sackbut Viol Serpent

Renaissance Music

Changes in the Renaissance Period…

Kings and lords began employing court musicians.

Books began to be printed. By 1476, books of music began being printed. Anyone who could read them could now play the music.

Composers began writing both sacred and secular music.

Because of the improvements to instruments, composers began writing music for instruments only.

Renaissance MusicNew popular form of music…

Madrigals: vocal works about great emotions such as

love and despair. Madrigals were usually unaccompanied vocal works with four or

five parts.Music of the Renaissance began using chordal harmony. It began sounding more like the music of today.

Renaissance Composers

Josquin des Prez1440-1521

A French composer who began his career as a singer in a cathedral when he was 19 years old.

He was considered one of the best composers

of the time.

He composed music that used chords and harmonies that made it sound more

like the music of today.

Ave Maria

Renaissance Composers

Giovanni da Palestrina1526-1594

An Italian composer who spent hisentire career in Rome, working for

The Catholic Church.

He is considered one of the great masters of the Renaissance style.

He composed 104 masses, 373 motets,And many religious madrigals. He also Composed almost 100 secular madrigals.Motet Hodie Christus Natus Est

Renaissance Composers

Thomas Morley1557-1602

He was an English composer.

He composed many madrigals about love and nature.

Hark Alleluia

Renaissance Composers

William Byrd1539/40-1623

He was an English composer of the late Renaissance.

He worked in the Royal Chapel of Queen Elizabeth.

He is considered to be one of the great mastersOf the Renaissance. Some consider him

The greatest English composer of all time.

Cantiones Sacrae

History of Music Notation600’s - Church worried that music would be lost

because there was no method of music notation.

Accent Marks ( / \ ^ )They were the first form of notation. They told the singer that the music wentup or down. They were meant to helpthe musician remember the melody but they did not give exact information. The singer needed to know the music first.

Neumes They were marks at particular heights over the words of the song. They told the singer which pitch to sing. However, they were not written on a staff so they did not give exact pitch.

History of Music Notation

He was an Italian monk and music teacher.

He invented the music staff, which showed the specificpitches of notes.

Guido d’Arezzo995-1050

He created the symbols for flats and natural notes.

History of Music Notation

By 1200’s Everyone began using the 5 line staff.

By about 1400The modern system of note and rest

lengths became standard.

1500’sBarlines, time signatures, and tempo marks and sharps were created.

By 1750Notation was fully developed.