Emily Mercado

Western Choral Music in the Renaissance to the Romantic: An overview

Objectives

Students will demonstrate a broad understanding of the various choral genres from the Renaissance era to the Romantic era.

Students will compare composers and their music through listening to examples.

Students will engage in discussions to determine appropriate pedagogy for the various time periods and genres.

Materials Music Scores Music Recordings Handout

About This Lesson: This lesson is designed to cover two 90-minute class periods. The outline is broken into four sections—Renaissance, Baroque, Classical, and Romantic. Each section has a brief introduction, followed by a list of composers with country and date, then a list of musical examples organized by genre, and finally a list general pedagogical considerations when working within that genre. Each class will combine lecture and group discussion. The beginning of each section will consist of lecturing and playing musical examples while the students follow along in their scores. Then, students will break up into groups and discuss pedagogy and performance practice related to that era. We will come back together as a group and make a list of pedagogical considerations before moving onto the next era.

Lesson Outline Renaissance

During the early Renaissance period music became chordal with the inclusion of imperfect consonance and triads as composers move away from open 5ths and independent abstract lines. was propelled forward with advent of polyphony,

• Composers o Dunstable (England) (1390-1453) o DuFay (France) (1397-1474) o Josquin Desprez (France) (1450-1521) o John Tavener (England) (1490-1545) o William Byrd (England) (1540-1623) o Giovanni Palestrina (Italy) (1525-1594) o Orlando di Lasso (Germany) (1532-1594) o Magdulena Casulana (Italy) (1540-1590) o (England) (1557-1602)

• Choral Genres o Mass Ordinary: Kyrie, Gloria, Credo, Sanctus, Agnus Dei § Music Example: DuFay L’Homme Arme § Music Example-Byrd, Mass for 3 voices, SAB o Motet: sacred text that is not a liturgical event (ordinary or proper) § Music Example: Dunstable-Quam Pulchra Est, SATB § Musical Example: Casulana-Alleluia, SATB o Anthems: Reformation-Protestant and Anglican § Music Example: Byrd-Sing Joyfully Unto God, SSATB o : Secular § Musical Example: Morley: I Goe Before My Darling, SA

• Pedagogical Considerations o Contonance Angloise-3rds and 6ths o Musica ficta- adding accidentals to avoid tri tones. o Cantus Firmus (fixed sacred song) that unified all five movements o Clarity, rhythm, and meaning become the integral parts of the music by the end of the Renaissance o Word Painting o Long Crescendos and Decrescendos typically occur within a movement, but should be attended to as appropriate to the music and text o When approaching vibrato consider the age of your and attend to their vocal health first and foremost. Vibrato is appropriate for Renaissance and you should not force a straight tone, but remember this is not Romantic music o Common to have instruments double the singers

Baroque

During the Renaissance, the rules of music were most important, Now, during the Baroque period the text can dictate what the music should do.

• Composers o (Italy) (1567-1643)-transitional o Heinrich Schütz (Germany) (1585-1672)-transitional o Francesca Caccini (Italy) (1587-1640) o Jean-Baptiste Lully (France) (1632-1687) o Marc-Antoine Charpentier (France) (1643-1704) o (England) (1659-1695) o (Italy) (1675-1741) o Manuel de Zumaya () (1678-1755) o Johann Sebastian Bach (Germany) (1685-1750) o (England) (1685-1759) • Choral genres o Mass § Musical Example: Vivaldi: Dommi Fili Unigentite from Gloria, SSAA (original voicing), also wrote for SATB and instrumentation or piano reduction o Oratorio § Musical Example: Handel: Hallelujah Amen from Judas Maccabeus, SATB with orchestra or piano reduction o Motet § Musical Example: Charpentier: Alma Redemptoris Mater, SA and basso continuo o Anthem § Musical Example: Purcell, Remember not, Lord our offences, SSATB, opt. organ o Ode § Musical Example: Purcell, Come, Ye Sons of Art, SATB, with piano reduction or instrumentation. Also Sound the Trumpet can be done with a young women’s choir o Psalm § Musical Example: Handel Dixit Dominus (Psalm 110), SSATB, solos, two violin, two viola, and basso continuo o Chorale § Musical Example: Bach, Bist Du Bei Mir, Unison and Piano o Cantata § Musical Example: Bach, Der Herr denket an uns, SATB, solos, strings, basso continuo o § Musical Example: Schütz, Io moro, ecco ch’io moro, SSATB a cappella § Musical Example: Purcell: In These Delightful Pleasant Groves, SAB o Vilancico § Musical Example: Zumaya: Sol-fa de Pedro, SATB, solo, and basso continuo o Opera § Musical Example: Lully: L’Hiver from Isis, TTB with piano reduction § Musical Example: Caccini: Aure volante, SSA and three flutes

Pedagogical Considerations o Prima pratica to seconda pratica (Monteverdi) o Moving from Renaissance polyphony to Baroque homophony o In contrast to the Renaissance, emotions contrasted from movement to movement along with dynamics and tempo changes rather than within a piece o Mostly consistent tempos within each piece o Somewhat fuller tone than Renaissance and a somewhat freer vibrato o Common to have instruments double the singers, as was with Renaissance but now there are also more independent accompaniment lines o Dotted rhythms are common. They should be handled with a light energy and detached feeling of decay.

Classical

The classical era music was less ornamental than Baroque. Music was lighter, more homophonic, and clear structure—sonata, rondo, variations.

• Composers o Joseph Haydn (Germany) 1732-1809 o William Billings (US) 1746-1800 o Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (Austria) 1756-1791 o Gioachino Rossini (Italy) 1792-1868 o Franz Schubert (Austria) 1797-1828 o Jeanne Louise Dumont Farrenc (France) (1804-1875)

• Choral Genres o Oratorio § Musical Example: Haydn: Stimmt an die Saiten (Awake the Harp), SATB with piano reduction or orchestra. o Masses § Musical Example: Mozart: Sanctus from Coronation Mass, SATB with piano reduction or orchestra. o Motet § Musical Example: Farrenc: O Salutaris Hostia, SAT(B) o Part Songs § Musical Example: Schubert: Widerspruch, TTBB and piano § Musical Example: Mozart: Due Pupille Amabili, SAB and piano o Anthem § Musical Example: Billings: I am the Rose of Sharon, SATB a cappella o Madrigal § Musical Example: Rossino: I gondolier. SATB and piano

• Pedagogical considerations o Each piece has a character/expression o Tempos would convey character: Allegro=happy, Grave=sad, Vivace=excited o grew in size o The rise of the orchestra o Rococo—a lighter style o Style gallant—music that was more straight forward and less complex o Empfindsamer Stil—music was emotionally direct.

Romantic

The romantic era is associated with grandiose sound and less structure as far as form. Overdramatic effects in the music are common and the dynamics became more extreme. • Composers o Ludwig van Beethoven (Germany) (1770-1827) o Hector Berlioz (France) (1803-1869) o Fanny Hensel Mendelssohn (Germany) (1805-1847) o Felix Mendelssohn (Germany) (1809-1847) o Robert Schumann (Austria) (1810-1856) o Giuseppe Verdi (1813-1901) o Pauline Viardot (nee Garcia) (France) (1821-1910) o Anton Bruckner (Austria) (1824-1896) o Johannes Brahms (Germany) (1833-1897) o Joseph Rheinberger (Germany) (1839-1901) o Pyotr Tchaikovsky (Russia) 1840-1893) o Anton Dvorak (Bohemia) (1841-1904) o Gabriel Fauré (France) (1845-1924) o Edward Elgar (England) (1857-1934) o Giacomo Puccini (Italy) 1858-1924 o Gustav Mahler (Bohemia) (1860-1911) o Richard Strauss (Germany) (1864-1949) o Amy Beach (United States) (1867-1944) o Serge Rachmaninoff (Russia) (1873-1943)

• Choral Genres o Mass § Fauré, Requiem, SATB, SB solos, orchestra. Could isolate the Introit and Kyrie with piano and perform those alone. o Oratorio § Brahms, Wie Lieblich from Ein Deutches Requiem, SATB with orchestra or 4 hands piano o Motet § Puccini, Plaudite populi, SATB o Opera § Verdi, Witches Chorus, SSA with piano reduction o Part Songs § Brahms, Love-song Waltzes, SA or TB with piano for gender choirs § Schumann, Zigeunerleben, SATB with piano § Fanny Hensel Mendelssohn, O Herbst, SAB with piano o Chanson § Berlioz: Chanson à boire, TB, T solo, piano § Viardot , Choeur des elfes, SSA, piano o Canon § Brahms, Göttlicher, SSAA or TTBB, a cappella o Folk Song § Brahms, Der tote Knabe, SATB a cappella § Elgar, The Dance from Scenes from the Bavarian Highlands, SATB and piano (later orchestral version)

• Pedagogical considerations

o Dynamic and articulation markings should be carefully considered as extreme contrasts to convey a dramatic effect were common o It was more common during the Romantic era for composers to write program notes in their music. Make sure to look for these as modern publishers may have left them out, or they might not be in your public domain copy. o There was a progressive movement to move away from form and structure and be dramatic o Cäcilienverein movement—composers sought to simplify music, especially a cappella church music in the style of Palestrina.

References

Burkholder, J.P., Grout, D.J., & Palisca, C.V. (2014). A History of Western Music, 9th ed. New York: Norton, W.W. & Company, Inc.

Collins, D. (2008, March 11). Standard Choral Repertoire. Choral Director Magazine. Retrieved from http://www.choraldirectormag.com/?s=Standard+Choral+Repertoire

Freeman, R., & Frishch. Walter. (2012). Music in the Renaissance. New York: Norton, W.W. & Company, Inc.

Shrock, D. (2009). Choral Repertoire. New York: Oxford University Press

Hylton, J.B. (1995). Comprehensive Choral Music Education. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice- Hall, Inc.