General Music Cycle 7 Mr. Hamilton Period 3A
The Renaissance Period (1400 – 1600)
Renaissance means rebirth. This period saw a rebirth in knowledge. The Renaissance was turning from God to man. Science and the arts were becoming more important. Christopher Columbus discovered America and Michelangelo was painting the Sistine Chapel. William Shakespeare was writing his famous plays.
Secular music is non-religious music and it was becoming more popular during this time. There was a rise in instrumental music and dance music, too. Johannes Gutenberg invented the printing press during the Renaissance. Some people consider the printing press to be the most important contribution to civilization in the last one thousand years! The printing press allowed documents to be printed quickly. Before the Renaissance, documents had to be copied by hand.
One of the most famous persons from the Renaissance was Leonardo da Vinci. He was known as a Renaissance man because he could do many things well. He was a painter, architect, inventor, scientist, poet, musician, and teacher.
A Cappella: The Golden Age of Singing
This was the golden age of the a cappella style. That means that singers sang without instruments. At this point in history, vocal music was still more important than instrumental music.
Madrigals were popular during the Renaissance. These song forms were performed in groups of four, five, or six singers. A madrigal is secular music. This is non-religious music. Madrigals were usually love songs.
Religious music was still very important. Choral music of the Renaissance was an extension of the Gregorian chant. It was sung a cappella and sung in Latin. Motets were popular during this time. A motet is a polyphonic work with four or five voice parts singing one religious text.
The Giovanni Palestrina was one the Renaissance period's most important composers. He wrote mostly religious works and is considered one of the great masters of Renaissance music. He wrote motets, madrigals, and masses. Other important composers were Josquin des Prez, Claudio Monteverdi and Giovanni Gabrielli.
Texture
Texture in music refers to the layering of sounds to create a thick or thin quality. All music has texture. The three musical textures are monophonic, polyphonic, and homophonic.
Monophonic A musical texture consisting of one melodic line. This type of texture does not have any harmony. This type of music was popular during the Medieval period (Gregorian Chant). Polyphonic A musical texture consisting of two or more melodic lines. In this type of texture, each melodic line has equal importance. The majority of music during the Renaissance period was polyphonic
Homophonic A musical texture consisting of a melody supported by an accompaniment (harmony). With the start of homophonic music, we begin to see music moving in chords. This means that the music began to move in the same rhythm. Composers began to blend sounds because they were interested in how the notes fit together.
Renaissance song forms
The three most important song forms of the Renaissance period were the Madrigal, Motet and Mass.
This is a polyphonic work, which means it has many musical lines of equal importance. Madrigals were sung with lots of imitation, which means the voices take Madrigal turns singing the same melody. Madrigals were performed in groups of four, five, or six singers. They sang secular music. This is non-religious music. Madrigals were usually love songs. A motet is a polyphonic work with four or five voice parts singing one religious text. Motet They are similar to madrigals, but with an important difference: motets are religious works, while madrigals are usually love songs. A musical mass is like a motet, only longer. It also follows the religious service of the Mass Catholic Church and is sung in a very specific order: Kyrie, Gloria, Credo, Sanctus, Benedictus, and Agnus Dei. It is performed in Latin.
Instrumental Music
There was a growth in instrumental music, especially the lute and keyboard. The most popular instrument of the Renaissance was the lute.
It was during this period that families of instruments started to develop. These families were called consorts. This is where we get the word concert. Most instrumental music was written for singing and dancing.