The Renaissance

(c. 1450-1600)

Renaissance= “rebirth”

centered in Italy

increased interest in science, arts, and literature

questioning of blind faith

focus on humanity and life

interest in cultures of learned civilizations

Humanism

People have the capacity to shape their own world

Independence from tradition and religion

Drew inspiration from Ancient Rome & Greece

Spread through the arts

Significant Events & People

Artists that portray “realism” and significant advancements in art: Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Raffaelo, Donatello, Botticelli

Galileo, the remarkable yet controversial scientist who discovered that planets revolved around the sun.

Invention of printing press (c. 1433) by Johannes Gutenberg

Great literary figures: Cervantes (Spain), Shakespeare (England)

Great explorers Christopher Columbus and Amerigo Vespucci

Important ComposersGuillaume Dufay, John Farmer, William Byrd, Claudio Monteverdi

Josquin des Prez (c. 1450-1521) most influential composer of early Renaissance

Career centered in Papal chapel (Italy) and in native France

Master of the motet (80+) and over 20 polyphonic masses plus secular genres such as chansons

uses imitative counterpoint (usually up to 4 voices imitating melodies)

use of homorhythm and high concentration of harmonic structure

often combines polyphony and homophony in same piece for musical variety.

Giovanni Piergluigi da Palestrina (c. 1525-1594)Served at St. Peter’s (Rome), and several churches in Vatican City

Master of late Renaissance music (100+ masses, madrigals, motets)

Master of counterpoint

Important Musical events:

1. Composers start writing in score form2. Increase in published music and literacy.3. Increase in number of musicians among upper and middle class.

4. Use of meter and notation system advance 5. Two dominant textures; imitative counterpoint (polyphony) and homophony

6. Music gained importance in the aristoctratic courts, city/state, as well as in church.

Dominant Sacred Genres

A Cappella is still the performance method

Mass - polyphonic settings

Attention towards text declamation (rhythm of text in melody matches natural speech patterns)

New attention to word painting (music matches meaning of words)

MOTETS (once considered sacred/secular) are focused in the Mass and other religious services.

usually 3-4 voices, sung in Latin

usually based on Gregorian chant (cantus firmus=fixed melody)

composers focus on the Ordinary Mass

Ordinary (fixed text)-Kyrie, Gloria, Credo, Sanctus, Agnus Dei

Proper (varied text)- Introit, Gradual, Alleluia(or Tract), Offertory, Communion

Protestant Reformation

Oct. 31, 1517 - Martin Luther, an obscure, Augustian Catholic monk nailed 95 thesis (complaints about Roman Catholic Church) to the door of his castle church and was soon excommunicated

increased wealth and worldliness,

selling of indulgences (exchanging grace for money)

abuse of power

c. 1526 - Martin Luther wrote a new church liturgy (in German and Latin) based on Catholicism

launched the Protestant movement - felt mostly in Germany, Switzerland, England, France, Austria, Poland, Hungary, and the low countries.

opened doors for new compositions and shook the foundation of the Roman Catholic Church

Martin Luther was also a musician who wrote new music for this new religion

Counter Reformation

1545 - Pope Marcellus led the Catholic response to Protestant reform movement

Council of Trent- a group of cardinals and bishops had several sessions to organize the “new” rules of the Catholic church

1 session was dedicated to church music

Council of Trent’s

Problems

1. too much polyphony obscured the texts.

2. church composers weren’t paying enough attention to text declamation

3. secular influences were “invading” church music

4. concern with behavior of choir and in proper text pronunciation

Solutions

1. Composers should focus more on text declamation & choir’s clear pronunciation

2. Ban on secular music/styles in church

3. Return to use of chant

musical focus

Pope Marcellus Mass

Palestrina’s masterpiece was a commissioned response to the Council of Trent that used the new rules without sacrificing the use of counter point.

for full choir: SATTBB

6 part polyphony mixed with moments of monophonic chant and homophony

upper parts sung by boy sopranos or adult males with high voices

frequent changes in texture and register

strict attention to text declamation

Giovanni Piergluigi da Palestrina

Dominant Secular Genres

vocalChansons - Started in late Middle Ages (ex: Guillaume de

Machaut)

favored in French courts

increased to 3 and 4 part love songs

with instrumental accompaniment

freer poetic structures often resulted in abandoning music form- no set repetition

through-composed: no repeated sections, all new music and text throughout piece

Madrigals- new type of song becomes most popular genre in vocal music

originated in Italy

for 4-6 “a cappella” voices

through-composed

meter may change

heavy use of word-painting

short poems (often times=one stanza)

cadences (ends of melodic phrases) match end of sentences

Topics: love, unsatisfied desire, use of humor and satire

ENGLAND adapted the madrigal into their native tongue and reflected the culture of the Elizabethan age (time during the reign of Elizabeth I from 1558-1603)

Instrumental secular music

Dances remain most popular form

pavane, rondo, galliard, saltarello (Italian), jig (Irish)

Duple meter gains popularity

Instrumentalists start using embellishments on repeated sections of music to provide variety and satisfy personal expression

New forms emerge

binary and ternary forms

regular 4 and 8 bar measures become the standard

Instruments still categorized as soft (bas) or loud (haut)

Instruments

New instruments were developed

cornetto - hybrid brass/woodwind instrument

sackbut - Renaissance trombone

harpsichord - dominant keyboard instrument, plucks strings

lute - dominant string instrument

tabor- drum

Many historians agree that the death of Queen Elizabeth I in 1603 marked the end of both the Elizabethan era and the Renaissance.