renaissance power point
TRANSCRIPT
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.