Choose a musical time period from Renaissance, Baroque, Classical, or Romantic.
Compare that period to the time periods preceding it and following it.
-What makes the time period distinct from the others?
Your argument should be primarily focused on the chosen time period but also include information pertaining to the time period preceding and the time period following it for comparison purposes.
-What are the characteristics of the period?
(ie. styles, instrumentation, impact on society, and progression of music)
-Name at least 3 composers and compositions to support your argument.
-In what ways did the period preceding this musical time period provide a foundation for further progress?
-How did this period impact the one following it?
Additional optional material for discussion:
-Discuss any instruments that played a major role during this time period.
-How did non-musical historical events affect this time period?
Music Appreciation Final Essay
Introduction
Western music has come a long way in the past thousand years or so. The world has experienced almost 6 classical musical periods such as Medieval, Renaissance, Baroque, Classical, Romantic, and 20th/21st century (modern) musical eras (Gallardo 4). Each of the classical musical periods is different with unique characteristics. Understanding the periods is important since it provides a clear perception of how western music has evolved (Gallardo 4). In that regard, this paper will focus on Renaissance, as well as discuss briefly, the error that precedes it (medieval period) and that follows it (Baroque period).
The Renaissance Music Era
The Renaissance musical era lasted between 1400 and 1600 AD. It was a time of significant growth and development when music was becoming more expensive, varied, and complex. During this era, composers enjoyed more freedom to write as they pleased González-(Espinoza et al. 5) Additionally, technological developments allowed music to teach more people. During the Renaissance musical era, religious music was ubiquitous but Church’s reduced influence allowed composers to gain more artistic freedom -(Espinoza et al. 7). People’s interests in ancient cultures were renewed and the composers started to take inspiration from the art and mythology of Ancient Greece and Rome.
Less advanced methods of notating music have been developed in the Medieval period, therefore, composers could document and share their works easily. However, it was time-consuming because the pieces of work were written out by hand (McGee 45) The Renaissance era was divided into early, middle, and late Renaissance periods. The music of the Early Renaissance focused on Burgundian School. The middle Renaissance began around the time that the Catholic Church’s Council of Trent issued edicts discouraging the use of excessive polyphony in vocal church music.
The late Renaissance gave way to a style known as mannerism, in which music was embellished with various forms of ornamentation, suspension, and even chromaticism. The three characteristics of the Renaissance era include polyphony, tonal music, and increased risk-taking (Van 50). While Medieval music was marked by homophonic signing, Renaissance music was characterized by multiple voices singing in a polyphonic style. During the period, new forms of music such as the English madrigal and the Italian madrigal embraced tonal music and have remained popular to date. The two musical types included secular and sacred. The sacred music was dominated by catholic churches (Van 50). Secular forms included Lied (German), Frottola (Italian), Chanson (French), and others.
The Renaissance period is associated with a mix of new musical instruments. Brass instruments included the trumpet. At this point, trumpets had no valve and were used extensively in the military (Derham 289). Viol was also used and it was a six-stringed instrument played in a bow while resting on the floor. The lyre was also used among others such as lute, clavichord, harpsichord, Rebec, guitar, cornet, tambourine, and transverse flute -(Espinoza et al. 10). The transverse flute and the recorder were commonly played woodwind instruments, while popular keyboard instruments included the harpsichord, clavichord, and virginal.
There were several composers of Renaissance music, however, the three influential ones include Josquin des Prez, Carlo Gesualdo, and Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina. Josquin des Prez was a pretty good composer of both secular and sacred or church music (McGee 110). His liturgical motets are widely learned or taught in music schools. Carlo Gesualdo was well recognized for his popular music. He published six volumes of Italian madrigals, which featured chromaticism. Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina is known for his mastery of counterpoint. He is also recognized for his masses, such as the Missa Papae Marcelli. Renaissance had a major impact on baroque (Derham 205). The instruments of music invented during the Renaissance were advanced and made more specific to various tasks. Baroque music is a heavily ornamented style of music that came out of the Renaissance.
Medieval Music Era
The medieval music era is a period the preceded Renaissance era. Traditional Western classical music is traceable back from 1150 AD up to the 21st century. The Medieval period is the first of the sick major eras (McGee 202). The medieval period ranges between 1150 and 1400 AD. The dominant form of music during the Medieval era was Gregorian Chant, also known as plainsong. It was liturgical and sang by monks as a ceremonial part of the mass in the Catholic church. It was monophonic music and contained just a single melodic line.
The foundation regarding how people write music today was laid during the medieval era. Medieval music was based upon a series of scales called modes, whereby a melody would be built upon a particular scale (McGee 230). The eight church modes include Dorian, Hypodorian, Phrygian, Hypophrygian (Locrian), Lydian, Hypolydian (Ionian), Mixolydian, and Hypomixolydian. Medieval instruments flutes and others. The flutes are made of woods instead of a mental. They had holes rather than a complex system of keys as seen currently (Van 250). Others include the lute, lyre, and the hurdy-gurdy. Medieval composers include Stephen of Liège, Hildegard of Bingen, Franco of Cologne, and Guillaume de Machaut.
Baroque Music Era
The baroque music period followed the Renaissance period. The major change during this era significant shift that happened was the creation of tonality. This made the composers use more elaborate musical ornamentation, therefore, changing the musical notation and playing techniques. During this period, the foundation was laid for the many years of music (Van 275). The idea of the modern orchestra came into existence, alongside opera, the concerto, sonata, and modern cantata. Several instruments were used during this era. The instruments include violino piccolo, violin, viol, tenor violin, cello, and contrabass. Other instruments include cornett, natural horn, Baroque trumpet, Tromba da tirarsi (also called Tromba spezzata), and Flatt trumpet (Derham 310). Composers include Monteverdi, Corelli, Alessandro Scarlatti, Schutz, Buxtehude, Purcell, and Lully.
Conclusion
Western music can be traced back to 1150 AD. There are 6 classical periods such as Medieval, Renaissance, Baroque, Classical, Romantic, and 20th/21st century (modern) musical era. These periods reflect how western music has evolved. The primary focus of this paper was on Renaissance. The Renaissance musical era lasted between 1400 and 1600 AD. It was a time of significant growth and development when music was becoming more expensive, varied, and complex. The period that preceded Renaissance was the Medieval era. The period that followed Renaissance is the Baroque era. All these eras have been examined in detail.
Works Cited
Derham, Katie. The Classical Music Book. Dorling Kindersley Publishing, 2018.
Gallardo, Arturo-Martínez. “Exploring the Features to Classify the Musical Period of Western Classical Music.” (2018). https://web.archive.org/web/20200322112935id_/https://arrow.tudublin.ie/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1143&context=scschcomdis
González-Espinoza, Alfredo, Gustavo Martínez-Mekler, and Lucas Lacasa. “Arrow of time across five centuries of classical music.” Physical Review Research 2.3 (2020): 033166. https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevResearch.2.033166
McGee, Timothy J. “Medieval and Renaissance Music.” Medieval and Renaissance Music. University of Toronto Press, 2019. https://doi.org/10.3138/9781487578343
Van, Boer B. H. Music in the Classical World: Genre, Culture, and History. London, Routledge, 2019.