Acprof 9780190469023 Chapter 2 PDF

Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina – Missa Papae Marcelli
University Press Scholarship Online
Oxford Scholarship Online
Choral Monuments: Studies of Eleven Choral

Masterworks
Dennis Shrock
Print publication date: 2017

Print ISBN-13: 9780190469023
Published to Oxford Scholarship Online: July 2017
DOI: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780190469023.001.0001
Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina –

Missa Papae Marcelli
Dennis Shrock
DOI:10.1093/acprof:oso/9780190469023.003.0002
Abstract and Keywords

The chapter begins with a biographical and compositional
overview, including discussions of Palestrina’s various
positions in and outside of Rome; his compositional output that
numbered 104 Masses, approximately 500 motets, and
approximately 140 madrigals; the nature of his Masses, many
of which are based on previously composed models; the
papacy and the Counter-Reformation; and mandates of the
Council of Trent. Musical discussion in this chapter focuses on
unique characteristics of the Missa Papae Marcelli and its
legacy. Performance practices include: pitch and performing
forces; meter and tactus, with considerable focus on
syncopation; the importance of oratorical phrasing; tempo and
its variability; and musica ficta.
Keywords: Palestrina, Missa Papae Marcelli, Council of Trent, Counter-

Reformation, Sistine Chapel, Pope Marcellus II, point-of-imitation, oratorical
phrasing
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Music would have come very near to being banished

from the Holy Church … had not Giovanni Palestrina
[composed] the Missa Papae Marcelli.
—Agostino Agazzari
Biographical and Compositional Overview

It is generally assumed that Palestrina was born sometime
during 1525 and also assumed, although not without question,
that he was born in the city of Palestrina in the Sabine Hills a
short distance of about twenty-four miles from Rome. During
his youth he sang as a choirboy at the Basilica di Santa Maria
Maggiore in Rome, one of the largest and most significant
Roman churches outside the Vatican, and in 1544, at the age
of nineteen, he was appointed organist at the cathedral of
Saint Agapito in his presumed hometown of Palestrina. He
remained at Saint Agapito for seven years, during which time
he married and had two children—Rodolfo (1549–1572) and
Angelo (1551–1575). A third child, Iginio, was born in 1558
and died in 1610.
On September 1, 1551, Palestrina was appointed maestro di

cappella of the Vatican Cappella Giulia by Julius III, who had
been bishop of the city of Palestrina before becoming pope and
who would have known the young Palestrina. The Cappella
Giulia was created in the first decade of the sixteenth century
by Pope Julius II (thus the name Cappella Giulia) as a second
choir to the Cappella Sistina—the Cappella Giulia singing for
many minor events in Saint Peter’s and the Cappella Sistina
singing for the pope in the Sistine Chapel (thus the name
Cappella Sistina). Palestrina responded to his high-ranking
position in the Cappella Giulia by dedicating his first book of
Masses (published in 1554) to Julius III, the initial Mass in the
book being set to the cantus firmus antiphon Ecce sacerdos
magnus (Behold the great priest). Julius then admitted
Palestrina to (p.37) the Cappella Sistina in 1555 even though
it was against church regulations for the choir to admit
singers who were married.
Palestrina remained in the Cappella Sistina during the papacy

of Julius III and Marcellus II, the latter of whom during his
brief twenty-two days as pope had an enormous impact on
Palestrina and the Counter-Reformation. On Good Friday, April
12, 1555 (the third day of his papacy), Marcellus II gathered
together the singers of the Cappella Sistina and admonished
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them to sing “with properly modulated voices in such a way

that everything could be properly heard and understood.” This
mandate for intelligibility of text and appropriateness of
sacred character would come to be central goals of church
music, both Catholic and Protestant, and many composers
would strive to write in a way that better served the text.
Palestrina responded to the mandate with the Missa Papae
Marcelli, likely composed in 1555 or shortly thereafter and
later included in his second book of Masses, published in 1567
with the comment in the dedication that the Mass was “written
in a new manner.”
Meanwhile, Palestrina was active composing music in other

genres as well. His first book of madrigals was published in
1555 and his first book of motets appeared in 1563. Both
publications were extremely popular, the book of madrigals
reprinted eight times before 1600 and the book of motets
reprinted seven times before Palestrina’s death. As further
testimony of his success with madrigals and motets, his
madrigal Io son ferito, first published in 1561, appeared in
four other publications, and Vestiva i colli, first published in
1566 and considered to be one of the finest Italian madrigals
of the Renaissance era, was published in seven other separate
publications. Of his motets, Veni sponsa Christi was published
in 1563 and Canite tuba - Rorate coeli, as well as the six-voiced
Tu es Petrus - Quodcumque ligaveris, appeared in 1572.
Paul IV, pope from 1555 to 1559, believed in and followed

strict church policies and, therefore, dismissed Palestrina and
two other married singers from the Cappella Sistina. This was
in September 1555. The following month Palestrina was
appointed maestro di cappella of San Giovanni in Laterano,
officially known as the Arcibasilica Papale di San Giovanni in
Laterano and also Omnium Urbis et Orbis Ecclesiarum Mater
et Caput (Cathedral of Rome and of the World). Originally built
in the fourth century by Constantine the Great, it is the oldest
of Rome’s four basilicas and also one of the most important.
However, its musical cappella had only been instituted in 1535
and its financial resources were limited. As a consequence of
restricted funding, Palestrina left his position in 1560 and
returned to the church of his training, the Basilica di Santa
Maggiore, where he served as maestro di cappella until 1566.
During his employment there he also worked during the
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summer months for Cardinal Ippolito II d’Este at the cardinal’s

estate in Tivoli, and he continued composing Masses and
motets, his third book of Masses being published in 1567 and
his second book of motets in 1569.
Palestrina remained in the employment of Cardinal Ippolito II

d’Este until 1571, and, in addition, from 1566 to 1571 he
taught music at the Pontificio Collegio Romano, also known as
the Seminario Romano, established in 1565 by (p.38) Pius IV
for the education of future priests. With the death in 1571 of
Giovanni Animuccia (c.1500–1571), maestro di cappella of the
Cappella Giulia at the time, Palestrina succeeded him and
remained in the position until his own death in 1594.
Interestingly, Animuccia began his service in the Cappella
Giulia at the same time Palestrina went to the Cappella
Sistina.
During his life Palestrina composed 104 Masses,

approximately 500 motets (including offertories and hymns),
thirty-five settings of the Magnificat, eleven Litanies, four sets
of Lamentations, and approximately 140 madrigals. His large
output of Masses (more than any composer before him) no
doubt reflects his long tenure in the major churches of Rome
and also his perceived position as leader of Catholic church
music. The structural bases of the Masses reflect the common
practices of the time; half are parodies of preexisting
polyphonic compositions, about a third are paraphrases of
preexisting melodies, and the remainder, including the Missa
Papae Marcelli, are freely composed or have no known or
discovered parody source.
Of the parody Masses, thirty-one are based on works by other

composers and twenty-two are based on his own works, most
of which are motets. It is interesting to note that many of
these motets, which were obviously well liked by Palestrina,
include works that are popular today (e.g., Assumpta est
Maria, the four-voiced Dies sanctificatus, the eight-voiced
Hodie Christus natus est, the six-voiced Tu es Petrus -
Quodcumque ligaveris, and Veni sponsa Christi). Three of his
madrigals used as models were and are still also popular—the
four-voiced Già fu chi’ m’ebbe cara, the five-voiced Io son
ferito (used in Missa Petra sancta), and the five-voiced, two-
madrigal cycle Vestiva i colli (one of the most published works
of the sixteenth century). The parodies of works by other
composers include Missa Benedicta es based on a motet by
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Josquin Desprez, Missa O sacrum convivium on a motet by

Cristóbal de Morales, Missa Gabriel archangelus on a motet by
Philippe Verdelot, and Missa Qual’è il più grande amore and
Missa Quando lieta sperai based on madrigals by Cipriano de
Rore.
Of the paraphrase Masses, most are based on Gregorian

chants; sixteen use chants from liturgical mass cycles, one
(Missa pro defunctis) uses chants from the Requiem Mass, and
many others use familiar chants from important liturgical
feasts or celebrations. These latter Masses include the six-
voiced Missa Alma redemptoris mater and the five-voiced
Missa Regina caeli, both based on Gregorian antiphons, and
the four-voiced Missa Iste confessor and Missa Jesu, nostra
redemptor, both based on Gregorian hymns. Palestrina used
only a few secular tunes as models, including two Masses
based on L’homme armé.
Only seven Masses employ a cantus firmus. The most famous

of these is the four-voiced Missa Ecce sacerdos magnus
composed for Pope Julius III. Other cantus firmus Masses
include the five-voiced Missa L’homme armé of 1570 and the
six-voiced Missa Ave Maria composed in 1596. Only one Mass,
Missa Ut re mi fa sol la, uses the soggetto cavato technique.
Most of the Masses have varied scoring (a practice that was

commonplace during the Renaissance), with sections for both
smaller and larger forces than the overall vocal distribution of
voices. For instance, in Missa Vestiva i colli (SATTB), (p.39)
the “Christe” is scored for SATT, the “Crucifixus” and
“Benedictus” for SSAT, and the final “Agnus Dei” for SSATTB;
in Missa Dies sanctificatus (SATB), the “Crucifixus” is for SSAA
and the “Benedictus” for SSAT; and in Missa Assumpta est
Maria (SSATTB), the “Christe” is for ATTB, the “Crucifixus” for
SSAA, and the “Benedictus” for SSAT. In the Missa Papae
Marcelli, scored for six voices (the original clefs indicating
SSAATT, but modern transcriptions for SATTBB), the
“Crucifixus” is scored for SATB, the “Benedictus” for SATT,
and the “Agnus Dei 2” for SSAATBB. The expansion of the final
“Agnus Dei” was often the result of a thematic cantus firmus
for an extra voice part or for an added canon with an existing
voice, the latter being the case in the Missa Papae Marcelli.
Page 5 of 47
The motets include twenty-nine individual texts from the Song

of Songs, published together in 1584 and dedicated to Pope
Gregory XIII; sixty-five hymns for four to six voices in
alternatim style composed as a cycle for the liturgical year;
and sixty-eight offertories for five voices in imitative motet
style, also composed as a cycle for the liturgical year. The
motets also include multiple settings of the same text. For
instance, there are four settings each of “Alma redemptoris
mater” and “Regina coeli,” five each of “Ave Maria” and “Ave
regina coelorum,” six of “Miserere mei,” and seven of
“Benedictus Dominus.”
Of the motets based on preexisting material (mostly chants),

the melodic paraphrases generally follow their models closely,
with near identical replication at the beginning of the
paraphrase and ornamental added extra material at the end.
This procedure is almost identical to that used by Josquin and
shown in Examples 1.16 and 1.17. Shown here in Example 2.1
is the Gregorian chant Veni sponsa Christi, followed by
measures 14–26 of the soprano line in Palestrina’s motet
(Example 2.2). The x marks indicate the original chant melody.
(p.40)
The
madrigals,
similar in
style and
structure to
the motets, Example 2.1
have become
overshadowed
in modern
times by the
sacred works.
However,
many of the
madrigals Example 2.2
were quite
popular
during the latter half of the sixteenth century. The
aforementioned Io son ferito and Vestiva i colli, for instance,
were two of the most popular madrigals of the era, reprinted
numerous times, and parodied by such composers as Orazio
Page 6 of 47
Vecchi and Adriano Banchieri in their madrigal comedies. The

six-voiced Quando dal terzo cielo was selected for inclusion in
Il trionfo di Dori.
Whether in Masses, motets, or madrigals, the overall style of

Palestrina’s writing represents imitative polyphony in its most
idealized state, with balanced melodic shapes, consistently
prepared and resolved dissonances, and structural symmetry.
Melodies and rhythms are not varied for expressive purposes
as in the motets and madrigals by Cipriano de Rore, and
textures do not alternate phrases of imitative polyphony with
passages of homophony as in the motets and Masses of Andrea
Gabrieli, although a number of Palestrina’s works do contain
homophonic passages. Palestrina’s compositions are modeled
after the pervasive point-of-imitation style as practiced by
Adrian Willaert and other Franco-Flemish masters. That is,
each phrase of text, called a point, is imitated multiple times
throughout all the voice parts, generally resulting in several
phrases of text and a resulting several points of imitation.
Otherwise, melodies are characterized by balanced melodic
writing, with leaps of a third or a fourth followed by stepwise
motion in the opposite direction; rhythms are within a narrow
range of durational values, with a preponderance of half and
quarter notes (in present-day transcriptions); and harmonies
are logically ordered, with buildup of tension followed by
inevitable resolution. Moreover, phrase structures are also
well balanced. As seen in Veni sponsa Christi, a motet for the
ordination of nuns, the text is divided into four short phrases
—“Veni sponsa Christi” (Come, bride of Christ), “accipe
coronam” (receive the crown), “quam tibi Dominus” (that for
you the Lord), and “praeparavit in aeternum” (has prepared in
eternity)—each given equal treatment imitatively. The first and
second points of imitation, as well as the third and fourth
points, are overlapped slightly, while there is a clear textural
demarcation between points two and three. Many other motets
are constructed similarly, including Sicut cervus, Super
flumina Babylonis, and Dies sanctificatus. The two-movement
motets Canite tuba - Rorate coeli and Tu es Petrus -
Quodcumque ligaveris, also in the point-of-imitation style
described earlier, are structured in ABCB format. The B
sections in the first movements of the motets (Canite tuba and
Tu es Petrus) end in dominant keys, while the B sections in the
Page 7 of 47
second movements (Rorate coeli and Quodcumque ligaveris)

end in the tonic.
Yet other structural characteristics are common in Palestrina’s

longer motets and the majority of his Masses. Most
noteworthy, the imitative textures are somewhat thin at the
beginning of major sections or movements, with selected
voices exchanging material, while toward the end of these
sections or movements Palestrina employs all the voices. This
procedure can be seen in the Gloria of Missa Papae Marcelli,
in which all voices do not sound simultaneously until near the
end (p.41) (measure 34) of the first sub-movement. In the
motet Tu es Petrus - Quodcumque ligaveris, all six voices are
not scored simultaneously until seventy-one measures into the
motet at the words “claves regni coelorum” (the keys of
heaven). Palestrina also often has more frequent cadences
early in a work and fewer cadences as major sections or
movements come to a conclusion.
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The Papacy and the Counter-Reformation

An understanding of the Palestrina phenomenon can be aided
by an overview of the sixteenth-century popes and their
relative involvement in efforts to reform church policies—the
church politics and practices that gave rise to the need for
reform, the development of the Protest Reformation and its
impact in Rome, the degree to which the popes were
interested in and supportive of the arts, the state of musical
composition and performance to which Palestrina reacted, and
the circumstances surrounding the composition of the Missa
Papae Marcelli.
The Catholic Counter-Reformation is generally considered to

have begun with Pope Paul III and his establishment of the
Council of Trent beginning in 1545. In reality, though,
significant attempts at reform began more than 150 years
earlier. John Wycliffe (c.1331–1384), an English philosopher
and scholar, challenged papal authority and promoted his
belief that the individual should have direct access to God; to
further this cause he saw to the translation of the Bible in
1382 from Latin into English, the vernacular language of the
people. Jan Hus (c.1369–1415), a Czech priest, admonished
the church for its many moral failings and preached against
the practice of indulgences (one of the chief concerns of the
Protestant Reformation). Girolamo Savonarola (1452–1498)
accused the church of corruption and tried to limit secularism;
in his famous bonfire of the vanities on February 7, 1497, he
staged a public burning of objects deemed to be sinful,
including publications of secular songs and books on supposed
immoral subjects. Ettore Vernazza (1470–1524), called
“l’apostolo degli incurabili” (apostle of the incurable), became
the figurehead of the Oratory of Divine Love—a group of
believers who were devoted to the sick and poor being ignored
by the church. Vernazza also delivered a report in 1538 to
Pope Paul III outlining the many vices of church leaders. The
reform efforts of these individuals and their causes did little to
change the church, however. Most of the popes and other
church hierarchy during the sixteenth century either ignored
the reform efforts or worked to protect their lives and the
wealth they had acquired, mostly through political stratagems.
Reforms, including those affecting music, were slow to be
endorsed and adopted, although a number of popes supported
and greatly advanced the state of art and architecture.
Page 9 of 47
Alexander VI (1431–1503), pope from August 11, 1492, to

August 18, 1503, was known for his open libertinism; he had
several mistresses and fathered at (p.42) least nine children.
He was also known for his nepotism. He had been a product of
this himself, being ordained a deacon at age twenty-five by his
uncle, Pope Callixtus III. Furthermore, he worked to suppress
efforts of reform to the Catholic Church and had Savonarola
excommunicated.
Alexander’s successor, Pius III (1439–1503), was also a

product of nepotism. He was raised by his uncle, Enea Silvius
Piccolomini (1405–1464), who became Pope Pius II and who
appointed his nephew archbishop of Siena when he was only
twenty-one. Pius III declared that he would reform the church
by establishing a council of cardinals and that he would
address corruption regarding the church’s finances. He could
accomplish none of this, however, since his papacy lasted only
twenty-six days (from September 22, 1503, to October 18,
1503).
Julius II (1443–1513), nephew of Pope Sixtus IV and yet

another product of nepotism, restored the Sistine Chapel,
organized its choir in a papal bull of 1483, and commissioned
frescos for its walls by Botticelli (c.1445–1510) and
Ghirlandaio (1449–1494), among others. As pope from October
31, 1503, to February 21, 1513, he worked diligently to secure
his power, founding the Swiss Guard to protect his safety and
engaging in numerous military campaigns across Italy. He also
had a passionate interest in the arts and in reestablishing the
grandeur of Rome. To this end he became a patron to
important artists and architects and saw to the creation of
notable paintings and buildings that would establish the High
Renaissance in Italy. He commissioned Raphael (1483–1520)
to paint frescos in the Palace of the Vatican and he also
commissioned the architect Bramante (1444–1514) to design
the rebuilding of St. Peter’s Basilica (the cornerstone of which
was laid on April 18, 1506) and to design the Tempietto—the
tomb of St. Peter in the church of San Pietro in Montorio.
Furthermore, Julius II commissioned Michelangelo (1475–
1564) to paint the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, and he
reorganized the Vatican choirs into two ensembles—the
Cappella Giulia, which was a training choir of twelve men and
twelve boys that sang for many official functions, and the
Page 10 of 47
Cappella Sistina, a smaller ensemble that sang for the pope in

the Sistine Chapel.
Leo X (1475–1521) was the first of four popes from the Medici
family. Born Giovanni di Lorenzo de’ Medici, he was the
second son of Lorenzo the Magnificent (1449–1492). As pope
from March 9, 1513, to December 1, 1521, he was known for
his commitment to education and the arts. He supported and
improved the Roman university and he elevated the stature of
the papal choir by hiring professional singers and notable
composers from around Europe, something that had not been
done since Guillaume Dufay (c.1397–1474) and Josquin
Desprez (c.1450–1521) were in the choir. Leo X also furthered
the dissemination of music by granting Ottaviano Petrucci
(1466–1539) printing rights, the result being the publication of
sixteen books of Masses and five books of motets.
Unfortunately, Leo X is best known for his support of

indulgences (which provided revenue for the ongoing building
of St. Peter’s Basilica) and for his inattention to the growing
Protestant movement that was taking place throughout (p.43)
Europe. Most especially, Leo paid little heed to Martin Luther
(1483–1546), whose Disputatio pro declaratione virtutis
indulgentiarum (referred to as the Ninety-Five Theses on the
Power and Efficacy of Indulgences) of 1517 was translated
from Latin to German, printed, and within months,
disseminated throughout Europe. Leo acknowledged Luther’s
power of influence and tried to persuade him to uphold
current church practices, including indulgences, but when
Luther refused, Leo X excommunicated him.
Adrian VI (1459–1523) was born in Utrecht and studied at the

University of Leuven, where he earned the degree Doctor of
Theology in 1491 and became vice-chancellor in 1493. He was
later tutor to Charles, son of Emperor Maximilian I, who
became Charles V and who made Adrian a bishop. Leo X
elevated him to a cardinal and he was subsequently elected
pope, partly to prevent the appointment of Leo’s cousin Giulio
de’ Medici (who would become Clement VII after Adrian’s
death). While pope from January 9, 1522, to September 14,
1523 (a little less than two years), Adrian VI attempted reform,
but as a foreigner, he had little political clout and could effect
no change in church practices.
Page 11 of 47
Clement VII (1478–1534), born Giulio di Giuliano de’ Medici,

was the nephew of Lorenzo the Magnificent and cousin of Leo
X. He was archbishop of Florence during the decade before
being elected pope, and during Leo’s papacy he was the
pope’s main advisor. Like many of the popes before him,
Clement VII, pope from November 19, 1523, to September 25,
1534, was focused on military activities and was indifferent to
the threat of the Protestant Reformation. In 1527 he was
almost killed during the Sack of Rome by the forces of Charles
V, and in that same year he refused the request of King Henry
VIII of England for an annulment of his marriage to Catherine
of Aragon. Clement later excommunicated Henry and the
archbishop of Canterbury, Thomas Cranmer (1489–1556).
Henry and the English Parliament subsequently instituted the
Act of Supremacy in 1534, which officially established the
Church of England.
Paul III (1468–1549), born Alessandro Farnese, was educated,

in part, at the Medici court. In 1523 he was appointed
cardinal-bishop of Palestrina, and from 1524 to 1534 he served
as dean of the College of Cardinals under Clement VII.
Throughout his papacy (from October 13, 1534, to November
10, 1549) Paul worked to further the careers and wealth of his
family. Most notably, he finished the building of the Palazzo
Farnese, considered to be one of the most lavish palaces in
Rome. Pope Paul III also appointed Michelangelo to supervise
the building of St. Peter’s Basilica, and he commissioned
Michelangelo to paint The Crucifixion of St. Peter and The
Conversion of St. Paul for the Pauline Chapel of the Vatican. In
addition, Paul took an interest in the work of Copernicus
(1473–1543), who dedicated his De revolutionibus orbium
coelestium (On the Revolution of the Celestial Spheres) to the
pope, and he admitted Jacques Arcadelt (c.1505–1568) into the
Cappella Sistina.
As pertains to the Protestant Reformation and responses of the

Catholic Church to claims of abuses, Paul III convened the
Council of Trent—a commission of cardinals who first met in
the northern Italian city of Trento in 1545. (p.44) The
commission during Paul’s papacy addressed such issues as the
moral behavior of clerics, indulgences, and financial
misdoings, and it issued recommendations for improving the
education of priests, communication between bishops and
Page 12 of 47
priests, and discipline and administration of the church. The

commission also denounced the granting of indulgences for
the financial gain of the church and the appointment of
bishops for political reasons.
The arts would be addressed by the council in later years,

although the need for musical reforms was already known and
being discussed. The prevailing sentiment can be gleaned
from a 1549 letter by bishop Bernardino Cirillo (c.1500–1575)
to a friend.
Music among the ancients was the most splendid of all

the fine arts. With it they created powerful effects that
we nowadays cannot produce either with rhetoric or with
oratory in moving the passions and affections of the
soul… . Nowadays [we hear the Mass] in an indifferent
and uncertain manner… . It is L’homme armé or Hercules
dux Ferrariae or Philomena. What the devil has the Mass
to do with the armed man, or with Philomena, or with the
duke of Ferrara? What numbers, what intervals, what
sounds, what motions of the spirit, of devotion, or piety
can be gathered from them… ? I should like, in short,
when a Mass is to be sung in church, the music to be
framed to the fundamental meaning of the words, in
certain intervals and numbers apt to move our affections
to religion and piety… . Let them make their motets,
chansons, madrigals, and ballate in their own way, as
long as our church bends its own efforts to move men to
religion and piety.
This sentiment is echoed by the composer and theorist Nicola

Vicentino (1511–1576), who in his treatise L’antica musica
ridotta alla moderna prattica (Ancient Music Adapted to
Modern Practice) of 1555 stated, “Settings of Masses and
other Latin texts must be serious and not greatly agitated.
Since Masses and psalms are church compositions, it is
essential that their movement be different from that of French
chansons and of madrigals and villotte.”
Julius III (1487–1555), the successor of Paul III, saw little need
for reforms or for the Council of Trent, although he served as
its president in 1545; he suspended the council’s meetings and
took no action to institute its recommendations. Before he was
pope he succeeded his predecessor as cardinal-bishop of
Palestrina, and while he was pope he admitted Domenico
Page 13 of 47
Maria Ferrabosco (1513–1574) to the Cappella Sistina. As

pope he also appointed the young musician from the city of
Palestrina, Giovanni Pierluigi, as maestro di cappella of the
Cappella Giulia. In response, as mentioned earlier, Palestrina
dedicated his first book of Masses, published in 1554, to Julius
III, who in turn the following year admitted Palestrina to the
Cappella Sistina as a singer, even though this was against the
rules of the choir since Palestrina was married (Ferrabosco
was also married).
(p.45) While he was pope (from February 7, 1550, to March

23, 1555) Julius III also emulated the lavish lifestyle of Paul III;
Julius built and lived in his palace, the Villa Giulia, the basic
design of which was by Giorgio Vasari (1511–1574), famous for
his book, Le Vite de’ più eccellenti pittori, scultori, e archittori
(Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors, and
Architects), published in 1550 and dedicated to Cosimo I de’
Medici.
Marcellus II (1501–1555), born Marcello Cervini degli

Spannochi, first worked in Rome under Clement VII, who was
close friends with Marcello’s father. Marcello then became
papal secretary to Paul III and was later supervisor of the
Vatican library and one of the presidents of the Council of
Trent. He was very much in favor of the council’s work and of
the need for church reform, but his time as pope was too short
to cause much effect; he died after only twenty-two days in
office (from April 9, 1555, to May 1, 1555). Nevertheless, he
was able to make a significant impact on the reform of music.
As written in the diary of Angelo Massarelli (d.1566), private
secretary to Marcello before he was pope and secretary of the
Council of Trent,
Page 14 of 47
On this day, Good Friday [April 12, 1555], the pope came
down to witness the sacred service. Yet the music
performed by the singers at the service was not fitting to
the solemnity of the occasion, but rather, what emerged
from their concordant singing was a mood of joy. Thus it
was felt that it was highly improper that these days,
which ought to be conducive to the recollection of the
Passion of our Lord and to the assuaging of our sins in
tears, should both in voices and in music be expressive of
joy, above all in the very place in which the head of the
church and of the Christian domain resided. Accordingly,
the pope himself, having summoned his singers around
him [one of whom was Palestrina], enjoined on them,
that whatever was performed on these holy days in
which the mysteries of the Passion and death of Christ
were celebrated, should be sung with properly
modulated voices, and should also be sung in such a way
that everything could be properly heard and understood.
The mood of joy and unintelligibility of text most certainly

resulted from the prevalent practice of ornamentation. It was
common for singers during the latter years of the Renaissance
to embellish the music and to display vocal dexterity. Thus,
reforms were necessary not only with the compositional
textures of sacred music, which were often thickly imitative,
but also with the performance of the music. Unfortunately,
little was done at the time to correct these situations or to
implement the counsel of Marcellus II, and the papacy
returned to business as usual.
Paul IV (1476–1559) was a staunch believer in traditionally

strict Catholic policies, and he worked diligently to see to their
adherence. While he was pope (from May 23, 1555, to August
18, 1559) he initiated the Roman Inquisition that prosecuted
those with heretical beliefs or practices, including
Protestantism. (p.46) He banned all books written by
Protestants, and furthermore, he had no dialogue with the
Protestants and he refused to acknowledge Queen Elizabeth I
of England or the Church of England. He also confined the
Jews in Rome to a ghetto. Like so many popes before him, he
was also engaged in military campaigns that attempted to
strengthen the power of the church. However, he suffered a
great loss in the Italian War of 1551–1559. Unlike popes
before him, he had no interest in the arts. He cut
Michelangelo’s pension and he ordered that the nude figures
Page 15 of 47
in The Last Judgment be repainted, and adhering to strict

Vatican policy regarding membership in the papal chapel, he
dismissed Palestrina, Ferrabosco, and another married singer.
Nevertheless, he recognized Palestrina’s compositional talent.
In particular, he was so taken with Palestrina’s setting of the
Improperia (a series of antiphons and responses for Holy
Week), he ordered that they be sung in the Sistine Chapel on
Good Friday, 1560, and they have been so sung ever since.
Pius IV (1499–1565), the third pope from the Medici family,

believed that church reforms were necessary and he worked to
support the Council of Trent. His papacy was from December
26, 1559, to December 9, 1565, and in January 1564 he issued
a papal bull entitled Benedictus Deus that ratified all the
council’s decrees. Reforms to music were addressed in the
twenty-second session of the council. Held on September 10,
1562, the cardinals issued the following statement under the
title “Abuses in the Sacrifice of the Mass.”
Since the sacred mysteries should be celebrated with

utmost reverence, with both deepest feeling toward God
alone, and with external worship that is truly suitable
and becoming, so that others may be filled with devotion
and called to religion: Everything should be regulated so
that the Masses, whether they be celebrated with the
plain voice or in song, with everything clearly and
quickly executed, may reach the ears of the hearers and
quietly penetrate their hearts. In those Masses where
measured music and organ are customary, nothing
profane should be intermingled, but only hymns and
divine praises. If something from the divine service is
sung with the organ while the service proceeds, let it
first be recited in a simple, clear voice, lest the reading
of the sacred words be imperceptible. But the entire
manner of singing in musical modes should be calculated
not to afford vain delight to the ear, but so that the words
may be comprehensible to all; and thus may the hearts of
the listeners be caught up into the desire for celestial
harmonies and contemplation of the joys of the blessed.
Intelligibility of text was the main issue of concern by the

Council of Trent and by other concerned individuals. For
example, Cardinal Carlo Borromeo (1538–1584), archbishop of
Milan, wrote in 1565 to one of the Milan priests, Niccolò
Ormaneto (1515–1577), “I would like you to speak to the
Page 16 of 47
master of the chapel and tell him to reform the singing so that
the words may be as intelligible as possible, as you know has
been ordered by the council.”
(p.47) Pius V (1504–1572), like his predecessor Pius IV, also

supported the recommendations of the Council of Trent and it
seemed as if the Counter-Reformation was finally established.
As parts of reforms to the Catholic Church, Pius V, who was
pope from January 7, 1566, to May 1, 1572, was against
nepotism. He openly criticized his predecessor, Pius IV, for
wanting to make a thirteen-year-old family member a cardinal
and for also wanting to support him financially. Pius V also
reduced the lavish materialistic spending of the papacy, living
simply in the manner of the Dominican he had been before he
was pope. But he did little to improve relations with the
Protestants; in a papal bull of 1570, Regnans in Excelsis, he
excommunicated Elizabeth I. It was during his papacy,
however, that he reinstated Palestrina as maestro di cappella
of the Cappella Giulia and that Palestrina composed the Missa
Papae Marcelli, which was published in 1567 in his Missarum
liber secundus (Second Book of Masses). In the dedication
preamble to the publication Palestrina wrote,
I … have considered it my task, in accordance with the

views of most serious and most religious-minded men, to
bend all my knowledge, effort, and industry toward that
which is the holiest and most divine of all things in the
Christian religion—that is, to adorn the holy sacrifice of
the Mass in a new manner.
In the year prior to this, in 1566, Palestrina’s contemporary,

Giovanni Animuccia (c.1500–1571), maestro di cappella of the
Cappella Giulia at the time, was commissioned by the Vatican
to compose “five Masses in accordance with the requirements
of the Council of Trent,” and in the publication of these
Masses the following year, Animuccia wrote in the preface to
the publication, his Missarum liber primus (First Book of
Masses),
Being led by the judgment of worthy men, I have sought

to adorn these divine prayers and praises of God in such
a way that the music may disturb the hearing of the text
as little as possible, but nevertheless in such a way that
Page 17 of 47
it may not be entirely devoid of artifice and may

contribute in some degree to the listener’s pleasure.
Animuccia was also involved with Filippo Neri’s Congregation

of the Oratory, an organization separate from the church
begun in the early 1550s for prayer and discussion of religious
subjects. Animuccia served at its musical leader and composed
two books of laudi spirituali for use during oratory meetings.
In the preface to the second book, Animuccia wrote,
The oratory having increased, by the grace of God, with

the coming together of prelates and of most important
gentlemen, it seemed to me fitting in this second book to
increase the harmony and the combination of parts,
varying the music in diverse ways, now setting it to Latin
words and now to the (p.48) vernacular [Italian],
sometimes with a greater number of voices and
sometimes with fewer, with verses now of one kind and
now another, concerning myself as little as possible with
imitations and complexities, in order not to obscure the
understanding of the words.
It should be noted that while Animuccia’s laudi and

Palestrina’s Missa Papae Marcelli were composed in a new
style, as will be described in detail below, Palestrina continued
to write in the older imitative style and on models with a
secular background. In his Missarum liber tertius (Third Book
of Masses), published in 1570, three of the eight Masses had
secular beginnings—Missa Io mi son giovinetta (a parody of a
madrigal), Missa L’homme armé (on the popular secular
Medieval tune), and Missa Ut re mi fa sol la (a soggetto cavato
Mass on a solfeggio pattern). Palestrina also composed a
second Mass on the L’homme armé tune and included it in his
Missarum liber quartus of 1582.
Gregory XIII (1502–1585) worked in the Vatican during the

administration of five popes, including Pius IV, who appointed
Gregory a member of the Council of Trent. He chose the name
Gregory because of the reputation of Gregory I as a reformer,
and during his term as pope (from May 13, 1572, to April 10,
1585) Gregory XIII worked to justify this decision. He founded
many seminaries for the training of priests, including the
Collegium Germanicum (German College), which had a
significant music program; Tomás Luis de Victoria (1548–
1611), one of the greatest composers of the High Renaissance,
Page 18 of 47
began singing in the Collegium choir when he was fifteen or

sixteen and began duties as maestro di cappella of the choir
when he was twenty-five. Pope Gregory XIII also officially
recognized the Congregation of the Oratory, founded by
Filippo Neri and responsible for the composition of many
oratorios during the seventeenth century. Most significantly,
Gregory XIII commissioned a new calendar, one that
acknowledged the actual length of the year and one that is still
in use today. In addition, Gregory XIII upheld the mandates of
the Council of Trent and he lived a simple life, although he
appointed his illegitimate son to important church posts.
Regarding music, Gregory XIII admitted Felice Anerio (c.1560–
1614) to the Cappella Giulia in 1575 and Giovanni Maria
Nanino (c.1543–1607) to the Cappella Sistina in 1577, Nanino
serving as its maestro di cappella several times after 1586 (the
position of maestro di cappella was a rotating one at the time).
The remaining popes during the end of the sixteenth century

and Palestrina’s life did little to further the state of music in
the Catholic Church. Sixtus V (1521–1590), who served as a
cardinal under Pius V and was pope from April 24, 1585, to
August 27, 1590, worked to restore peace in Rome by
upholding strict laws and devoting large sums of money
(collected through heavy taxation) to building roads and
bridges and to improving Rome’s water supply. He also saw to
the completion of St. Peter’s dome and to the erection of four
obelisks, one in the central plaza of St. Peter’s. Urban VII
(1521–1590), Gregory XIV (1535–1591), and (p.49) Innocent
IX (1519–1591) could accomplish little since their times as
pope were so brief—twelve days, 315 days, and sixty-two days,
respectively. Finally, Clement VIII (1536–1605), pope from
February 2, 1592, to March 3, 1605, followed the strict
practices of Sixtus V, killing heretics and expelling Jews from
papal states.
The Missa Papae Marcelli
Page 19 of 47
Musical Characteristics
In its outward form and appearance, the Missa Papae Marcelli
seems little different from other Masses by Palestrina and
some of his contemporaries. They all are clearly divided into
the traditional five movements representing the five portions
of the mass Ordinary (Kyrie, Gloria, Credo, Sanctus with
Benedictus, and Agnus Dei), and each of the movements is
further divided into standard sections: the Kyrie in three,
customary in all Kyrie movements; the Gloria in two; the Credo
in three, at typical textual dividing points; the Sanctus in its
constituent parts of “Sanctus,” “Hosanna,” “Benedictus,” and
the repeat of the “Hosanna”; and the Agnus Dei in two, one
ending with the text “miserere nobis” and the other with
“dona nobis pacem.” In addition, some sections have varied
scoring: the “Crucifixus” and “Benedictus” are for four voices
(SATB), the second “Agnus Dei” is for seven voices (SSATTBB),
and the other sections are for six voices (SATTBB in modern
editions). Moreover, the textures of the Kyrie, Sanctus,
Benedictus, and Agnus Dei are polyphonic and largely
imitative; the Gloria and Credo, with their lengthy texts, are in
the polychoral dialogue style common during the late years of
the Renaissance. The dialogue textures can be seen as an
attempt at textual intelligibility since most of the text is set
syllabically and with little overlap. However, the imitative
textures seem to defy the purpose of the Mass, which was to
conform to the mandates of Pope Marcellus II and many others
who desired the text of Masses to be conveyed clearly and
intelligibly. Each of the three portions of the Kyrie, for example
(i.e., “Kyrie 1,” “Christe,” and “Kyrie 2”), are made up of two
points of imitation, each point consisting of pervasive imitation
throughout the voice parts. These instances of imitative
polyphony do not obscure the text, however, for a number of
reasons. Most obviously, the text of the Kyrie is brief and well
understood by listeners of the time. The melodic material of
the phrases is also brief, being more like mottos than phrases.
Finally, and most important, Palestrina’s harmonies are
vertically instead of horizontally conceived, and the phrases
are in short, periodic sections, with frequent cadential
delineations, almost all either on tonic (I), dominant (V), or
sub-mediant (VI) chords. This vertically harmonic orientation
of the compositional process is what Palestrina referred to
when he wrote that the Mass was “written in a new manner,” a
manner that was perceived to present the text more clearly.
Page 20 of 47
(p.50) In “Kyrie 1,” the four voices that begin the Mass come
to a cadence in measure 5, and this is followed by a cadence of
four voices in measure 9. These two cadences are in an
antecedent and consequent relationship (i.e., dominant and
tonic) as shown in the opening first soprano line in Example
2.3 below.
Combinations
of voices have
less
pronounced
cadences in
measures 12, Example 2.3
15, 16, 18,
and 21, with a
final strong cadence at the end of this Mass portion in
measure 24. The harmonic nature of the cadences is made
clear by their tonal formulas or patterns and by the fact that
all of the cadences but one produce a tonic chord (the first
cadence is in the dominant).
Supporting the harmonic nature of the cadences is the

intervallic structure of the bass parts, which, with frequent
intervals of a fourth and fifth, indicate functional tonal
relationships. Example 2.4 shows the final measures of the
lower-of-the-two bass parts in “Kyrie 1.”
The short
melodic
phrases of the
first half of
the “Christe”
are also Example 2.4
cadentially
oriented.
Seen in Example 2.5 are the first four duet passages (soprano
and first bass, alto and first tenor, second tenor and second
bass, and soprano and second tenor), isolated for clarity of
comprehension. (p.51)
Page 21 of 47
Throughout
the second
half of the
“Christe,” the
voices
participate in
pervasive
imitation of a
six-note
pattern,
which occurs
either in full
or in part
twenty-three
times.
Similarly,
there are two
points of
imitation in
“Kyrie 2,”
each of which Example 2.5
consists of
short melodic
patterns that are imitated pervasively.
The pattern of short phrases continues in the Gloria, with

frequent triadic chords in functional relationships ending each
phrase. The texture of the Gloria is mainly homophonic,
however, with little repetition of text at the beginning of the
movement and with repetition of entire full-voiced sections in
block-like fashion at other times. For example, the first thirty-
three measures of the movement (p.52) consist of the text
delivered without repetition in homophonic textures by
different and varied combinations of voices in dialogue. The
next twenty-seven measures consist of text repetition and
instances of full-textured scoring. The same basic procedure is
followed in the second portion of the Gloria (beginning in
measure 61 with the text “Qui tollis peccata mundi”). A
notable feature of the imitation is the trading of bass parts.
For example, from measures 45 to 57, 76 to 92, and 111 to
119, the bass parts exchange almost identical phrases. Shown
in Example 2.6 are the first of these phrase exchanges.
Page 22 of 47
Phrase
endings by all
voices are
frequent and
in close
proximity at Example 2.6
the beginning
of both
portions of the movement, but less frequent and farther apart
at the ends of the portions when Palestrina builds harmonic
tension toward final cadences. Almost all the phrases end on
tonic, dominant, or sub-mediant chords.
The Credo is very much like the Gloria: the movement begins
with phrases in an antecedent and consequent relationship;
the phrases are short and end in chords functional to the tonic
key of the movement; there is little text repetition; and the
scoring is for varied combinations of voices at the beginning of
the movement, with full-voiced scoring occurring only after
extended periods of time. The Credo is unique, however, in
that it is organized in two large six-voiced bookend sub-
movements (seventy-three and eighty-two measures,
respectively), with a four-voiced “Crucifixus” in the middle.
Also, there are three short passages in which the rhythmic
notation slows dramatically in order to convey a poignancy of
text. These passages are, “Et incarnatus est” (measures 59–
62), “passus et sepultus est” (measures 81–85), and “vivos et
mortuos” (measures 103–106). In addition, the bass parts
exchange material with greater frequency in the Credo than in
the Gloria.
The Sanctus is similar to the Kyrie in being mainly polyphonic,

although the first portion of the movement, that set to the text
“Sanctus, sanctus, sanctus, Dominus Deus Sabaoth,” has very
little imitation. The two bass parts exchange phrases during
the first eight measures but then participate in free polyphony
until the beginning of the text “Pleni sunt coeli et terra gloria
tua.” During this portion of the movement, all parts participate
in two points of imitation, one to the text “Pleni sunt coeli et
terra” and the other to “gloria tua.” Only the (p.53) first
several notes of each point is treated imitatively, however, and
at this, the opening interval of the first point is variously a
fourth or fifth, one or the other used according to its harmonic
function. The brief “Hosanna” has the character of
homophony, mostly due to the lack of rhythmic activity, but
Page 23 of 47
also to the angular nature of the bass parts, which have rare
instances of stepwise motion. The “Benedictus,” scored for
four voices (SATT), is the most traditional of all the movements
or portions of movements in the Missa Papae Marcelli in that it
is entirely in a pervasive point-of-imitation texture. The text
“Benedictus” represents the first point, with single imitative
statements by all the voices except the first tenors, who have
two statements. The second point is given to the text “qui
venit,” with ten statements in the space of eleven measures
(15–25). A third point, to the text “in nomine Domini,” has
twelve statements in the space of twelve measures (25–36).
The first of the Agnus Dei sub-movements is like the

“Benedictus” in being structured of three points of imitation
(“Agnus Dei,” “qui tollis peccata mundi,” and “miserere nobis,”
respectively), although the imitation in this first “Agnus Dei” is
not as strict. The second “Agnus Dei” sub-movement is,
however, very strict—and archaic—in that three of the voices
participate in a canon: the first bass is followed by the first
tenor at the interval of a fourth above, which is followed by the
second soprano at the interval of a fifth above the second alto.
The other voices participate in loose imitation with each other,
again in three basic points (“Agnus Dei,” “qui tollis peccata
mundi,” and “dona nobis pacem”). This last point is especially
distinct, and harmonic, in its intervallic structure of downward
followed by upward fourths or fifths. As a result of the canon,
and as a characteristic of archaic Masses, the total voicing of
this movement expands to seven voice parts (SSATTBB).
While the Mass is considered free in that it is not based on

previously composed material, it is a motto Mass since three of
the movements (Kyrie, Credo, and Agnus Dei) begin with the
same melodic material. The use of this motto in the first,
middle, and last movements is structurally significant. It is
also noteworthy that, as seen in Example 2.7 below, this motto
has the same intervallic structure as the beginning of the
L’homme armé tune. (p.54)
Page 24 of 47
Legacy
Example 2.7
Palestrina’s
Missa Papae
Marcelli was immediately deemed to satisfy the goals of
musical reform, chiefly regarding text intelligibility. According
to Giuseppe Baini in his biography of Palestrina,
On Saturday, April 28, 1565, by order of Cardinal

Vitellozzi, all the singers of the papal chapel were
gathered together at his residence. Cardinal Borromeo
was already there, together with the other six cardinals
of the papal commission. Palestrina was there as well; he
handed out the parts to the singers, and they sang three
Masses… . The most eminent audience enjoyed the three
Masses very much. But the greatest and most incessant
praise was given to the third, which was extraordinarily
acclaimed and, by virtue of its entirely novel character,
astonished even the performers themselves. Their
eminences heaped their congratulations on the
composer.
The composer and theorist Agostino Agazzari (1578–1640) in

his basso continuo treatise of 1607 was the first person to
print and publish praise of Palestrina and the Missa Papae
Marcelli. Agazzari’s comments were then reprinted in a
number of other sources, including the 1605 organ treatise by
Adriano Banchieri (1568–1634) and the 1619 third volume of
Syntagma musicum by Michael Praetorius (1571–1621). From
Agazzari’s commentary,
Music of this [ancient] kind is no longer in use, both

because of the confusion and babel of the words, arising
from the long and intricate imitations, and because it has
no grace, for, with all the voices singing, one hears
neither period nor sense, these being interfered with and
covered up by imitations; indeed, at every moment, each
voice has different words, a thing displeasing to men of
competence and judgment. And on this account music
would have come very near to being banished from the
Holy Church by a sovereign pontiff had not Giovanni
Palestrina found the remedy, showing that the fault and
error lay, not with music, but with the composers, and
Page 25 of 47
composing in confirmation of this the Mass entitled

Missa Papae Marcelli.
The story of Palestrina saving the fate of Catholic church

music, which soon became legend, continued. The following
excerpt from a 1637 letter by the poet and cleric Lelio
Guidiccioni (1570–1643) is important for it confirms that the
unintelligibility of text in the church music of the Renaissance
was not only caused by imitative polyphony but also by singer
ornamentation.
The Tridentine fathers were gathered to consider the

resolution to prohibit music in the church by decree.
They were motivated, I believe, by the frivolous
diminutions and ornaments used in singing, which
carried music too far away (p.55) from the sanctity of
the divine service. On the day when the session was
fixed, they had performed a Mass sent there by Giovanni
Pierluigi da Palestrina… . The mighty energy of that
eminent creator, the chaste and correct style of the work
combined with sweet concentus, and the unanimous
eagerness of the singers—all this aided and sustained
the music. Consequently, having scarcely heard the
sweet sounds of that most exquisite and well-ordered
harmony of sounds, the Holy Fathers changed their
opinion and rescinded the decree. Music flourished, and
the Palestrinian seed spread marvelously through the
Christian world.
There is no evidence that any pope or that the Council of Trent

was considering banishing polyphony. Nevertheless, the
legend continued to be related throughout the years as truth.
Following are three assertions from the eighteenth and
nineteenth centuries: (1) an excerpt from A General History of
Music by Charles Burney (1726–1814) published in 1789; (2)
part of an article by E. T. A. Hoffmann (1776–1822) in the
Allgemeine Musikalische Zeitung of September, 1814; and (3)
a statement by Richard Wagner (1813–1883) from Entwurf zur
Organisation eines deutschen Nationaltheaters of 1849.
Page 26 of 47
(1) Book II of his Masses, which includes the

celebrated composition titled Missa Papae
Marcelli, was published at Rome in 1567. Of this
production it has been related by … musical
writers that the Pope and Conclave having been
offended and scandalized at the light and
injudicious manner in which the Mass had been
long set and performed, determined to banish
Music in parts entirely from the church; but that
Palestrina, during the short pontificate of
Marcellus Cervini, entreated his Holiness to
suspend the execution of his design till he had
heard a Mass composed in what, according to his
ideas, was the true ecclesiastical style. His
request being granted, the composition, in six
parts, [was found to be] so grave, noble, elegant,
learned, and pleasing, that Music was restored to
favor, and again established in the celebration of
sacred rites.
(2) A reconciliation with art was made by Pope
Marcellus II, who at first held the view that all
music should be banned from the church. Religion
would have been robbed of its highest glory had
not the great master, Palestrina, restored to it the
holy wonder of musical art in its inmost being.
From then on music became the truest means of
worship in the Catholic Church.
(3) Pope Marcellus in the sixteenth century
wanted to ban music completely from the church,
for the scholastic and speculative character of
church music at the time threatened the
devoutness and piety of religious expression.
Palestrina saved church music from the ban by
restoring to it an essential expressive character.
(p.56) Palestrina’s manner of imitative polyphony was held in

high regard, and throughout the years after his death there
were significant theorists and composers who described and
emulated it. For example, Johann Joseph Fux (1660–1741)
wrote his famous counterpoint treatise Gradus ad Parnassum
in 1725 with Palestrina as the model for students to emulate.
As explained by Fux in the introduction to the treatise,
Page 27 of 47
For the sake of better understanding and greater clarity,

I have used the form of dialogue [between teacher and
student]. By Aloysius, the master, I refer to Palestrina,
the celebrated light of music … to whom I owe
everything that I know of this art… . By Josephus I mean
the pupil who wishes to learn the art of composition.
Also during the Baroque era, J. S. Bach (1685–1750) wrote

portions of the B Minor Mass in the Palestrinian point-of-
imitation style, and during the Classical era, Michael Haydn
(1737–1806), brother of Joseph Haydn and student of Fux,
wrote a number of Masses in the stile antico style of
Palestrina.
In the nineteenth century there were several efforts to reform

Catholic church music and return it to the compositional style
of Palestrina. Two Catholic priests from Regensburg were
especially instrumental in this effort—Franz Xaver Witt (1834–
1888) and Franz Xaver Haberl (1840–1910). Witt founded the
Allgemeine Deutscher Cäcilienverein in 1868 as a society to
foster the return of church music to the a cappella textural
ideals exemplified by Palestrina’s music, and Haberl, who
spent time in Rome at the church of Santa Maria dell’Anima,
was president of the Cäcilienverein beginning in 1899. Haberl
also edited the first complete works of Palestrina.
At the beginning of the twentieth century, Palestrina became

the focus of a neo-Renaissance movement instigated by Pope
Pius X. On November 22, 1903 (Saint Cecilia’s Day), the pope
issued a motu proprio, entitled Tra le sollecitudini (Among the
concerns). The pope’s message criticized the current state of
Catholic church music and mandated a return to the use of
Gregorian chant, with recommendations that new
compositions be composed in the style of Palestrina. The basic
thrust of the motu proprio, as seen in the excerpts below, is
similar to that of the Council of Trent.
The principal function of sacred music is to clothe with

suitable melody the liturgical text proposed for the
understanding of the faithful. Therefore, its purpose is to
add greater efficacy to the text… .
Page 28 of 47
Gregorian Chant has always been regarded as the

supreme model for sacred music. Therefore, it is fully
legitimate to lay down the following rule: In its (p.57)
movement, inspiration, and mood, the more closely a
church composition approaches the Gregorian form, the
more sacred and liturgical it becomes. The more out of
harmony it is with that supreme model, the less worthy it
is of the temple… .
The above-mentioned qualities are also possessed in an

excellent degree by classic polyphony, especially of the
Roman School, which reached its greatest perfection in
the fifteenth century [sic], owing to the works of Pierluigi
da Palestrina.
Twentieth-century composers who wrote Masses reflective of

the neo-Renaissance style of Palestrina include Herbert
Howells, Ralph Vaughan Williams, Frank Martin, Francis
Poulenc, Paul Hindemith, and Vincent Persichetti.
Performance Practice Considerations

Pitch and Performing Forces
There was no standardization of pitch during the Renaissance.
The highness or lowness of pitch as it related to the clefs and
printed notes of a composition was relative and dependent
upon the tessituras of vocal parts, the matching of
instrumental pitches to each other, or to the fixed pitch of an
organ. Singers of the Renaissance chose pitch levels that
accommodated their parts within their standard vocal ranges,
string instrumentalists adjusted the tension of strings to raise
or lower pitch, and wind and brass players used crooks of
different sizes to adjust the basic pitch of their instruments.
The pitch of any note could and often did vary within the range
of a minor third.
Music in the Sistine Chapel was always a cappella;

instruments were not permitted. Thus the pitch level of
Palestrina’s Missa Papae Marcelli would have been determined
by the clefs and by ranges comfortable for the singers. This
latter consideration, with commentary about choral and
chamber pitch, is addressed by Michael Praetorius in the
second volume of his 1619 publication Syntagma Musicum.
Page 29 of 47
Choral pitch, which is a whole tone lower [than chamber

pitch], is employed only in church. This is done primarily
for the sake of the singers, so that they can perform their
parts without becoming hoarse from the highness of the
range, for a very great effort is required from them in
the services… . Further, the choral pitch is used because
the human voice sounds much more pleasant in the
middle and lower part of its range… . The Italians
believe, and not without reason, that singing in the high
range is very unpleasant and without any charm, and
that it causes the text to be obscured.
(p.58) The original clef names of the Missa Papae Marcelli

with their basic pitch ranges (from bottom to top) can be seen
in the following listing.
Soprano: g' to g"
Mezzo soprano: g to c"
Alto: g to a'
Alto: g to a'
Tenor: C to d'
Tenor: C to d'
The clefs should not be seen as designations of voice parts,

however, for the pitch ranges suggest voice parts of soprano,
alto, tenor, tenor, bass, bass (from top to bottom). And for
these voice parts, the ranges are somewhat high, especially
considering the remarks by Praetorius. It is likely, then, that
the actual ranges were a step to a minor third lower, putting
the Mass in the present-day keys of either B-flat or A.
The choir of the Sistine Chapel (the Cappella Sistina)

fluctuated during the mid-sixteenth century between twenty-
one and thirty-six singers. During the papacy of Clement VII
(1523–1534) the choir had twenty-four singers (seven
sopranos, seven altos, four tenors, and six basses), and during
the time that Julius III was pope (1550–1555) the choir
numbered twenty-eight singers. The distribution of singers for
the Missa Papae Marcelli, with some redistribution of vocalists
for balance, would likely have been approximately six
sopranos and six altos, with four singers on each of the tenor
and bass parts.
Page 30 of 47
Throughout the sixteenth century all the singers in the

Cappella Sistina were men, the soprano and alto parts being
sung by falsettists. It is possible that by mid-century there
were also castratos in the choir since they had become
popular in Italian courts and were definitely included as
members of the Cappella Sistina during the last decade of the
century. Two factors are important about the all-male
composition of the choir: (1) the sound would have been
homogeneous, especially among the voices of a specific clef
(e.g., tenors or basses), and (2) there was an ideal of timbral
consistency during the latter half of the sixteenth century;
voices were expected to match each other in quality or color,
and instruments were generally grouped in consorts (e.g.,
families of recorders, gambas, or sackbuts). In consideration
of these factors, it is important that present-day performances
of the Missa Papae Marcelli sung by a mixture of adult females
and males or boys with men strive for a unified timbre of
sound, one that is consistent from voice part to voice part.
Passages of imitative polyphony are thus manifested in sound;
vocal imitation corresponds to musical imitation. Timbral
consistency is particularly important between the voice parts
that exchange phrases at the same pitch levels, voice
exchange between two soprano or two tenor parts being
common during the Renaissance. In Palestrina’s Mass, the two
tenor and two bass parts, which are of the same range and
which exchange melodic material frequently, should match in
timbre.
(p.59) The Sistine Chapel is quite small (134 feet by 44 feet),

and is designed with an altar on a raised platform at one end
(under Michelangelo’s painting The Last Judgment) and a
screen to divide clerics from the general population at the
other end. Two small doors flank the altar, and a large door is
in the center of the wall at the other end. Toward the center of
the chapel there are irregularly shaped steps that lead up to
the altar area, and on one side of the long wall there is a
balcony for singers that protrudes only slightly into the chapel
area. At the front center of the singers’ balcony there is a
raised lectern on which choir books would be placed and
around which singers would be gathered. The floor plan in
Diagram 2.A is a representation of an anonymous 1578
drawing housed in the Vatican Library.
Page 31 of 47
The Missa
Papae
Marcelli was
performed not
from a choir
book,
however, but
from six part
books, with
the singers of
each part
gathered
around their
Diagram 2.A The Sistine Chapel
corresponding book. The arrangement of the singers on the

balcony is unknown.
Meter and Tactus

Identifying the meter and subsequent tactus, or pulse unit, of
a Renaissance-era composition can be challenging since most
published editions of the music are modern alterations of
original manuscripts or printed scores, with no incipit showing
the original clefs, mensuration signs (i.e., meter signatures),
rhythmic (p.60) values, or starting pitches. Editors frequently
change clefs and pitch ranges to accommodate modern-day
choral ensembles, for example, transcribing an original
scoring of ATTB to SATB. Similarly, editors update meters and
rhythmic values to those in common present-day usage; whole
notes are changed to half or quarter notes. But even with the
original information, identification of the tactus is still
challenging. This is because composers were not consistent in
their use of meter signatures. Heinrich Glareanus (1488–
1563), in his music theory treatise Dodecachordon of 1547
Page 32 of 47
states, “We are confused by so many inaccuracies in the

[meter] signs because they are written this way by one
[composer] and that way by another.” Reinforcing this view,
Michael Praetorius, in the third volume of his Syntagma
Musicum, states, “Most [composers] do not observe their own
rules and use one [meter signature] indiscriminately in place
of another.” These inconsistencies are generally not
problematic with three of the four mensuration signs common
in Renaissance music, those equivalent to present-day 9/8 or
9/4 (perfect tempus and perfect prolation), 3/4 or 3/2 (perfect
tempus and imperfect prolation), and 6/8 or 6/4 (imperfect
tempus and perfect prolation). The fourth sign (imperfect
tempus and imperfect prolation) was indicated during the
Renaissance by 𝄴 or 𝄵, both of which translate as 2/4 or 2/2, not
4/4 or common time. The use of 𝄴 as 4/4 (i.e., four beats per
measure) did not exist during the Renaissance. This is an
extremely important matter of notation and, thus, performance
practice: the editions of Palestrina Masses, motets, and
madrigals with the 𝄴 meter signature should be seen as
indicating two beats per measure, generally with the half note
as the tactus. Therefore, there is no basic conflict, for
example, between editions of the motets Veni sponsa Christi or
Sicut cervus scored as 4/4 (𝄴) or as alla breve (𝄵). Both
signatures indicate two beats per measure. The 4/4 meter
would only be correct if the note values at the beginning of the
motets were transcribed as quarter notes, the pulse of the
quarter note serving as the tactus of the compositions. But
since the opening notes of the 4/4 or common-time editions
are half notes, the half note is the tactus. The 4/4 indication
should be ignored, the performer keeping in mind that both 𝄴
and 𝄵 indicate two beats per measure (imperfect tempus and
imperfect prolation).
To aid in the determination of 2/2 as the appropriate meter for

the motets mentioned (and virtually every other composition of
the Renaissance), one can assess the rhythmic activity and
harmonic motion of the music. Pieces with dense rhythmic
textures (a predominance of quarter, eighth, and sixteenth
notes, referred to as black notation during the Renaissance)
generally call for common time execution, with the quarter
note as the tactus in modern-day editions. This is also the case
with pieces in which the harmonies change at the pace of the
quarter note. However, in pieces with sparse rhythmic
textures (referred to as white notation) and with harmonic
Page 33 of 47
changes at the half or whole note, the half note is the tactus
and the meter is 2/2. Harmonic motion is the most critical and
helpful of the musical elements indicating meter since
composers allied harmonic motion with meter, one
determining the other. With this in mind, the duple meters of
virtually (p.61) all sacred music during the Renaissance era
are appropriately 2/2, the half note serving as the tactus in
modern-day editions. A quarter-note tactus generally applies
only to madrigals in the note nere (black note) style.
Once identified, the tactus remains constant throughout the

composition or throughout the duration of the meter
signature. Only the insertion of a new signature (mensuration
sign) calls for a change of tactus. For example, some
Renaissance motets and madrigals begin in duple meter but
then have a section or sections of music in triple meter,
indicated by a new signature, this new signature most
frequently corresponding to 3/4 (perfect tempus and imperfect
prolation). Each section of music, identified by its
corresponding meter signature, has an unchanging tactus.
Numerous testaments to this rule of consistency occur in
Renaissance-era treatises. Below are excerpts from two
treatises relative to the time Palestrina composed the Missa
Papae Marcelli: (1) De arte canendi (The Art of Singing) of
1540 by Sebald Heyden (1499–1561) and (2) Arte de tañer
fantasía (The Art of Playing the Fantasia) of 1565 by Tomás de
Santa María (c.1510–1570).
(1) Tactus is a movement or stroking motion of a

finger fitting the value of all notes and rests into
an equally divided temporal beat. The tactus
therefore defines very accurately the temporal
value of every note and rest. Moreover, nothing
definite can be understood or taught about
length, perfection, imperfection, augmentation,
and diminution of notes unless previously the
tactus has been established. The tactus
corresponds to the mensuration sign.
(2) All tactus are measured and regulated by the
length of the first tactus, that is, that the amount
of time occupied by the first tactus be occupied by
each of the ones that follow, so that no more time
elapses in one than in the other.
Page 34 of 47
The regularity of pulse was, of course, necessary for the

reading of the music. With singers able to see only their
individual parts as they performed from choir books or part
books, a steady pulse was mandatory. But a regularity of pulse
often creates syncopations, which a number of modern-day
editors, without documentation, feel are antithetical to
Renaissance music. These editors reason that since choir and
part books of the time had no measure bars, the tactus of a
composition was flexible and could be adjusted to align with
natural declamation of text. It is true that choir and part books
had no bar lines. However, bar lines—regularly spaced to
create measures of equal duration—were used when
composers wrote in score format. Andreas Ornithoparcus
(born c.1490) wrote in his Musicae activae micrologus of 1517
that “Beginners of composition, if they are not to be
embarrassed by a confused jumble of notes, will need to draw
a staff of horizontal lines and to divide it into measures of
vertical lines,” and Palestrina wrote in a 1570 letter to
Guglielmo Gonzaga, Duke of Mantua, that “in order to study
[the motet and madrigal you sent me] more satisfactorily, I
have set them into scores.” The (p.62) twentieth-century
musicologist Edward Lowinsky (1908–1985) shows a
considerable number of original scores with regular measure
bars in his article “On the Use of Scores by Sixteenth-Century
Musicians” in the Journal of the American Musicological
Society (JAMS), Volume I, 1948.
The syncopations created by the regularity of tactus pulses

and also the inherent or real presence of regular bar lines was
not incompatible with Renaissance ideals of text expression,
but was, on the other hand, a highly praised and valued
component of composition during the Renaissance.
Attestations of this appear in numerous primary sources.
Following are excerpts from (1) Heyden’s De arte canendi and
(2) Santa María’s Arte de tañer fantasìa.
(1) Syncopation is generally considered to occur

whenever the mensural values of notes are sung
for some time in opposition to the uniform
movement of the tactus. Our brief advice here
concerning this disparity is as follows: while
singing, do not allow the note values to return to
agreement with the tactus, but persist vigorously
Page 35 of 47
in the disparity until the notes are reconciled to

the tactus.
(2) The syncopations that occur because of the
regularity of the tactus should not be avoided.
In addition, the Italian mathematician and music theorist

Prosdocimus de Beldemandis (d.1428) wrote in his Tractatus
pratice cantus mensurabilis ad modum Ytalicorum (The
Practice of Mensural Music in the Italian Manner) of 1412 that
“Syncopation is the sweetest thing to be found in a piece of
music.”
The modern-day editors who desire to place all accented

syllables and words on, not between, a tactus, and who,
therefore, generally assign a quarter-note tactus to a
composition and randomly vary the meters, misinterpret the
meter signatures and deprive the music of its expressive
syncopations. An example can be seen in the following first
phrase of the soprano part of Palestrina’s Stabat mater from a
current edition (Example 2.8).
In contrast to
this, by
allowing the
syncopation Example 2.8
that results
from the
correct alla breve meter and regularity of tactus, the
declamation of text is not hampered. Instead, the syncopation
aids the declamation of text by drawing attention to a stressed
syllable or word. Such is the case with the opening line of
Palestrina’s Stabat mater, which, with adherence to its meter
signature (seen in Example 2.9), allows for the expressive and
poignant delivery of the word “dolorosa.” (p.63)
There are
many, many
instances of
syncopation Example 2.9
in the Missa
Papae
Marcelli. Examples can be seen at the beginning of the
“Christe” (shown earlier in Example 2.5) and in the following
second bass part in measures 16–20 of the Gloria (shown in
Page 36 of 47
Example 2.10). Note that this phrase has three syncopations in

three consecutive measures.
Another
example of
multiple
syncopations Example 2.10
is seen in the
soprano line
from measures 8 to 20 at the beginning of the Credo (Example
2.11).
Oratorical
Phrasing
Renaissance
composers
designed the
musical shape
of vocal
phrases Example 2.11
according to
the way in
which the textual phrases might be delivered in natural speech
or in an oratorical manner. By doing so, the melodies were
fashioned and the harmonies arranged so that syllables and
words were given varied treatment to underscore or reveal
their logical and expressive placement in a phrase; the
melodies and harmonies indicated the relative importance and
flow of the syllables and words. Most, but not nearly all,
stressed textual syllables and words were placed on a tactus
or (p.64) preceding a tactus with a syncopation, and most
important syllables and words of a phrase were set to
harmonies that, in themselves, would have an element of
emphasis. The stresses of music were not of equal strength, of
course, since the melodies, by their pitch shapes and rhythmic
diversity, indicated variety. In like manner, the unfolding of
harmonies indicated movement or progression to cadences or
to points of arrival.
The phrases and their inherent musical designs that

corresponded to patterns of spoken oratory were to be
manifested in performance. Nicola Vicentino (1511–1576)
attests to this in his treatise of 1555 L’antica musica ridotta
alla moderna prattica (Ancient Music Adapted to Modern
Page 37 of 47
Practice), stating that “One should sing to imitate the orator

with his accents of prosody.” Michael Praetorius explains
further in the third volume of his Syntagma Musicum.
How important it is to give form and shape to musical

lines will be known by those who train vocalists and boy
singers in chapels. Now almost everyone knows how
unsatisfactory it is when an orator talks on and on in the
same tone, rather than pronouncing with a rising or
falling inflection, in accordance with the requirements of
the text and of the Affections. If this is annoying to hear
in speaking, it is even more the case with singing.
Modern-day performers of Renaissance-era music who give

equal stress to all syllables—who, like orators who “talk on
and on in the same tone,” render music that is expressionless.
Equally disagreeable are performers who give equal emphasis
to all stressed syllables, this practice resulting in simplistic
and childish renditions that deny the natural variety of oratory.
Both the immutable and singsong performances are
destructive to the innate ebb and flow of text that was so
important to composers and performers of the Renaissance.
To determine the appropriate oratorical delivery of music in

performance, one can speak phrases of text in a free oratorical
manner apart from the composer’s setting. This procedure is
helpful, but limiting, however, and should only be used as a
preliminary step in understanding musical phrase structure
since the composer’s phrasing concept, especially regarding
word stress, may differ from that of the modern-day performer.
One can also gain understanding of musical oratory from the
pitch and rhythmic structure of phrases—from tessitura and
agogic accents. These considerations are also somewhat
unreliable because higher pitches did not necessarily indicate
greater importance than lower pitches, and because many
syllables and words are set to the same or similar durational
value; rhythmic variety was certainly not a hallmark of
Palestrina’s writing. As with the identification of tactus,
harmonic motion is the best determinant of oratorical phrase
shape in that harmonies progress through building tension
toward points of significant importance just as syllables and
words progress to peak points in speech phrases. Harmonic
motion can, therefore, be considered as the musical equivalent
to oratorical speech. In practical terms, the placement of
pitches in an (p.65) unfolding scheme of harmonic tension
Page 38 of 47
and release provides the performer with the composer’s

concept of the text, and therefore, the harmonic scheme
becomes a guide to the performer.
In the following example (2.12) from the Credo of Palestrina’s

Missa Papae Marcelli (the soprano line from measures 31 to
38), one can easily see the relationship between harmonic
motion and text oratory, the harmonic implications of the
melody being clear even without seeing the other voice parts.
The first short phrase fragment stands alone and is given a
minimal emphasis on the syllable “ve” of “verum,” with a de-
emphasis on “rum” and a breath at the comma. This fragment
is then repeated, but with a continuation of the phrase until
the final strong tactus of the notes decorating the repeat of
the syllable “ve,” and with a diminishing of emphasis until the
period that ends the phrase. Caret signs of different sizes
denote and correspond to the points of arrival or emphasis.
By hearing
the harmonic
implications
of the music,
the performer
is focused on Example 2.12
the overall
design of the
phrase and is unlikely to give undue emphasis to syllables
early in the phrase (e.g., “rum” on the first tactus of measure 4
in Example 2.12 example) or on the beginning note of
emphasized syllables (e.g., the first tactus of measure 5 in
Example 2.12).
Tempo
Tempo in the performance of Renaissance music—including
Masses, motets, madrigals, and chansons—is closely related to
oratorical delivery of text. The concept of text expression that
guides the performer to vary syllabic and word emphasis also
guides the performer in the establishment of a basic tempo
and in the variation of tempo as well. The following two
excerpts from primary sources of the Renaissance speak to the
establishment of basic tempo (i.e., the speed of the tactus).
The first quotation, by Alonso Mudarra (c.1510–1580), is from
the preface to his collection of music for the vihuela and guitar
entitled Tres Libros de Musica published in 1546. The second
Page 39 of 47
quotation is from the 1558 publication of Le istitutioni

harmoniche by Gioseffo Zarlino (1517–1590).
(p.66)
(1) If a text is of gay and merry content, the

tactus, of necessity, is to move merrily and
quickly. And if another text is neither all gay nor
all sad, this text will require another tactus which
moves neither very quickly nor very slowly. And,
neither more nor less, that text which is sad
throughout will demand the slow tactus.
(2) Singers should aim to render faithfully what is
written to express the composer’s intent, intoning
the correct steps in the right places. They should
seek to adjust to the consonances and to sing in
accord with the nature of the words of the
composition. Happy words will be sung happily
and at a lively pace, whereas sad texts call for the
opposite.
Two other authors of primary sources from the Renaissance

speak to the establishment of tempo specific to sacred music.
The first quotation below is from a guide to liturgical singing,
De modo bene cantandi choralem cantum of 1474 by the
German musical theorist Conrad von Zabern (d.1481). The
second quotation is from Nicola Vicentino’s 1555 publication
of L’antica musica ridotta alla moderna prattica.
(1) To sing with discrimination means to observe

fittingly the necessary requirements for the
church services and the church year. This is
accomplished through the selection of different
tempos. In general, a high feast is to be sung in a
very slow tempo, on Sundays and single feasts in
a moderate tempo, and daily feasts in a fairly
rapid tempo. Such a gradation has good basis in
the authority of the Council of Basel.
(2) Compositions that are settings of Masses and
other Latin texts must be serious. It is essential
that their movement be different from French
chansons and Italian madrigals. One should strive
Page 40 of 47
to make a great difference between a piece that is

sung in church and one that is sung in a chamber.
Vicentino (in the first paragraph below) and Praetorius (in the
second paragraph) speak to a closer connection between
oratory and tempo and also to variation of tempo within a
composition.
(1) Sometimes one uses a certain way of

proceeding in a composition that cannot be
written down—such as to sing piano and forte,
and to sing presto and tardo, moving the measure
according to the words to demonstrate the effects
of the passions of the words and of the
harmony… . Changes of tempo are not
inconvenient in any composition. The practice of
the orator teaches this, for one sees how he
proceeds in an oration—now he speaks loudly,
now softly, and slower and faster. This way of
changing the tempo has an effect on the mind. So,
one should sing music all mente to imitate the
accents and effects of the parts of the oration, for
what effect would (p.67) the orator make if he
recited a fine speech without arranging his
accents and pronunciations with fast and slow
movement, softly and loudly? That would not
move his hearers. The same [consideration of
oratory] should occur in music.
(2) To use, by turns, now a slower, now a faster
beat, in accordance with the text, lends dignity
and grace to a performance and makes it
admirable… . Motets and concerti are particularly
delightful when after some slow and expressive
measures several quick phrases follow, succeeded
in turn by slow and stately ones, which again
change off with faster ones. In order to avoid
monotony, one should thus, where possible, vary
the pace.
Given the serious nature of the Missa Papae Marcelli and its
intended response to the recommendations by Pope Marcellus
II and the Council of Trent for text intelligibility and solemnity
of occasion, the basic tempo of the Mass should be perceived
as relatively slow. If the standard tactus of the time was
approximately MM = 72 (which is likely), then the basic tactus
Page 41 of 47
of Palestrina’s Mass might be MM = 60. Some movements

should be faster and some slower, however, based on the
character of text. The following chart shows tempo
recommendations for the speed of the half-note tactus.
Kyrie
Kyrie I – MM = 60
Christe – MM = 6
Kyrie II – MM = 72
Gloria
Et in terra pax – MM = 60
Laudamus te – MM = 76
Qui tollis – MM = 60
Quoniam tu solus sanctus – MM = 76
Credo
Patrem omnipotentem – MM = 72
Crucifixus – MM = 50
Et resurrexit – MM = 76
Et in spiritum sanctum – MM = 76
Sanctus
Sanctus – MM = 60
Pleni sunt coeli – MM = 66
Hosanna – MM = 76
Benedictus – MM = 66
Agnus Dei
Agnus Dei I – MM = 52
Agnus Dei II – MM = 60
(p.68) Tempo within the movements or sub-movements

would also be pliable but most likely subtle and only a result of
gaining momentum toward points of arrival and relaxing
momentum after cadences. Since sections of music are
generally devoted to one characteristic of text expression (e.g.,
either happy or sad), there would be little cause for notable
tempo changes within sections or movements.
Musica Ficta
Throughout the middle and late years of the Renaissance,
musica ficta—the raising of a printed pitch by a half step—was
most often employed to highlight a cadence. The leading tone
of a perceived scale was raised as it approached a cadence or
was part of a cadential formula. Zarlino explains in the chapter
on cadences in his Le institutioni harmoniche.
Page 42 of 47
Penultimate notes … can always be [shown] without

putting in the sign of the chromatic tone (♯) to change
the interval of a tone [whole step] to a semitone [half
step], because in the part that ascends from the
penultimate note to the final, the semitone is always
intended to be placed… . Nature has shown this, because
not only learned musicians but also peasants, who sing
without any art, always proceed by the interval of the
semitone.
The determination to raise a leading tone is based on the

functionality of the note in question. If the note is clearly part
of a formula that is approaching a cadence—a cadence that is
realized with participation of another voice or other voices—
the note should be raised, whether the cadence serves a
primary or secondary function (i.e., whether the cadence is on
the tonic or dominant chord of the scale or whether the
cadence is on the dominant of the dominant). However, if the
note in question is part of a formula that appears to be a
leading tone but does not approach a cadence that verifies the
note in question as a leading tone, the note should not be
raised. For example, the E-flat in the third measure of the
soprano part of “Kyrie 1” (shown earlier in this chapter in
Example 2.3) should be raised because it leads directly to a
cadence in F Major. On the other hand, the E-flats of the
second bass phrase of the “Christe” (shown in Example 2.5)
should not be raised, as is indicated in some present-day
editions, because the cadence that follows is not in the key of
F but in the key of B-flat instead. In a related instance, none of
the E-flats during the first twelve measures of the
“Benedictus” should be raised. They are not part of cadential
formulas and the tonality during these measures is B-flat; a
cadence in F does not occur until measure 15, which would
naturally be preceded by an E-natural in measure 14. Shown
here in Example 2.13 are the alto and second tenor parts
leading up to this cadence.
When
considering
cadential
formulas, it is
important to
raise all the Example 2.13
leading tones
that are a
Page 43 of 47
part of its makeup. That is, all the notes that are in a stepwise
(p.69) relationship with the tonic note should be raised, not
just the final one or two leading tones. An example can be
seen in the following first tenor part near the beginning of the
“Qui tollis” section of the Gloria (Example 2.14).
Another form
of musica
ficta was
occasionally Example 2.14
employed
during the
Renaissance, this being the raising of the third degree of a
cadence chord to create a major rather than a minor tonality
(what would be called a Picardy Third in later years). The
raising of the third was done for reasons of beauty (causa
pulchritudinis). The determination to raise or not raise the
third in a cadence chord is based on the character of the
music and/or the overall function of modality or tonality. In a
composition that is basically modal, a raised third is not likely
to be appropriate, except, perhaps, in a final cadence.
However, in a composition that is tonal (such as the Missa
Papae Marcelli) cadential raised thirds are suitable and
plentiful. Indeed, virtually all the cadences in the Missa Papae
Marcelli have raised thirds, including the cadence in measure
42 of the Gloria, where the third, not part of the diatonic scale,
has been raised with manuscript authority (i.e., the third is not
left to the volition of the performer, but marked raised in the
original score).
In addition to the raising of pitches by means of musica ficta,

there was during the Renaissance a practice of lowering
pitches by means of musica recta. This practice is generally
limited to the lowering of the sixth degree of the scale as it
leads to the fifth degree, or dominant. The dominant note then
leads to its tonic. An example of this can be seen in the second
bass part toward the end of the Credo (Example 2.15). Note
that the lowering of the A-natural to an A-flat is necessary to
avoid the leap of a tritone. (p.70)
Page 44 of 47
Summary
Example 2.15
For present-
day
performers and audiences to fully appreciate the Missa Papae
Marcelli and its status as one of the most revered compositions
of the Renaissance era, the Mass should be presented
according to performance practices common during the
sixteenth century and inherent in the music of Palestrina’s
masterpiece. Pitch in a range comfortable for the singers,
consistent tactus that allows for the expressive beauty of
syncopation, phrasing that emulates a natural and oratorical
delivery of text, tempos that vary according to the character
and solemnity of the Mass, and musica ficta/musica recta that
manifest the functional harmony of the music are all important
considerations. Most important is the consideration of text
intelligibility that was such a significant aspect of the Counter-
Reformation and that should be just as significant to us today.
Intelligibility of text is more than clarity of diction, however. It
is a meaningful revelation and comprehension of text, neither
of which can be achieved with an absence of word stresses,
with stresses on both accented and unaccented syllables of
words, or with equal stresses on all accented syllables—all
these practices being common in modern times. Text
intelligibility occurs with variation of syllabic stress according
to oratorical delivery and also to variation of tempo. By
varying tempo, as called for by the changing character of text
and as supported by Palestrina’s music, one can experience
the differing expressive characteristics of the Missa Papae
Marcelli, and by treating the text as oratory (by shaping
phrases with varying points of arrival), one can experience the
Mass more profoundly and can better appreciate the genius of
Palestrina’s creation.
Selected Bibliography
Bibliography references:
Alwes, Chester L. A History of Western Choral Music, Volume

1. Oxford University Press, 2015.
Agazzari, Agostino. Del sonare sopra il basso con tutti gli

strumenti. Siena: Domenico Falconi, 1607.
Andrews, H. K. An Introduction to the Technique of Palestrina.

Novello, 1958.
Page 45 of 47
Baini, Giuseppe. Memorie sotrico-critiche della vita e delle

opera di Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina. Rome: Dalla Societa
Tipografica, 1828.
Brown, Howard Mayer. Embellishing 16th-Century Music.

Oxford University Press, 1976.
Heyden, Sebald. De arte canendi. Johannes Petraeum, 1537

and 1540. Edited and translated by Clement A. Miller and
Armen Carapetyan, American Institute of Musicology, 1972.
Jeppesen, Knud. The Style of Palestrina and the Dissonance.

Dover, 1970.
Kelly, J. N. D. The Oxford Dictionary of Popes. Oxford

University Press, 2005.
(p.71) Lockwood, Lewis, editor. Palestrina Pope Marcellus

Mass: An Authoritative Score, Backgrounds and Sources,
History and Analysis, Views and Comments. W. W. Norton,
1975.
MacClintock, Carol, editor. Readings in the History of Music in

Performance. Indiana University Press, 1979.
Marvin, Clara. Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina: A Research

Guide. Routledge, 2001.
Mudarra, Alonso. Tres libros de musica en cifras para vihuela.

Sevilla, 1546.
Praetorius, Michael. Syntagma musicum. Michael Praetorius,

1619. Book two translated by Harold Blumenfeld, Da Capo
Press, 1980. Book three translated by Jeffrey T. Kite-Powell,
Oxford University Press, 2004.
Roche, Jerome. Palestrina. Oxford University Press (Oxford

Studies of Composers), 1971.
Santa María, Tomás de. Arte de tañer fantasia. Valladolid:

Francisco Fernandez, 1565.
Smith, Anne. The Performance of 16th-Century Music:

Learning from the Theorists. Oxford University Press, 2011.
Page 46 of 47
Stewart, Robert. An Introduction to Sixteenth-Century

Counterpoint and Palestrina’s Musical Style. Scarecrow Press,
1994.
Strunk, Oliver, editor. Source Readings in Music History.

Revised edition. Robert Morgan, editor; Leo Treitler, general
editor. W. W. Norton, 1998.
Vicentino, Nicola. L’antica musica ridotta alla moderna

prattica. Rome: Antonio Barre, 1555. Edited by Edward E.
Lowinsky, published by Bärenreiter, 1959.
Zarlino, Gioseffo. Le istitutioni harmoniche. Venice: Zarlino,

1558.
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Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina – Missa Papae Marcelli

University Press Scholarship Online

Oxford Scholarship Online

Choral Monuments: Studies of Eleven Choral

Print publication date: 2017

Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina –

Abstract and Keywords

Keywords: Palestrina, Missa Papae Marcelli, Council of Trent, Counter-

Music would have come very near to being banished

Biographical and Compositional Overview

On September 1, 1551, Palestrina was appointed maestro di

Palestrina remained in the Cappella Sistina during the papacy

them to sing “with properly modulated voices in such a way

Meanwhile, Palestrina was active composing music in other

Paul IV, pope from 1555 to 1559, believed in and followed

summer months for Cardinal Ippolito II d’Este at the cardinal’s

Palestrina remained in the employment of Cardinal Ippolito II

During his life Palestrina composed 104 Masses,

Of the parody Masses, thirty-one are based on works by other

Josquin Desprez, Missa O sacrum convivium on a motet by

Of the paraphrase Masses, most are based on Gregorian

Only seven Masses employ a cantus firmus. The most famous

Most of the Masses have varied scoring (a practice that was

The motets include twenty-nine individual texts from the Song

Of the motets based on preexisting material (mostly chants),

Vecchi and Adriano Banchieri in their madrigal comedies. The

Whether in Masses, motets, or madrigals, the overall style of

second movements (Rorate coeli and Quodcumque ligaveris)

Yet other structural characteristics are common in Palestrina’s

The Papacy and the Counter-Reformation

The Catholic Counter-Reformation is generally considered to

Alexander VI (1431–1503), pope from August 11, 1492, to

Alexander’s successor, Pius III (1439–1503), was also a

Julius II (1443–1513), nephew of Pope Sixtus IV and yet

Cappella Sistina, a smaller ensemble that sang for the pope in

Unfortunately, Leo X is best known for his support of

Adrian VI (1459–1523) was born in Utrecht and studied at the

Clement VII (1478–1534), born Giulio di Giuliano de’ Medici,

Paul III (1468–1549), born Alessandro Farnese, was educated,

As pertains to the Protestant Reformation and responses of the

priests, and discipline and administration of the church. The

The arts would be addressed by the council in later years,

Music among the ancients was the most splendid of all

This sentiment is echoed by the composer and theorist Nicola

Maria Ferrabosco (1513–1574) to the Cappella Sistina. As

(p.45) While he was pope (from February 7, 1550, to March

Marcellus II (1501–1555), born Marcello Cervini degli

The mood of joy and unintelligibility of text most certainly

Paul IV (1476–1559) was a staunch believer in traditionally

in The Last Judgment be repainted, and adhering to strict

Pius IV (1499–1565), the third pope from the Medici family,

Since the sacred mysteries should be celebrated with

Intelligibility of text was the main issue of concern by the

(p.47) Pius V (1504–1572), like his predecessor Pius IV, also

I … have considered it my task, in accordance with the

In the year prior to this, in 1566, Palestrina’s contemporary,

Being led by the judgment of worthy men, I have sought

it may not be entirely devoid of artifice and may

Animuccia was also involved with Filippo Neri’s Congregation

The oratory having increased, by the grace of God, with

It should be noted that while Animuccia’s laudi and

Gregory XIII (1502–1585) worked in the Vatican during the

began singing in the Collegium choir when he was fifteen or