History of

Western Music

Music of ...
Medieval Period
Renaissance Period
Baroque Period

INTRODUCTION
The first three periods of Western Music
History are classified as Medieval,
Renaissance, and Baroque. Each period
has its distinctive characteristics,
historical and cultural background.
A type of music from the Medieval Era is
Gregorian Chant, which was mainly used
in the early Christian church.

Music during the Renaissance Period became an

important leisure activity. Members of the upper class
were expected to have received musical training.
Imitative polyphony is the distinctive characteristic of
Renaissance music.
The Baroque Period is characterized by grand and
elaborate ornamentation of sculptures, theaters, arts
and music. The music genres which flourished during
the Baroque Period were the Concerto, the Fugue, the
Oratorio and the Chorale.
Music evolved alongside with mans constant quest for
growth and development.

Music of the Medieval Period (700

1400
A.D)
The Medieval period
is also
known as the Middle
Ages or Dark Ages that started with the fall of the
Roman Empire. During this time, the Christian Church
influenced Europes culture and political affairs.
Medieval music was bothsacredandsecular.
Sacred Music -was music that was used by
the Roman
Catholic Church
Secular Music was music that had no relation
to the Church.

Gregorian Chant
Was named after Pope Gregory I, who made this
the approved music of the Catholic Church.
Is the central tradition of Westernplainchant, a
form ofmonophonic, unaccompanied sacred
song of the westernRoman Catholic Church.
It consisted of a sacred Latin text sung by monks
without instrumentation.The chant is sung in a
monophonic texture, which means there is only one
line of music.

The Stage of Gregorian Chant

The Gregorian Chant was born to be interpreted inside the Liturgy of
the Church. Therefore the Liturgy is the natural environment for
Gregorian chant.
1. The Mass: In the celebration of the Eucharist two principal groups of pieces exist:
a) The Ordinary: It is composed by texts that are repeated in all the Masses.
Kyrie Eleison
Gloria in excelsis Deo
Creed
Sanctus and Benedictus
Agnus Dei

b) The Proprium: It is constituted by pieces that are sung according

to the liturgical time or according to the feast that is celebrated.
Introit: chant of entrance to initiate the celebration
Gradual, Hallelujah or Tract after the readings
Offertory to accompany the procession of the gifts
Communion
2.The Divine Office: In the monasteries, the monks did (and still
they do) a break in his works and were meeting regularly at certain
hours of the day to do their prayer.
Matins:Or watching in the night.The office of matins consists
of a
hymn, psalms, readings, scriptural and patristic, and
canticles suitable
to the spirit of the midnight hour when one
awaits the arrival of the Bridegroom (Mt 25:6; Mk 13:35)

Lauds: Itis celebrated at daybreak when the sun is dispelling the

night and the new day is born. The Church has always considered the sun
to be a symbol of Christ rising from the dead. This prayer is called Lauds
because it is a laudatory liturgy of praise in the early morning light.
Terce:9 AM. A Latin term for third hour, is prayed at mid-morning.
Traditionally it is dedicated to the coming of the Holy Spirit which took
place at mid-morning in the account found in the Acts of the Apostles.
Sext:12 AM. Another of the little hours, is Latin for the sixth hour. It
takes place at midday when the sun is at its apex and one has become
a bit weary and mindfulness is all but impossible. It is a time for earnest
prayer to resist temptation, to keep from being overcome by the
demands and pressures of life.

None:3 PM. Refers to the ninth hour, roughly mid-afternoon, and is

the third of the little hours. It is a time to pray for perseverance, to
pray for the strength to continue bearing fruit as one reaches one's
prime and needs to keep going.
Vespers:6 PM. Celebrated at day's end, takes on the character of
evening. The day is almost over, our work is
done. There are
appropriate hymns, psalms, readings and canticles for celebrating this
vesper hour.
Complines:Comes from the Latin which means to complete. It is
the last common prayer before retiring for the night. It marks the
completion of our day and heralds life's end.

The repertoire of chants for the Divine Office

consists of:
The singing of the psalms
Simple recitatives - cantillatio - of readings and prayers.
Antiphons of invitatorio
Hymns
Antiphons sung before and after the psalms.
Responsories
Te Deum
Chants of the Old and of the New Testament

Troubadours
Became well-known secular entertainers moving
beyond religious themes and exploring love and politics.
During the Middle Ages in Europe, were colourfully
dressed musicians, who travelled from village to village.
They sang songs and carried the news of the day with
them on their travels.
Were a little different from other musicians in that not
all of their music or poetry was religious.

Some of their music was unusual because they sang

about real people, love stories, and heroes.
performed for the nobles at feasts and for everyone at
tournaments and festivals.
Troubadours often had other men along with them to help
entertain with dances and stunts. These men were called
jugglers.
They sang historical songs, some very long ones.
The heroes always won in these songs. The bad guys
always got their just punishment.
music was not religious it was not written down, so most
of their music has been lost forever.

But a couple of the songs they sang have made it

through time, and were written down after being sung
or told orally for hundreds of years.
One of those is the epic poem, Beowulf. Beowulf
was spoken by some, and sung by others. Beowulf is
the story of a hero who fights and defeats a huge
monster. The other is the Song of Roland.

Composers of the Middle Ages

There are few composers from the middle ages that
are known today, yet we know that music was an
important part of the medieval culture.

Hilegard von Bingen

Born: 1098, Bermersheim, Germany
Died: September 17, 1179, Rupertsberg, Germany.
Hildegard of Bingen, also known as Blessed Hildegard and Saint Hildegard,
was a German abbess, author, counselor, linguist, naturalist, scientist,
philosopher, physician, herbalist, poet, channeller, visionary and
composer. Elected a magistra by her fellow nuns in 1136, she founded the
monasteries of Rupertsberg in 1150 and Eibingen in 1165. She is a
composer with an extant biography from her own time. One of her works,
the Ordo Virtutum, is an early example of liturgical drama. She wrote
theological, botanical and medicinal texts, as well as letters, liturgical
songs, poems, and the first surviving morality play, while supervising
brilliant miniature Illuminations.
Works: The Living Light, Vision, Ave Generosa, Deus Enim, For the Virgin.

Moniot d'Arras

Moniot d'Arras (fl. ca. 1225) was a French composer and poet of
the trouvre tradition.[1] He was a monk of the abbey of Arras in
northern France; the area was at the time a center of trouvre
activity, and his contemporaries included Adam de la Halle and
Colin Muset.[2] His songs were all monophonic songs in the
traditions of pastoral romance and courtly love; he also wrote
religious songs. About fifteen of his secular songs, and two
religious songs, survive; his most famous song is Ce fut en mai.
Works: Chanson de Mai, Ce fut en Moi, Ce fut en mai 1, Ce fut en
mai 2, Ce fut en mai 3, Ce fut en mai 4, Ce fut en mai 5.

The End

Adam de la Halle
Born: 124550. Arras, France
Died: ?128588. Naples, Italy; or after 1306 in England
Adam de la Halle, also known as Adam le Bossu (Adam the
Hunchback) (1237?-1288) was a French-born trouvre, poet
and musician, who broke with the long-established tradition
of writing liturgical poetry and music to be an early founder
of secular theater in France. He was a member of the
Confrrie des jongleurs et bourgeois d'Arras.
Works: Je Muir, Madrigal, Minette, Le jeu de Robin et Marion,
De me dame vient.

The End

Guillaume de Machaut

Born: c. 1300, Rheims

Died: April 13, 1377, Rheims
Guillaume de Machaut, sometimes spelled Machault, (c. 1300
April 1377), was an important Medieval French poet and
composer. He is one of the earliest composers for whom
significant biographical information is available. Guillaume de
Machaut was "the last great poet who was also a composer," in
the words of the scholar Daniel Leech-Wilkinson. Well into the
15th century, Machaut's poetry was greatly admired and imitated
by other poets including the likes ofGeoffrey Chaucer.
Works: Foy Porter, Ha! Fortune, Bone Pastor, Sans Cuer, Messe de
Notre Dame

The End

The End

The End

Seat Work # 1

Identification
1._______ Is the Latin term for third hour, is prayed at mid-morning.
2._______ Is the time for earnest prayer to resist temptation, to keep
from being overcome by the demands and pressures of life.
3._____Was the music that was used by the Roman Catholic Church.
4.Gregorian Chant was named after _______ who made this the approved
music of the Catholic Church.
5-6. The Medieval period is also known as the ______or _______.
7._______ It is the last common prayer before retiring for the night.
8._______ Was the music that had no relation to the Church.
9._______ It consisted of a sacred Latin text sung by monks without
instrumentation.
10. The Medieval Period started with the fall of the ___________.

Seat Work # 1
Identification:
1. _______ It consisted of a sacred Latin text sung by monks without
instrumentation.
2. _______ It is the last common prayer before retiring for the night.
3. _______ It is dedicated to the coming of the Holy Spirit which took place at midmorning in the account found in the Acts of the Apostles.
4. _______ It is constituted by pieces that are sung according to the liturgical time
or according to the feast that is celebrated.
5. _______ Itis celebrated at daybreak when the sun is dispelling the night and the
new day is born.
6. The Medieval Period started with the fall of the ___________.
7. _______Was the music that had no relation to the Church.
8. The Medieval period is also known as the ______.