Renaissance Period Music

You know the story, the Renaissance brought on a renewed interests in the arts which included music.

Unfortunately the banjo was still man years away from obtaining popularity.

In the beginning

Playa

Humanist (people who believed in the value of people, community, and man’s ability) urged musicians to expression emotions in their music

Back to Renaissance

Name that emotion

For the first time in history Greek music was being translated into Latin and made available to Europeans

This was a period of scientific revolution, religious reform, and artistic change.

Back to the Renaissance Again

Its hard to say. People living in the age didn’t know that they were in the Renaissance. There was just an exciting change in the air. However, most everyone agrees that the Renaissance originated in Florence Italy

So where/when did it begin?

Renaissance Man

Sculptors relied on classic Roman models and themes

People began to appreciate their artistic past, which in turn revived it.

Just a smidgen of art

Pasts views on music changed. During the Middle Ages the interval of a

third was considered a dissonant (unpleasant) interval but was later accepted as a consonant (pleasing) interval during the Renaissance

Music

Interval:◦ a combination of two notes, or the ratio between

their frequencies. 

Inter.. What?

A complex style of polyphony became increasingly smoother with a wide range of voices

Oh

Most compositions that have endured past the Renaissance were sacred masses and motets, along with the development of the secular madrigal.

Musical styles

A madrigal is a secular vocal music composition, usually a partsong, of the Renaissance and early Baroque eras. Traditionally, polyphonic madrigals are unaccompanied; the number of voices varies from two to eight, and most frequently from three to six.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ctci_zhGhvY

It’s late, lets ask Wikipedia

Kicking it Old School

Many composers thought that ancient Greek modes (scales) were the same as church modes, and believed stories that a divine power was in those modes

Musicians developed rules for counterpoint (melody against melody) that were based on consonance (harmonies pleasing to the ear) and dissonance (harmonies that sound harsh to the ear).

During this period composers and singers gave more attention to the relationship between lyrics and the melodies they were applied to.

Important period in the Italian city-states tried to glorify themselves with art. Musicians and artists were imported from other countries to create works for these people, thus greatly influencing art and music in Italy.

Back to Italy

Italians unfortunately imported too many lute players

OK I like Assassin's Creed II

The invention of the printing press with its movable typeset was kind of a big deal. Thanks to this a composer’s work could be more widely circulated.

Oh yeah

It’s Banana's B-A-N-A-N-A-S. Ahem Thou ain’t no holla back girl

Giovanni Palestrina

Greatest composer of liturgical church music of all time

Musical life began as an organist and choirmaster in Palestrina

Giovanni Palestrina

Reputation increased and he was summoned to Rome in 1551 to direct a musical formation of choirboys at St. Peters.

That same year he advanced to the position of choirmaster

In 1554 he dedicated his first compositions to Pope Julius III.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_rAwHgopVkQ

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K8-IrXDAm8I&feature=related

Was known for his use of counterpoint and polyphony

Art of combining two simultaneous lines of music.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BixPLIWcb0s

Counterpoint

Means many sounding Many sounds or melodies played at a time. If more than one independent melody is

occurring at the same time, it is polyphonic http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oxgwCIw

c5js

Polyphony

In addition to sacred choral music, secular choral music began to emerge during the Renaissance along with secular instrumental music with recorders, viols, and lutes

On a side note

I hate lute players