Download Music Theory I

Music Theory I
Unit 1: Music History
What IS music theory?
The study of the practices and possibilities
of music
 How music is constructed
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From 400-1400 AD (1,000 years!)
 Literally translated as the “middle” period
 Three classes of people (the feudal
system):
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◦ Nobility
◦ Clergy
◦ Peasants
The Medieval Period
Nobility
First class citizens below the monarch
 Rich landowners
 Mounted warriors who swore allegiance to
the king/queen & swore to fight in
exchange for a plot of land
 Born into this class- usually didn’t move
up or down
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Clergy
Second class citizens
 Priests and monks
 Lived in and worked for the church
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Peasants
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Third class citizens
Most people belonged to this class
Poor farmers
Lived on nobles’ plots of land and worked
for them (for terrible pay)
Born into this class
◦ Average age of a peasant was 30 YEARS OLD!
◦ Ate little more than black bread and turnips
Medieval black bread
Sacred Music
Sacred music is the music of the church
 Church was the central part of peoples’
lives

◦ Church controlled the majority of society’s
money
◦ Church employed many different workers
Plainsong

Sacred music of the Medieval Period was
called plainsong
◦ Consisted of one single melody, words in Latin
◦ Words kept simple so everyone could easily
understand
◦ Words came from the Roman Catholic liturgy
(bible verses)
◦ Written down by monks on four-line staves
using square notes called neumes
◦ Most well-known form of plainsong is called
Gregorian Chant, named in honor of Pope
Gregory I
GREGORIAN CHANT
Secular Music
Secular Music is non-religious music
 Grew in popularity during Medieval Period
 Minstrels traveled from castle to castle
singing songs, telling stories, and
performing tricks

◦ Songs and stories about love, life, and chivalry
Secular Music
Consisted of a single, simple melody
 Usually sung in the common language,
not in Latin
 Tempo was faster than sacred music
 Accompanied by string or percussion
instruments
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Psaltery
Lute
Shawm
End of the Medieval Period
Life began to improve and become more
civilized
 People began to focus less on religion and
more on music and art
 A new type of music emerged:
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◦ POLYPHONY (two or more melodies happening
at the same time)