Download The Middle Ages: Chapter 2

A Presentation by Eric Jonswold
 The development of “modern” classical music typically
begins with the early Roman Catholic Church.
 Music did exist outside of the church as well.
 The survival of compositions depended on transcription
 Earliest music was monophonic- single melodic line
whether sung by one or one hundred voices.
 This form of music was most commonly recognized as
Gregorian Chant or Plainsong/Plainchant.
 The Mass, a form of sacred musical composition, is a
choral composition that sets the Roman Catholic Church
to music.
 Syllabic: 1 note per syllable
 Neumatic: 2-3 notes per syllable
 Melismatic: many notes per syllable
 540-1100 AD
 With very few exceptions, music composed during this
period was written by composers in the direct service
of the church
 Therefore it is quite rare to find chant material with a
specific name attached to it.
 From the first section of the Mass known as the Ordinary.
 Sample of both neumatic and melismatic styles of chant
compositions.
 Note how the melody adds more notes per syllable the
longer the piece continues.
 Three-part structure is meant to represent the Holy Trinity.
 Also known as ternary form or A-B-A
 The Kýrie prayer:
"Lord, have mercy; Christ, have mercy; Lord, have mercy."
 Leonin (ca. 1135-1201)
 Perotin (ca. 1160-1240)
 First written examples of polyphonic music- music with
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more than one melodic line.
Manuscripts from the Cathedral began to display two
independent lines of music, a style called organum.
The concept of the cantus firmus, or fixed song, became a
regular feature in most sacred compositions, centralizing
or fixing the composition on the Gregorian chart with
additional melodic lines serving as embellishments.
Organum: two-voice
Motet: three- and four voice.
 Three-voiced motet
 Tenor part (exclusively instruments) = cantus firmus
 Based on Kyrie “Cum Jubilo” but the old melody has
been stretched into long durations while new melodies
have been composed over the top.
 Note the fairly strict repeated rhythmic patterns, called
an isorhythm, accredited to composer Philippe de
Vitry.
 Compared to sacred music during the Middle Ages, very
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little is known about the development of secular music in
general and instrumental secular music in particular
Most secular music was performed by poet/musicians
called troubadours, trouveres, minnesingers, or
jonglars, depending on their place of origin in Europe.
Lower-class, functioned as modern day CNN spreading
gossip from court to court.
Compositions were generally monophonic with
accompaniment by a chordal instrument .
Much of secular music was also polyphonic, though this
was predominantly instrumental and often
improvisational.
 D’ Arras was a monk from northern France.
 Tragic love song
 Melody is repeated five times.
 The only written music in existence is the melody
 This is a best guess of how the work might have been
performed
 Strophic trouveres song
 The simplest and most durable of musical forms,
elaborating a piece of music by repetition of a single
formal section. This may be analyzed as "A A A...".
 Shearer, James Edward. Classical Basics: a Brief
Overview with Historical Documents and Recordings.
Dubuque, Iowa: Kendall/Hunt, 2005. Print.