Medieval and Renaissance Timeline

By cammers9
  • 476

    Plainchants

    The monophonic, non-metric, sacred genre of music that was created for the Catholic church and used the 8 church modes.
  • Period: 476 to 1420

    Start of Renaissance Period

    The fall of Rome occurred and people began to view music as divine (came from God) and cosmic (created with the movement of planets and stars).
  • 800

    Gregorian Chant

    A form of plainchant, this is the Roman dialect of chant that is unaccompanied and set neumatically from the Roman Catholic Church.
  • 800

    Polyphony

    Musical texture where two or more lines of music play simultaneous lines of independent melody. (School of Notre Dame)
  • 991

    Guido d’Arezzo

    (991-1033) Italian music theorist credited with inventing the staff and contributed to diastematic notation.
  • 1098

    Hildegard von Bingen

    (1098-1179) Was the first female composer of her time to receive extensive scholarly research. Her music was very elaborate and went beyond the common Gregorian Chant
  • 1100

    Rhythmic Modes

    Created by composers to help notate rhythm using combinations of single neumes and neume groups.
  • 1150

    Leonin

    (1150-1210) First known composer of polyphonic music.
  • 1200

    Instrumental Music

    Mainly improvised and used for dancing. Consisted of harps, recorders, lutes, lyres, vielles, crumhorns, organs, etc.
  • 1280

    Motet

    A new genre that was more text than chant and utilized 6 rhythmic modes.
  • 1291

    de Vitry

    (1291-1361) First composer of the Ars Nova (New art of notes).
  • 1300

    de Machaut

    (1300-1377) Most famous composer of the Medieval time period and used one of the first polyphonic mass cycles. He also added dissonances on cadences.
  • 1325

    Landini

    (1325-1397) Most famous Italian composer, well known because he was blind.
  • 1397

    Dufay

    (1397-1474) First Renaissance composer.
  • Period: 1430 to

    Start of Renaissance Period

    Period of complex thoughts involving art, science, and religion.
  • 1435

    Tinctoris

    (1435-1511) A composer and theorist who wrote the first dictionary of musical terms and announced a rebirth in the art of music.
  • 1450

    des Prez

    (1450-1521) Composed over 100 motets and 17 masses, heavily utilizing homorhythms in his compositions.
  • 1500

    Change in Music

    Chants were paraphrased, melodies often placed in top voice, voice parts switch from 4 to 5-8, and rhythms lose complexity.
  • 1500

    Introduction of Dynamics

    Dynamic markings were first introduced in lute literature.
  • 1500

    Secular Genre

    A rise in music and subgenres, like frotollas, chansons, and madrigals.
  • 1505

    Tallis

    (1505-1585) Wrote 40-voice part motet entitled "Spem in alium"
  • 1525

    Palestrina

    (1525-1594) Most famous composer from the Renaissance. Known for counterpoint style and using polyphony when church desired homorhythmic music.
  • 1540

    Rise in Madrigals

    Madrigals become known as a modern genre as masses were controlled by cantus firmus.
  • 1545

    The Council of Trent

    New musical guidelines set for musicians. Words needed to be clearly understood, secular things gone from church, and musicians had to act in a reverent manner.
  • 1557

    Gabrieli

    (1557-1612) A leading composer of polychoral works and instrumental ensemble music.