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1430
Melody
Melody in the Medieval/Renaissance period of music were very loose and fluid for the most part with wider leaps to create expression. However, the melody was still more conjunct in style. Melodies in secular and sacred pieces intermingled until called for reforms and asked for composers to keep them separate. -
1430
Instruments
Interments used in the middle ages included "loud haut" instruments (shawns, corcnts, slide trumpets, and sackbuts), "soft bas" instruments (harps, vielles, lutes, psalteries, portative organs, traverse flutes, and recorders), and percussion instruments such as the kettle drums, bells, and cymbals. the harpsichord and clavichord were also among some of the most popular instruments used. -
1430
Rhythm
Rhythm in the Renaissance consisted of triple and duple time signatures, usually in the same pieces. They were usually pretty simple for the most part compared to the music in the Baroque era that would follow. -
1430
Harmony
The harmonies consisted of progressions of 3rds, 6ths, and complete triads. Consonances were more preferred than dissonances that were prepared and resolved if used at all. The tonal system used was modality. -
1430
Texture
During the Middle Ages, the musical texture was monophonic, meaning it has a single melodic line. Sacred vocal music, such as Gregorian chants, was set to Latin text and sung unaccompanied. It was the only type of music allowed in churches, so composers kept the melodies pure and simple. Later on, church choirs added more melodic lines to Gregorian chants. -
1430
Form
Music was still very controlled by the church, however Madrigals managed to emerge in the 1540s. -
Period: 1440 to 1521
Josquin Des Prez
Josquin Des Prez was one of the most popular European composers while he was alive and was known for his very original works. This originality showed up in both his sacred and secular works and is what drew people toward him. -
Period: 1460 to 1518
Pierre de La Rue
Pierre de La Rue was a Frenco-Flemish composer and singer who had a diverse port folio of music. He preferred a heavy use of low voices in his pieces including his most popular piece "Requiem". -
Period: 1510 to
Thomas Tallis
Thomas Tallis was a a pivotal musician and composer in the early English church. Tallis served under four English monarchs including Queen Elizabeth who granted him exclusive rights to the printing press to print his music. -
Period: 1526 to
Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina
Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina was an Italian composer and greatly influenced the development of music in the Roman Catholic Church. His pieces were very well balanced and harmonized making for a smooth and transparent sound. -
Period: 1530 to
Orlando de Lassus
Orlando de Lassus was a Netherlandish or Franco-Flemish composer and was known for his smooth, polyphonic style. Lassus was also know as one of Europe's most versatile composers. -
Period: 1543 to
William Byrd
William Byrd was an English composer that seemed to master every kind of music during his time. Byrd was also know to be very skilled on the piano with works that can be found in "My Lady Nevells Book" and "Parthenia". -
Period: 1553 to
Giovanni Gabrieli
Giovanni Gabrieli was an Italian composer and organist who was most known for his mastery in the style of the Venetian School. Gabrieli preferred composing sacred works and created the use of antiphone (a choir or group of instruments first heard on the left, followed by a response from another group of musicians on the right). -
Period: 1567 to
Claudio Monteverdi
Claudio Monteverdi was an Italian composer, string player, and choirmaster who was a pivotal figure in the realm of Opera with his work "Orfeo". Monteverdi also wrote 9 total books of Madrigals.