Characteristics
In Renaissance music, rhythm is more a
gentle flow than a sharply defined beat
 Each melodic line has great rhythmic
independence
 Pitch patterns in Renaissance melodies
are easy to sing, usually they move
along a scale with few large leaps

Sacred Music
The two main forms of sacred
Renaissance music are the motet and
the mass
 Both forms are similar in style, but a
mass is a longer composition

The Motet
The Renaissance motet is a polyphonic
choral work set to a sacred Latin text
other than the ordinary of the mass
 The composer that was most famous for
the motet is Josquin Desprez
 Deprez lived from 1440-1521
 He was a master of Renaissance music

The Motet
Desprez was born in the province of
Hainaut, which is part of Belgium
 He sepent most of his life in Italy,
serving in dukes’ private chapels and in
the papal choir at Rome
 In his later years he worked for Louis XII
of France and held several church posts
in his native land

The Motet
Desprez’s compositions included
masses, motets, and secular vocal
music
 All his compositions strongly influenced
other composers and were praised
enthusiastically by music lovers

The Mass
The Renaissance mass is a polyphonic
choral composition made up of five
sections: Kyrie, Gloria, Credo, Sanctus,
and Agnus Dei
 The main composer for the mass during
this time period is Giovanni Pierluigi da
Palestrina
 Palestrina was from Italy

The Mass
Palestrina lived from about 1525 to 1594
 He devoted himself to music for the
Catholic Church
 His career was centered in Rome,
where he held important church
positions, including that of music director
for St. Peter’s cathedral
 Palestrina’s music includes 104 masses
and about 450 other sacred works

The Mass
The Jesuit order (1540) and the
convening of the Council of Trent (15451563) attacked church music
 The arguement was that it used secular
tunes, noisy instruments, and theatrical
singing
 Some complained that complex
polyphony made it impossible to
understand the sacred texts

The Mass
The council wanted only monophonic
music, Gregorian chant, for the mass
 The council finally decreed that church
music should be composed to inspire
religious contemplation, not to please
the ear
 The restraint and serenity of Palestrina’s
works reflect this emphasis on a more
spiritual music
