Casey Aiello
MLT Outline Chapter 7-9
Group #1
September 24, 2008
Chapter 7: Early Western Music
Ancient Greek and Roman Times
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“Western civilization”
o Broad concept consisting of culture that developed in ancient Greece
o Includes beliefs, laws, customs and arts
Democracy
o Comes from the Greek word demos meaning “people”
Romans emphasized military music more than the Greeks did
The Middle Ages
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Fall of Roman Empire in AD 476
o Western Civilization slipped into the “Dark Ages”
Monasteries dotted the countryside throughout Europe and England
o Preserved the writings and culture of ancient world
Music in the Middle Ages
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Liturgy: a body of rites prescribed for worship
Mass: most important and frequent service
Gregorian Chant – single line of melody
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Nonmetrical rhythm
Monophonic texture
Smooth contour
Modal scales
Church Latin
Sung only by monks and priests
Chapter 8: Medieval Music
Medieval Times
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Period from 1100 to 1450
Also known as the Gothic Period
Polyphony
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Organum: sung without actually being written down
As this idea of polyphony developed, the notes of Gregorian chant were made longer
Music in the Rest of Europe
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Medieval motets were developed mainly in France
Avoided harsh dissonances
Secular Music
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Estampie
o 12th century dance in triple meter and a clear, fast tempo
Only a single line of music was written down and no instruments were specified
Features of Medieval Music
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Melodies
o Mostly chant like within a limited range
Rhythm
o No definite meter
Texture
o Monophonic and polyphonic
Dynamic levels
o Restrained and rather soft
Forms
o Phrase by phrase
Genres
o Organum
o Medieval motet
o Dance music
Chapter 9: Renaissance Music
The Renaissance Outlook
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Certain intellectual viewpoints emerged that are still common in Western Civilization today
o Optimism
o Worldliness
o Hedonism
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o Naturalism
o Individualism
Spirit of the time was optimism and discovery
Best epitomized by Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519)
Features and Types of Renaissance Music
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Musically, the Renaissance started in the Netherlands
Many composers became so cosmopolitan that they thought of themselves as musicians firstly
The Renaissance Motet
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Palestrina’s “Sicut cervus”
o Ecclesiastical Latin
 Portion of Psalm 42
o Polyphonic
o No strong feeling of a chord progression
o No strong meter or beat
o Sometimes accompanied by a few instruments
o Lines of melody are singable
o Restrained quality
The Madrigal
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Madrigals are both similar to and different from motets
Vernacular languages
Strong and have more rhythm
Word painting
o Music attempts of depict the words being sung
Weelkes’s “As Vesta Was from Latmos Hill Descending”
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Tells about Vesta coming down a hill with her attendants while Oriana climbs the hill with her
sheppard attendants
Renaissance Instrumental Music
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Devoted almost all efforts to vocal music
Instrumentalists simplified the written parts by reducing the polyphony to chords
Instruments used extensively for dance music
o Pavane
 A solemn dance