MusicLesson 1 of 1 in the course Western music history

Renaissance Music: Styles, Notation, Composers, and Instruments

5 flashcards · 5 quiz questions · 5 match pairs · 5 fill-in sentences · English

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Summary

Renaissance music developed in Europe during the 15th and 16th centuries. It reflects a period of social change, expanding musical possibilities, and growing interest in expressive vocal writing.

Renaissance music is traditionally dated from the 15th and 16th centuries. Musicology generally treats the 14th-century Trecento as a continuation of medieval music rather than the beginning of the Renaissance. The rise of triadic harmony and the spread of the contenance angloise—a style associated with English music—help mark the transition into the new era. The adoption of basso continuo at the beginning of the Baroque period provides a convenient marker for its end.

All flashcards

Polyphony
A musical texture in which multiple independent melodic lines sound simultaneously, often interwoven smoothly.
Renaissance music period
European music traditionally dated to the 15th and 16th centuries.
Contenance angloise
A style associated with English music, linked to fuller sonorities and the use of thirds and sixths.
Musica ficta
The practice of supplying or adjusting unwritten accidentals in performance.
Intabulation
An arrangement of a vocal piece for a solo instrument, such as lute or keyboard.

Quiz questions

  1. Which description best distinguishes a Renaissance mass from a motet?Answer: A mass sets texts associated with the church service.
  2. What is a cantus firmus in Renaissance composition?Answer: A pre-existing melody placed in one voice, often in longer notes.
  3. What happens in pervasive imitation?Answer: Voices enter with related material and pass motifs between parts.
  4. What does the term intabulation refer to?Answer: Adapting a vocal piece for a solo instrument.
  5. What characterized Venetian polychoral music?Answer: Multiple choirs or instrumental groups performed from different locations.

Based on the Wikipedia article Renaissance music, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Adapted into a summary, flashcards and quizzes.

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