Polyphony Essays

The Renaissance was a period of time in which northern Europe went though many changes as well as a significant rebirth due to the development of technology, art, writing, and more. The works created by Erasmus, van Eyck, More, and Shakespeare influenced the people of Europe and inspired many to develop new forms of writing and art with different subjects and meaning. Each individual managed to create a movement that allowed people to express themselves through painting or writing based on the subjects

What is Polyphony? Polyphony is the texture of music containing two or more individual lines of melody, rather than one monotonous line of melody. This was brought later into the middle ages after monophony and later developed into homophony. Monophony is the musical texture with only one voice, Polyphony is the musical texture containing 2 or more individual melodies played simultaneously and Homophony is the musical texture of the melody accompanies with chords. Figure 1.1- Polyphony

skills. Joaquin des Prez was influenced by Ockeghen’s compositions due to his talent with polyphony in music which in turn also influenced the Netherlands who often portray polyphony techniques in their Renaissance era music. Josquin’s most notable works would be his motets and masses, the text would typically be in Latin which was commonly found in music written for Mass. Because of the rise of polyphony in the church, Josquin included this technique with pre-existing music, later referred to as

Development of music history from Medieval period to Baroque Period Music exists in every known cultural group of the world and it is likely to have existed among the ancient ancestral communities. Music may have started in Africa, having existed for at least 55,000 years before evolving into an essential constituent of human life. Different people have different perspectives towards music. For instance, some may take music as jazz set, an orchestral symphony, an electronic beat or even a simple

periods both seemed very different but they also were centered around music. The evolution of musical texture can be traced from the Middle Ages all the way through the Renaissance. Examples of musical texture are drones, homophony, monophony, and polyphony. The first common texture was the drone. It was first being used in the Middle Ages. A drone can also consist of one or

approach to music with Pythagorean ratios, fifths, fourths or octaves were the only consonant intervals. Thus, music was to move in ways that would only give these intervals. This was experimented with throughout the 14th Century with late Medieval polyphony. While some cadences did exist in the Medieval period, they were hollow in sound due to the open fifth resolution. As we move through the Renaissance, composers gained influences from English composers and developed a preference for thirds and sixths

Being freedom one of the most important rights that a human being can have, it is also essential for all creatures of this earth planet. A representation of freedom in the wild world can be represented through the Condor, which its fly is a expression of beauty and autonomy. Its majestic wings make it possible showing a real show of perfection. Moreover, most of his flying is glided in the sky, which amazed the people who look at it in the sky where the condor passes above them. Just as the condor

Ars Nova is a style of polyphony from that was first seen in Philippe de Vitry’s works in the 1310s that continued through the 1370s in France. It is characterized by the innovation of a new system of rhythmic notation that allowed duple or triple division of note values, division of the semibreve into minims, syncopation, and greater rhythmic flexibility. These allowed for rhythmic specificity that had not been able to be replicated before. Ars Subtilior is a style of polyphony from the late fourteenth

(membranophones), flutes (aerophone), cellos (chordophone), oboes(aerophone), clarinets (aerophone), piano (chordophone), suspended cymbals (idiophone¬), chimes (idiophone¬), symbols (idiophone¬) and a xylophone(idiophone¬) and they were playing using a polyphony texture. The performance started and ended in a similar way, the end was much louder and had a slightly quicker tempo though. I could tell that the song was telling a story because it gradually build until the “climax” of thee song and it held a

D.: Christianity became the official religion of the Roman Empire. Lead by Constantine, with success, Christianity in the western world incited the expansion of European music. 500 - 1400 AD (CE) - Medieval Period  Guitars with 3, 4 and 5 strings were already in use i.e The Guitarra Latina, and The Guitarra Morisca was the first guitars.  Pope Gregory innovates a new and one of the original vocal styles; the chant, which is used in Roman Catholic’s named the “Gregorian chant” in his honor. 

relentlessly push us toward a shivering climax. “Pocket Pass” and “Decisive Shadow” bursts with avid energy and verve. The former lifts off with swift guitar embroidery, rhythmic assaults, and improvised cogitations that later take the form of a horn polyphony; the latter is a trancelike exploration filled with mesmerizing sounds, scintillating solos, and ultimately telling power

There are many significant musical time periods that helped shaped music into everything it is today. One of the most interesting and important would have to be the Renaissance period. The Renaissance period took place in the late 1400’s to the 1600’s. It was considered a more free kind of music, where rhythm and harmony grew more complex. Also during the Renaissance period many musical instruments were created and also a shift of focus from instrumental music to vocal music occurred. Out with the

During the Renaissance, art cascaded throughout Europe. This was the beginning of a new age filled with advanced ideas and inspiration. The music era started in 1400 during the Renaissance and grew, later leading to baroque times. As music expanded, people portrayed what they were hearing. Music was used during mass, in chapels, and to express composers feelings. Rarely anyone at the time knew how to read and write music, so musicians were thought of highly. Although music has drastically changed

During the XV and XVI centuries, an impressive and vigorous artistic, literary, scientific and cultural movement flourished in Europe, which also had profound political and social implications; this movement is better known as the Renaissance. The Renaissance was a time of change, but at the same time there were things that remained almost the same as in the Middle Ages, such as food and hygiene. In this period of time, society became transformed into a society gradually dominated by centralized

interplay among different pitches, with the artist simultaneously playing multiple notes. This can be exemplified in the line "got us feeling alright," which serves as a notable demonstration of effective harmony in "Piano Man." The presence of polyphony is notable throughout the song, as various melodies coexist and vie for prominence within the music. The artist skillfully combines these melodies, resulting in a harmonious composition. Additionally, instances of consonance, such as the phrases

improvisation of jazz. Some even refer to hip-hop as the “jazz of the younger generation” (difference between hip-hop and jazz, 2011). Both jazz and hip-hop used their lyrics to express life. They also share many Afrocentric characteristics. They have polyphony, rhythm, repetition, and call and response in common. Poetry and dance performance both use jazz and hip-hop as their form of music. However, both are very interesting forms of music. They were both invented in the streets of blacks and perfected

The piece I will reanalyze is the Prelude from Bach’s Suite No. 1 in G major, which was the most representative pieces of baroque music, and it was played with cello as the solo instrument. This prelude is recognized as one of the best-known movement from the entire suites, and it is widely adopted into many modern films and commercials, for example, movies like How Not to Disappear Completely, Irrational Man, and TV series like Parenthood all cited the prelude as their soundtracks (Johann, n.d.)

Musical forms and terms of the baroque era : Many of the forms associated with the baroque era are the opera, the oratorio, the cantata, the concerto, the sonata and the suite. The opera is a drama primarily sang accompanied by instruments and presented on stage. It typically alternates between recitative, speech like song that advances the plot, and aries, songs in which characters express feelings at particular points in their action. The oratorio is an extended musical drama with a text

Junwen Jia Dr. Jacqueline Avila Musicology Paper I 9/27/2016 From Medieval to Renaissance: The Motet in Transition During the Medieval and Renaissance Periods, the Motet became the most well-developed form of polyphonic vocal music. The motet was created based on the Magnus liber organi (Great Book of Organum) of French composer Leonin (fl. 1169-1201). In organum, a second voice part (the discant clausula) was added above existing Latin chant texts. This later came to be known as “motet,” from

G. F. Handel and J.S Bach were both composers who were born in Germany. Bach came from a family with a rich musical background, while Handel did not (Kamien, pg 143). The compositions of Handel and Bach, Messiah and Wachet Auf, both have a religious context and include the ritornello technique. As for the texture of these compositions, both are characterized by a polyphonic and imitative texture. Additionally, string instruments are used in Messiah and Wachet Auf. Handel is famous for his English