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III. THE RENAISSANCE
MUSIC IN THE RENAISSANCE (1450-1600)
Objectives
This section describes the European Renaissance as a period of exploration and humanism and as a time
when the Protestant Reformation greatly weakened the dominance of the Catholic Church. It was a period
that saw the invention of printing and the idealization of the “universal man,” among whose attributes was
proficiency in music. The increasing respectability of the professional musician is attested to, as is the
importance of the Flemish composer. The music of the period, predominantly a cappella vocal music, is
characterized by word-painting, polyphonic texture, gently-flowing rhythm, and an ever-increasing
emphasis on triadic harmony.
Suggestions
1. Gunpowder, the compass, and the invention of moveable type have been credited as some
major factors in bringing about the Renaissance. Through student responses, discuss life before and after
each, and their effectiveness for change. The end of feudalism through gunpowder (as demonstrated by
the battles of Agincourt and Crecy), the ability to navigate more securely when out of sight of land, and
the possibility of mass production of books are only a few of the many points to consider.
2. Using Shakespeare as an example of a major personality of the Renaissance, discuss the use of
music as an integral part of his plays. To what extent does he assume an audience knowledgeable in
music for his words (such as those quoted in the text) to be understood and appreciated?
3. Help students to compare medieval and Renaissance styles. Choose any three compositions,
and see if the students can correctly identify the styles of each after hearing. Give them the titles and
record information when completed, in the hope they may wish to hear other examples.
4. The text stresses the importance of the “pagan cultures of ancient Greece and Rome” in the
emergence of Renaissance humanism. Just how were the literary masterpieces transmitted from the
ancient world to Renaissance Europe? Since only the clergy were literate during the Middle Ages, were
these pagan manuscripts preserved, copied, and translated by monks, or is there another explanation (old
manuscripts still preserved, translations from Arabic copies, etc.)? How influential were the Crusades in
this movement? What do we mean by the Greek and Latin classics? Is a classic really “a book everyone
talks about but nobody reads”?
Questions and Topics
1. What was the movement called humanism? How did it originate, and what were its main
characteristics?
2. Was life for professional musicians in the Renaissance different from the Middle Ages?
3. Shakespeare and music.
4. Flemish composers in Renaissance Europe.
5. Word-painting in Renaissance vocal music.
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SACRED MUSIC IN THE RENAISSANCE
Objectives
The two important forms of Renaissance sacred vocal music, the motet and the mass, are described and
illustrated, respectively, by Josquin’s Ave Maria . . . Virgo serena and the Kyrie of Palestrina’s Pope
Marcellus Mass. The careers of these two famous composers are discussed, as are the Counter-
Reformation and the influential Council of Trent.
Suggestions
1. Play as much of Josquin’s Ave Maria as you have score in the text. Can the students identify
the imitation, and separate the octaves from the unison? (Reactions will vary, depending on the amount of
polyphonic music covered previously.) Quickly review the basic rules for pronouncing church Latin, and
then ask a student to read part of the text. Play the selection again, this time continuing. Can the words be
understood, and is the pronunciation correct? To what extent does stepwise motion predominate over the
use of skips? Are there any instances of word painting? (Note the annotated vocal text reference to
“increased rhythmic animation” to reflect “new joy.”)
2. Discuss the complaints of Erasmus and the Council of Trent regarding church music.
Assuming the students are unfamiliar with any music of this period other than what has been discussed in
class (Machaut, Josquin, etc.), how can these complaints be justified? (The “Geneva Jigs” of the
Protestants, for example.) Are these same complaints being voiced today against the use of folk and rock
music in church services? How did Palestrina meet the challenge? Discuss his role as church composer,
illustrating your discussion with the Kyrie included in the text.
Questions and Topics
1. What are the basic elements of Josquin’s technique?
2. How does the career of Josquin Desprez reflect the life of a musician in the Renaissance?
3. If church authorities regarded Palestrina’s masses as models of church music for centuries, why
are they so seldom performed today?
4. The effect of the Council of Trent on the development of liturgical music.
5. The secular vocal music of Josquin Desprez.
6. The sacred music, other than masses, of Palestrina.
SECULAR MUSIC IN THE RENAISSANCE
Objectives
This section relates the origin of the madrigal to the blossoming of Italian poetry during the first decades
of the sixteenth century. Thomas Weelkes’ As Vesta Was Descending is shown to exhibit several
instances of word-painting, a characteristic trait of the madrigal style. John Dowland’s lute song Flow My
Tears is also fully and clearly described. The development of instrumental music as a genre independent
of vocal music is outlined. Some of the most important Renaissance instruments are described, and the
distinction made between loud and soft instruments. The section ends with a discussion of dance music,
with a passamezzo and galliard from Praetorius’ Terpsichore as examples.
Suggestions
1. Discuss Morley’s comment regarding the necessity for every educated person to be proficient
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in music quoted in the text. Can the students name personalities of the past and present who were
competent musicians, proving that this attitude toward music did not hold for the Renaissance alone?
(Jefferson, Franklin, Hopkinson, Truman, and Clinton are some examples just from American history.)
How many of the students sing or play instruments regularly? Have recordings replaced live music in the
American home? How many students feel that an educated person today should be able to perform
musically?
2. The text mentions Janequin’s La Guerre as an example of composers delighting in imitating
natural sounds. Since the music is readily available, and the work lasts only about six minutes, playing it
in class would clearly illustrate the point more effectively than any discussion.
3. Relating it to Morley’s quotation, present Weelkes’ madrigal as if one were finishing supper
and the part books were brought out. A first playing of the madrigal would give the students a general
familiarity with a cappella singing in English, the plot of the text, the polyphonic texture, and an
appreciation of the skill demanded from the educated person of the time. The various word-paintings
could then be discussed and illustrated, followed by a second playing for full comprehension.
4. Having experienced the skill necessary for singing madrigals from the previous example, the
students can readily understand why the ballett or fa-la was so popular. Ask them if they can think of any
songs with a fa-la refrain still popular today, and Deck the Halls should readily come to mind.
5. Conduct a research project devoted to some of the more important Renaissance instruments. It
would be most helpful if you could provide illustrations of some of the instruments listed, along with
recordings to demonstrate the timbres.
In the project, ask your students to classify each of the following Renaissance instruments
according to the correct family grouping, and identify the specific characteristics that distinguish it from
the other members of the same family (many, but not all, of the answers are given in the text):
Bagpipe woodwind: double-reed instrument with chanter and one or two drones
Cornett brass: wooden instrument with cup-shaped mouthpiece
Crumhorn woodwind: family of double-reed instruments with characteristic “J” shape
Curtal woodwind: double-reed precursor of the bassoon
Fiddle string: medieval bowed string instrument with front or rear pegs
Lute string: plucked string instrument with a body shaped like half a pear
Mandora string: small lute with 4 or 5 strings
Pipe and tabor wind: 3-holed pipe with percussion: a small drum played by one performer
Regal keyboard: small portable organ with reed pipes
Sackbut brass: family of early trombones
Serpent brass: bass cornett in serpentine form
Shawm woodwind: double-reed ancestor of the oboe
Theorbo, (or archlute) string: bass lute
Viol string: family of bowed string instruments with 6 strings
Introduce John Dowland’s Flow My Tears as an example of a lute song, pointing out Part B,
where the lute momentarily gains prominence.
6. The text states “a wealth of dance music published during the sixteenth century has come down
to us” and introduces the concept of paired dances with Caroubel’s Passamezzo and Galliard from
Terpsichore as examples. While delightful works to listen to, as the text suggests, it would be more
interesting and relevant to see some Renaissance dances performed.
Questions and Topics
1. What are the characteristics of the Renaissance madrigal?
2. Similarities and differences in the madrigal and the motet.
3. Compare the number and variety of Renaissance instruments to those in use today.
4. Describe the various uses of musical instruments in the Renaissance.
5 Contrast the form of Dowland’s Flow My Tears with Weelkes’ As Vesta Was Descending.
6. Keyboard instruments and their music in the Renaissance.
7. Humor and earthiness in the English madrigal.
8. The dances of the Renaissance and their music.
THE VENETIAN SCHOOL: FROM RENAISSANCE TO BAROQUE
Objectives
Venice is presented as a center for instrumental and vocal music in the sixteenth century. With St. Mark’s
Cathedral as the focal point, Adrian Willaert, Andrea Gabrieli, and Giovanni Gabrieli are presented as the
major figures of the Venetian School. The latter’s Plaudite is presented as an outstanding example of a
polychoral motet.
Suggestions
1. Discuss Gentile Bellini’s famous Procession in St. Mark’s Square and the uses of music in
ceremony. Can the students find any musical performers in the illustration? Stress the size of the cathedral
in perspective, so the students can visualize the architectural feature that produced the polychoral motet,
the two widely separated choir lofts.
2. Define polychoral motet, referring to the above architectural point, and present Gabrieli’s
Plaudite. Help the students separate the sounds of the various choirs, and note the “homophonic texture
and its flamboyant use of contrasting sonorities” which the text refers to as the border between
Renaissance and early baroque styles.
Questions and Topics
1. Venice and the sixteenth century.
2. The “streets” of Venice.
3. The Venetian School in music and in painting.
4. Stereophonic sound in the late Renaissance.
