music of the middle ages
Music has been a great influence in the lives of many people for many years and is constantly changing. Music has been divided into six periods: Medieval, Renaissance, Baroque, Classical, and Twentieth Century.The Medieval period was the longest and most distant period of musical history and consists of almost a millennium's worth of music. To examine the music of this period we must first look at the influences or dominating factors of medieval life.In a political sense, as well as a spiritual sense, the Roman Catholic Church was very much the focal point of a Medieval man's life. Between the collapse of control of the Roman Empire around 500 A.D. and the Renaissance in the middle 1400s, the Church remained the most continuously powerful organization in Europe. The great gothic cathedrals of the Middle Ages help demonstrate how religion had become the focus of the times. The thousands and thousands of hours of labour, the tremendous cost involved, the extraordinary and detailed craftsmanship without the use of cranes or power tools must give us an idea of the effects of religion and the power of the Church. To worship God through one's craft was the highest artistic ideal of the times. While some of the great secular c
The most important musical event in the Roman Catholic Liturgy was the Mass. The earliest settings of this music were strictly monophonic. Music has always been an integral part of religious celebrations throughout history, and for the Catholic Church of antiquity, it was a vital element. Ambrosia, is a tuneful/ornate link with secular music. This multi-layered texture gave music a new expressive intensity, almost literally giving it another dimension. His conversion to Christianity had far reaching effects on the common practice of the religion and on all the factions of Christianity that are present today. Latin was firmly established as the language of the church. Travelling minstrel singers, often known as troubadours, trouveres, and minnesingers, were the secular musicians. 768 - 814While some sources suggest that he composed many of the melodies, there is little to authenticate this. Monks were expected to sing, pray, and read the scripture eight times during the day from Matins (just after midnight) to Vespers (just before the evening meal) and Compline (at dusk). --and these tools played a great part in the lives of Medieval citizens as they struggled to understand the world around them. Coming from the French "mot" meaning 'word', the motet often had several lines of music and text, sung in different languages. This texture, called monophonic still dominates much non-western music today, including Far Eastern, Indian, and Arabic cultures--at least those that haven't become corrupted by Western practices yet! Gregorian chant, sometimes known as "plainchant" consists solely of a melody, sung unaccompanied in Latin, with very free rhythms. Benedict founded the Benedictine Rule at Monte Casino. Aristoxenus 375 BCE, student of Xenophilus and Aristotle researched pitch, intervals, scales, keys, modulation and constructed melodies.
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Middle Ages,
BCE Greek,
Mi Fa,
Phrygian Lydian,
Bridge Constantine,
Indian Arabic,
Greek Philosophers,
Xenophilus Aristotle,
Cantores Plato,
Emperor Constantine,
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sacred music,
gregorian chant,
catholic church,
secular music,
battle milvian bridge,
roman empire,
practice using,
pagan rituals,
western europe,
leading composers,
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