Renaissance
1450 - 1600
A page from
Giovanni Palestrina's Second Book of Masses, 1567.
Listen to
Greensleeves, a song that may have been written by
King Henry
VIII of
England.
Renaissance means
rebirth. This period saw a rebirth in knowledge.
The Renaissance was turning from God to man. Science and the arts were becoming more
important. Columbus discovered America and Michelangelo was painting
the Sistine Chapel. William Shakespeare was writing his famous
plays.
William Shakespeare.
The printing press was invented during the Renaissance. Some people consider the printing press to be the most important contribution to civilization in the last one thousand years! The printing press allowed music to be printed quickly. Before the Renaissance, music had to be copied by hand.
One of the
most famous persons from the Renaissance was Leonardo da
Vinci. He was known as a Renaissance man because he could
do many things well. He was a painter, architect, inventor,
scientist, poet, musician, and teacher.
Mona Lisa by Leonardo da Vinci.
Music was also changing. Melodies became richer. Harmony, known as homophony, began to appear. This means there is a clear difference between the melody and accompaniment. Listen to Greensleeves.
This was the golden age of the a capella style. That means that choirs sang without instruments. Madrigals were groups of four, five, or six singers. These madrigals usually sang love songs.
Listen to Hey Ho, Greenwood, a madrigal by William Byrd. Notice how the melody weaves in and out of the other parts.
There was a
growth in instrumental music, especially the lute and keyboard. The most popular instrument of the Renaissance
was the lute.
Angel with Lute, c. 1522
Listen to a lute duet.
It was during this period that families of instruments started to develop. These families were called consorts. This is where we get the word "concert." To see some instruments of the Renaissance, visit this page http://www.talkcity.com/atmusic/GM101/AncientInstruments.shtml .
Dances
were becoming popular, too. Some of them were the allemande,
bourree,
galliard,
and pavan.
To learn more about the Renaissance, visit this page http://www.theviolin.freeserve.co.uk/renaissa.htm
Dancers and Musicians, 1589.
