Renaissance music is the second era of classical music. This era began in 1400 and continued until the beginning of the 16th century. The Renaissance era music, which was a time of many social and political changes, was after the Middle Ages and before the Baroque period. During the age of the Renaissance, with the invention of the printing press, music, like other sciences, expanded more rapidly.
As in the medieval period music, the church was one of the most important centers of music education, and for this reason, most of the works of the Renaissance period are vocal. But the musical instruments gradually became more important than before and the musicians accompanied the singers. It was during this period that common people valued music more and tried to learn instruments.
During the Renaissance period, music gradually entered the court of kings and the status and income of musicians increased. In the age of the Renaissance, music developed significantly in harmony, rhythm, and notation, and also new instruments entered the field of music. Classical music during the Renaissance era music was more polyphonic and compositions were more complex in terms of harmony.
Music grew and developed in three different phases during the Renaissance period, which we will briefly explain below.
The Early Renaissance music
Early Renaissance music, from 1400 to 1467, is related to the professional musician Guillaume Du Fay and the development of a style called cantilena. In this style, one vocal line was dominant over other lines and was supported by them. The style of music in this era was largely faithful to the music style of the Middle Ages. The focus on harmony was more in this phase of Renaissance era music and the compositions were more fluent.
The middle period of Renaissance music
The middle period in the Renaissance period music includes the years 1467 to 1534. In this period, the Roman Catholic Church prevented composers from creating complex polyphonic songs. But this made the composers turn to a simpler form of harmony. The middle period of Renaissance music was in the hands of the Franco-Flemish school, and the famous composers of this school were Johannes Ockham and Josquin des Prez. Then, in the early 1470s, with the invention of the printing press, music began to spread. It was in this century that instrument makers started working.
The late period of Renaissance era music
The late in the history of Renaissance music includes the years 1534 to 1600. During this period, composers created the Mannerism style and colored the music in different ways. This style became the basis of the music of the Baroque period. Composers worked in several churches but had a direct relationship with the Vatican and the papal church. During this phase of the Renaissance period music, and musical madrigals flourished in England. English madrigals were directly copied or translated from Italian examples.
Sacred Music
Latine groups dominated the Music during the Age of Renaissance in the Catholic Church. Therefore, sacred music was written in Latin and in the polyphonic form of motet and Maas. Motet and Maas were the two main forms of religious music of the Renaissance period, which were similar in style. The scriptures used in the motet were based on the Holy Bible, and the pieces were polyphonic and choral. The texts used in the Maas were different and they were longer than the motet.
Secular Music
In the Renaissance period music, the popularity of secular music increased and brought about music changes. These changes laid the foundation for harmony, and composers created more emotional pieces. During the Renaissance music, the court employed composers and supported them financially. The lute was also one of the stringed instruments of this era and musicians considered it a relative of the guitar. Madrigals were short romantic pieces performed by more than one soloist.
Renaissance era instruments
Although instrumental music was not as important as vocal music during the Renaissance era music, it gradually became popular among the people and court composers. The musicians continued to play along with the singers. In the 16th century, more instrumental works were written that were freed from the shackles of vocal music. Composers developed compositional forms such as Themes and Variations.
Most of the instruments were created during the Renaissance period music. Some other Renaissance era musical instruments were improved instruments from the past. In the following, we introduce some Renaissance instruments.
The Viol (Viola da Gamba)
Viol or viola da gamba was one of the stringed instruments of the Renaissance period. Instrument creators made this instrument in Spain in the fifteenth century. This instrument usually has six strings and the player places it on the floor or between the legs like a cello.
Lute
In Renaissance era music, the lute was one of the most popular Renaissance instruments of secular music. Musicians played the great works of composers by lute for kings and queens. The lute was also one of the stringed instruments of this era and musicians considered it a relative of the guitar. At the beginning of the Renaissance, the lute had five strings, and by the end of the Renaissance period, the number of strings reached eight.
Cornett or Cornetto
Cornet or cornetto is one of the Renaissance era musical instruments and a family of wind instruments. At that time, people played this instrument along with choral music. The musician’s lips produced the sound in this instrument by compression. Instrument creators made Cornett in different sizes and had two types, straight and curved.
Shawm
Another instrument of Renaissance era music is the Shawm. The Shawm is a woodwind instrument that is the basic form of today’s oboe. This instrument is about one foot long and has seven finger holes and one thumb hole. Shawm’s voice is similar to a trumpet.
Composers of Renaissance period music
At the beginning of the Renaissance, composers often lived in northern France, where the court supported them financially. Therefore, the life of composers during the Renaissance period was more prosperous than in the Middle Ages. Italy then grew outstanding composers during the Renaissance.
Famous composers of the Renaissance period include the French composer Josquin des Prez, the Italian composer Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina, the English composer Thomas Tallis, and the French-Flemish composers Guillaume Du Fay and Orlande de Lassus.
Conclusion
As we said, polyphonic music reached its peak in Renaissance era music, and with the invention of the printing press, for the first time, music was available to people through printed copies. In this article, we tried to introduce you to the development of the Renaissance music. If you want to know about other periods of classical music, you can refer to our classical music eras article on the Chang.education website.
