Roman de Fauvel
14th-century fable about political power; the ass “FAUVEL” is an acronym for (F)lattery, (A)varice, (V)illainy, (V)Fickleness, (E)nvy and (L)oose morals
isorhythm
a rhythmic pattern is repeated again and again in a line, usually in the tenor voice; a technique introduced by composers in the early fourteenth century
isorhythm
a rhythmic pattern is repeated again and again in a line, usually in the tenor voice; a technique introduced by composers in the early fourteenth century
isorhythm
a rhythmic pattern is repeated again and again in a line, usually in the tenor voice; a technique introduced by composers in the early fourteenth century
talea
a rhythmic pattern, or unit, repeating in an isorhythmic composition
color
the melodic unit that serves as a structural backbone in an isorhythmic composition
carole
one of two main types of dances of the Middle Ages; musical form was strophe (sung by soloist) and refrain (everyone); different stanzas/same refrain
estampie
one of two main dances of the Middle Ages; originally a dance song in which dancers also sang a text; later (14th c.) became purely instrumental
punctum
a pair of musical phrases (couplet) usually associated with medieval instrumental music
open ending
the term used in the Middle Ages for what we today call a first ending
open ending
the term used in the Middle Ages for what we today call a first ending
closed ending
the term used in the Middle Ages for what we today call a second ending
vielle
a large five-string fiddle capable of playing the entire Guidonian scale; often provided dance music during the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries
shawm
a double-reed instrument with a loud penetrating tone; provided dance music during the Middle Ages and Renaissance; ancestor of the modern oboe
portative organ
a small movable instrument that sounded at courtly entertainments, usually to accompany singers rather than dancers
positive organ
a large stationary instrument that began to appear in large numbers in churches in the West shortly after 1300; a technological wonder of its day
clavichord
an early keyboard instrument; player depresses a key and thereby pushes a small metal tangent in the shape of a “T” upward to strike a string
Guillaume de Machaut
14th c. composer associated with the French Royal Court at Reims; first composer to write a complete polyphonic setting for the Ordinary of the Mass
ballade
one of the three French formes fixes that originated in the Middle Ages; a song always with the form AAB setting a poem with from one to three stanzas
cantus
the highest vocal part in an early polyphonic composition, what would later come to be called the superius and finally the soprano
cantus
the highest vocal part in an early polyphonic composition, what would later come to be called the superius and finally the soprano
contratenor altus
the upper of the two contratenor voices (the other being the bass); the medieval equivalent of our alto voice
contratenor bassus
the lower of the two contratenor voices (the other being the alto); the medieval equivalent of our bass voice
cycle Mass
a Mass with all movements are linked together by a common musical theme; the first was Machaut’s Mass of Our Lady composed in the mid-14th century
formes fixes
three set genres: ballade, rondeau, virela, in which nearly all French secular art songs of the fourteenth and early fifteenth centuries were written
hocket
contrapuntal technique and musical genre; sounds of two voices are staggered by the careful placement of rests, creating a highly syncopated piece
rondeau
one of the three French formes fixes that originated as a dance-song with the troubadours and trouveres; its musical and textual form is ABaAabAB
virelai
one of the three French formes fixes; originated with the troubadours and trouveres; monophonic dance that involved choral singing; the form is AbbaA
Ars subtilior
(more subtle art) a late 14th c. style by composers in Avignon, southern France and northern Italy; subtle, sometimes extreme, rhythmic relationships
canon
imitation of a complete subject at a fixed interval and time delay; successive voice(s) must duplicate exactly the pitches and rhythms of the first voice
choirbook format
layout for religious music from the late Middle Ages onward; soprano voice in upper left, alto or tenor in bottom left or upper right, bass in bottom right
counterpoint
from the Latin punctus contra punctum (one note moving against another note); the harmonious opposition of two or more independent musical lines
dbl. leading-tone cadence
cadence with two leading tones in the penultimate chord, one pulling upward to the primary tone and the other upward to the fifth degree
musica ficta
accidentals not found on the Guidonian scale; had to be added by medieval performers because, theoretically “off the scale,” and had to be imagined
polymeters
two or more meters sounding simultaneously; first appearing historically in the music of the Ars subtilior
proportions
Middle Age mensuration signs (time signatures) often written as fractions that modify the normal value of notes
sincopa
the medieval term for syncopation, a temporary shift of the downbeat
tactus
term used to indicate the beat by Renaissance music theorists
Petrarch
14th c. Italian poet whose interest in classical Greek and Latin texts initiated the “humanism” ideal; his poetry used for many Renaissance madrigals
Baude Cordier
14th c. composer associated with complex symbolic scores and unusual rhythmic sophistication
Fancesco Landini
14th c. trecento composer and intellectual; his music begins to emphasize the use of simultaneous 3rd and 6ths (6/3 chords), especially at cadences
ballata
a dance song with a choral refrain; one of the three formes fixes of secular music in trecento Italy
caccia
piece involving a musical canon in upper two voices supported by a slower moving tenor; one of the three formes fixes of secular music in trecento Italy
Landini cadence
common 14th-century Italian cadential gesture in which the upper voice moves to a lower neighbor (escape tone) before skipping up to the octave
madrigal (14th c.)
poem in the vernacular to which music was added for greater emotional effect; form AAB, one of the three formes fixes of secular music in trecento Italy
ritornello
a return or refrain
trecento
term to describe music of the 1300s (14th century) in Italy
Filippo Brunelleschi
Renaissance Florentine architect who designed the dome for the Florence cathedral
Guillamue Dufay
15th c. Lowlands composer; worked throughout Europe; “symbolic” motet for the dedication of Florence’s Duomo; many mature cantus firmus masses
number symbolism
a system prevalent during Middle Ages and Renaissance; meaning in music conveyed by the use of numbers representing religious themes and concepts