MUC 223

Daily Work 4
DUE Before Class, Monday September 9
Responses must always be your own work in your own words

1. Create an outline for the readings for today and Friday (Chapter 9, pp. 188–95).

 Give each section heading from the book, in boldface or some other prominent
typeface—you can differentiate between major headings and sub-headings if you’d like
 Summarize each section in a few sentences or bullet points, using your own words but
incorporating some quotations from the textbook when necessary
 For each composer discussed, give a brief when/where/how/what/why
 Highlight any boldfaced words in the text and give a brief definition
 Underline any pieces from NAWM that are discussed so that you can go back quickly to
find listening examples when studying for a text

This assignment is meant to demonstrate how to take effective notes on the readings. If you have
other note-takng strategies that you employ for readings, feel free to use them here.

Chapitre 9

Political Change and Consolidation

 France consolidated into a strong, centralized power
 Modern Spain evolved and they began exploration of the new world
 Italy remained dominated by foreigners spending time there for trade or training

Jean de Ockeghem (1420-1497)

 Esteemed for masses
 Served Kings of Frnace
 More meandering melodies

Antoine Busnoys (1430-1492)

 Served rulers in Burgundy
 Most prolific chanson composer
 Clear tonal direction of melody

Their ^ Chansons (NAWM 39, 38b, 40)

 3 voices, use forms fixes (rondeau)
 Smooth, arching lines
 Light scyncopation
 3rds and 6ths
 (*New*)
 Longer breadth melodies
 Greater equality between voices
  Duple meter
 Presence of counterpoint

*Many of their chansons were transcribed for instruments and ‘remixed’ by other composers

Voice Range Increases

 Voices now span a 12th or 13th instead of just a 9th or 11th

Ockeghem and Busnoys still used cantus firmus masses (but experimented with paraphrasing it,
adding notes and changing the rhythm)

Ockeghem explores more in his masses

 Missa cuiusvis toni (mass in any mode)
o Read in 1-4 different clef combinations
 Missa prolationum
o Notated in two voices but sung in 4

*Canon (‘rule): deriving two or more voices from a single notated voice
 The second voice rule might be the inversion of the first voice (same intervals but in
opposite direction)
 Or retrograde (backward of original voice)

*Mensuration canon: two voices both sing from same part but use different durations (aka
mensurations)

(Music is still only appreciated by those that can carefully detect the ingenuity of the canon

Their Influence
 Expansion of range
 More imitation Became staples of 16th century music
 Greater voice equality
(Bye forme fixe)

1480-1520, Franco-Flemish Composers

Jacob Obrecht (1457-1505)
Henricus Isaac (1450-1517)
Josquin Desprez (1450-1521

New Traits
 4 voice texture is now standard
 Imitative counterpoint and homophony is most common
 Full harmonies, smooth melodies and motivic relationships
  Music needs to composed phrase by phrase, not around cantus firmus anymore
 Full triadic harmonies
 Pieces for instruments (sans texts) became more popular

Obrecht
 30 masses, motets, chansons, instrumental pieces (!)
 Point of imitation: when multiple voices enter at different intervals (and octaves)
 Clear tonal center
 Smooth counterpoint
 Suspensions, passing and neighbor tones

*Points of imitation in all voices are frequent and stringing together a series of them with other
textures became a common way of organizing pieces

Canon: voices are similar

Imitation: voices are same

Isaac (NAWM 41)

 Singer and composer
 More Pan-European sound
 Masses, motets and Choralis Constantinus (settings of text and melodies for the proper)
 Wrote mostly in homophonic style
 Wrote Florentine guild promotion songs (voices sang together)
o Adapted this for his German Lieder (songs)
o 4-part settings of popular songs or new melodies
o Clear structure and triadic harmony

*Homophony is in and compositions were made with all voices in relation to one another

Text
 Accents in music matched those in text
 Text is to be heard and understood
 Text had to specifically be placed under specific notes
 Direct syllabic settings

Desprez (NAWM 42, 43,44)

 Super poplar and held prestigious jobs
 Compositions were in manuscripts and printed collections more than any other previous
composers
o Ottaviano Petrucci (first printer of polyphonic music) published three volumes of
his works
 Hailed as the individual artist and for his ability to express emotions through music
His Works
 Strophic texts
 Most have 4-6 voices
 All parts melodically interesting and necessary
 Creates constant changing textures in his pieces
 Presence of melody in all voices at times gives song different feel
 Freely repeats phrases of texts
 Music perfectly crafted to fit text
 Tonal center
 Clearly delineated phrases and sections
 Elegant and beautiful counterpoint
 Variety in texture and style

Paraphrase mass: a mass based on a monophonic melody that is paraphrased and appears in
all voices

Music Creates Feelings! (NAWM 42)

Text depiction: using musical gestures to reinforce visual images in the text
Text expression: conveying through music the emotions or overall mood suggested by the text

Achieved this through….

 Surprising changes in harmony
 Descending lines (imitates grief)
 Chordal harmony, slower rhythm evokes prayer feeling
 To imitate the word ‘abandon’ the phrase ends without a proper cadence
 Full chordal structure = ‘fullness’