Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina,
(born c. 1525, Palestrina, near Rome
[Italy]—died February 2, 1594,
Rome), Italian Renaissance
composer of more than 105 masses
and 250 motets, a master of
contrapuntal composition.
Palestrina lived during the period of
the Roman Catholic Counter-
Reformation and was a primary
representative of the 16th-century
conservative approach to church
music.
The Life of Palestrina
Palestrina was born in a small town
where his ancestors are thought to
have lived for generations, but as a
child he was taken to nearby Rome.
In 1537 he was one of the choirboys
at the basilica of Santa Maria
Maggiore, where he also studied
music between 1537 and 1539. In
1544 Palestrina was engaged as
organist and singer in the cathedral
of his native town. His duties
included playing the organ, helping
with the choir, and teaching music.
His pay was that of a canon and
would have been received in money
and kind. His prowess at the church
there attracted the attention of the
bishop, Giovanni Maria Ciocchi del
Monte, who later became Pope
Julius III.
In 1547 Palestrina married Lucrezia
Gori. Three sons were born to them:
Rodolfo, Angelo, and Iginio. Only the
last outlived his father. In 1551
Palestrina returned to Rome, where
he assumed the first of his papal
appointments, as musical director
of the Julian Chapel choir, and thus
was responsible for the music in St.
Peter’s. Before he was 30 he
published his first book of masses
(1554), dedicated to Julius III, and
the following year he was promoted
to singer in the Pontifical Choir.
About this time he became
composer to the papal chapel.
Palestrina repaid the pope’s
patronage by composing a mass in
his honour. Yet he did not neglect
the secular side of his art, for his
first book of madrigals (secular and
spiritual part-songs) appeared in
1555, unfortunately at a time when
the lenient regime of Julius III had
given way to the sterner discipline
of Paul IV. A decree of the new pope
forbade married men to serve in the
papal choir, and Palestrina,
together with two of his colleagues,
received a small pension by way of
compensation for their dismissal.
For the next five years Palestrina
directed the choir of St. John
Lateran, but his efforts were
continually thwarted by singers
whose quality was almost as limited
as their number, which was
restricted because very little money
was available for music.
Nevertheless, he gained admission
for his eldest son, Rodolfo, then
about 13, as a chorister. Eventually
he broke away from this
uncongenial milieu. The chapter
archives of St. John Lateran record
that in July 1560 he and his son
suddenly departed.
A year passed before Palestrina
found employment. In March 1561
he accepted a new post at Santa
Maria Maggiore. This post was more
congenial to him and he remained at
it for about seven years. At the
invitation of Cardinal Ippolito d’Este
he then took charge of the music at
the Villa d’Este in Tivoli, a popular
summer resort near Rome. He was
in the cardinal’s service for four
years, at which time he also worked
as music master for a newly formed
Seminarium Romanum (Roman
Seminary), where his sons Rodolfo
and Angelo became students.
Palestrina received an offer in 1568
to become musical director at the
court of the emperor Maximilian II in
Vienna. He refused the position
because of the low salary and a
disinclination to leave Rome.
Palestrina’s terms were also too
high when he was invited to the
court at Mantua in 1583. The
composer and the duke of Mantua,
Guglielmo Gonzaga, an amateur
musician of some pretensions, did
become friends, however, and
Palestrina was commissioned to
write special compositions for the
ducal chapel of Santa Barbara.
With the death in 1571 of the
composer Giovanni Animuccia,
musical director at the Vatican
since 1555, there was a chance for
Palestrina to return to his old post
as musical director of the Julian
choir. The chapter, eager to have
him back, increased the salary, and
he forthwith returned to St. Peter’s.
When his growing fame as a
composer prompted Santa Maria
Maggiore to rehire him, St. Peter’s
again raised his salary. In
acknowledgment of his position as
the most celebrated Roman
musician, he was given in 1578 the
title of master of music at the
Vatican Basilica.

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The series of epidemics that swept
through central Italy in the late
1570s carried off his wife and his
two elder sons, both of whom
showed great musical promise. He
himself fell seriously ill. Grieving
over his wife’s death, he announced
his intention of becoming a priest,
to the delight of the pope, Gregory
XIII. After having been made a
canon, however, he renounced his
vows in order to marry (1581)
Virginia Dormoli, widow of a
wealthy merchant. Although he
spent considerable time
administering her fortune, he
retained his position at St. Peter’s
and continued to compose.
Although an attempt in 1585 to
make Palestrina musical director of
the Pontifical Choir proved abortive,
he was considered by all the popes
under whom he served as the
official composer for the choir, and
it is recorded that he marched at the
head of the pontifical singers on the
occasion of erecting the great
Egyptian obelisk in the piazza of St.
Peter’s.
Pope Gregory XIII had
commissioned Palestrina and
Annibale Zoilo to restore the
plainchant, or plainsong (a
traditional liturgical chant sung in
unison), then in use to a more
authentic form. The task proved too
great, and Palestrina’s editorial
work gave way to a flow of creative
music. Much of it was published
during the last 12 years of his life,
including volumes of motets (choral
compositions based on sacred
texts), masses, and madrigals. He
also helped to found an association
of professional musicians called the
Vertuosa Compagnia dei Musici.
Two years before Palestrina’s
death, the new pope, Clement VIII,
increased his pension, and the same
year, in a singular mark of respect
and admiration, fellow composers
paid their elderly senior the
compliment of writing 16 settings of
the Vesper Psalms to his praise. In
return, Palestrina sent them a motet
on the appropriate text: Vos amici
mei estis “You are my friends, if you
do what I teach, said the Lord.”
Renaissance
Renaissance art
polyphony
Music
Palestrina’s musical output, though
vast, maintained a remarkably high
standard in both sacred and secular
works. His 105 masses embrace
many different styles, and the
number of voices used ranges from
four to eight. The time-honoured polyphony alternate throughout.
technique of using a cantus firmus Finally, there is a small but
(preexistent melody used in one important group of masses that are
voice part) as the tenor is found in in free style, the musical material
such masses as Ecce sacerdos being entirely original. Perhaps the
magnus; L’Homme armé; Ut, re, mi, best known example is the Missa
fa, sol, la; Ave Maria; Tu es Petrus; brevis for four voices.
and Veni Creator Spiritus. These
Palestrina’s motets, of which more
titles refer to the source of the
than 250 are extant, display almost
particular cantus firmus.
as much variety of form and type as
Palestrina’s mastery of
do his masses. Most of them are in
contrapuntal ingenuity may be
some clearly defined form,
appreciated to the fullest extent in
occasionally reflecting the shape of
some of his canonic masses (in
the liturgical text, though
which one or more voice parts are
comparatively few are based on
derived from another voice part).
plainsong. Many of them paraphrase
His ability to ornament and
the chant, however, with an artistry
decorate a solemn plainchant,
that is every bit as successful as
making it an integral part of the
that of the masses. On the same
texture and sometimes almost
level as the canonic masses are
indistinguishable from the other,
such motets as Cum ortus fuerit and
freely composed parts, is evident
Accepit Jesus calicem, the latter
from some of his masses based on
apparently a favourite of the
hymn melodies.
composer’s—an assumption
By far the greatest number of justified because he is depicted
masses employ what has come to holding a copy of it in a portrait now
be known as the parody technique, in the Vatican.
by which a composer made use
His 29 motets based on texts from
either of his own music or that of
the Song of Solomon afford
others as a starting point for the
numerous examples of
new composition. Many other
“madrigalisms”: the use of
masses derive from musical ideas
suggestive musical phrases evoking
by Palestrina’s predecessors or
picturesque features, apparent
contemporaries. Yet another type of
either to the ear or to the eye,
mass is demonstrated by the nine
sometimes to both. In the
works written for Mantua; in these
offertories, Palestrina completely
the Gloria and Credo sections are so
abandons the old cantus firmus
arranged that plainsong and
technique and writes
musicinfreestyle, whereas in the
hymns he paraphrases the
traditional melody, usually in the
highest voice. In the Lamentations
of Jeremiah he brings effective
contrast to bear on the sections
with Hebrew and Latin text, the
former being melismatic (floridly
vocalized) in style and the latter
simpler and more solemn. His
Magnificats are mainly in four sets
of eight, each set comprising a
Magnificat on one of the eight
“tones”: alternatim structure is
used here as in the Mantua masses.
Although Palestrina’s madrigals are
generally considered of less
interest than his sacred music, they
show as keen a sense for pictorial
and pastoral elements as one finds
in any of his contemporaries. Over
and above this, he is to be
remembered for his early
exploitation of the narrative sonnet
in madrigal form, notably in Vestiva
i colli, which was frequently
reprinted and imitated. His settings
of Petrarch’s poems also are of an
exceptionally high order.
At the end of the 19th century the
view that Palestrina represented
the loftiest peak of Italian
polyphony was in some ways
detrimental to his reputation, for it
cast his music into rigid
preconceptions. Even more
unfortunate was the insistence on
“counterpoint in the style of
Palestrina” in the examination
requirements of academies and
universities, for such requirements
stultified a style that Palestrina had
used with great flexibility.
Generations of fledgling composers
were taught to revere the music of
Palestrina as a symbol of all that
was pure in ecclesiastical
counterpoint. Indeed, the greater
part of his musical output, and in
particular his masses (where his
unerring sense of tonal architecture
may be heard at its best), still
remains worthy of admiration.
Palestrina, unlike Johann Sebastian
Bach, did not have to be
rediscovered in the 19th century,
though the dissemination of his
achievement was helped by the
interest of Romantic composers.
There always was a Palestrinian
tradition, mainly because his music
supplied the need for a well-
regulated formal system to be used
by the embryonic composer in
presenting himself to the musical
world. Strict counterpoint was
associated with a technique
acquired in this way. In his day,
Palestrina was a senior figure who,
utilizing the dominant style of his
time, created works notable for
their spiritual qualities and
technical mastery.
Songs of Palestrina

1} O magnum mysterium
(Palestrina)

Lyrics.

O magnum mysterium et admirabile

sacramentum

ut animalia viderent Dominum

natum

iacentem in praesepio.
Natum vidimus et chorus
angelorum
collaudantes Dominum. Alleluia.
Quem vidistis pastores?
Dicite, annunciate nobis quis
apparuit?
natum vidimus et chorus angelorum
collaudantes Dominum. Alleluia.
History
O magnum mysterium is a six-voice
motet in the Aeolian mode in two
musical parts. It was published in
1569 in Rome and formed a part of
a collection of motets for five-, six-
and seven voices, known as his
Liber Primus Motettorum.
Palestrina wrote it for Christmas to
express the joy and awe of the
shepherds as they celebrated
Christ’s birth. Palestrina wrote this
motet during times when
complaints were being made about
the plainness of religious works. He
wrote it as a response against the
complaints. He furthered the
bounds of complexity by writing his
choral compositions for six parts,
and yet he made the Catholic
liturgical music less complex by
using fewer melismas and letting
the voices sing the same syllables
at the same time.
our souls are filled with grace, and
the pledge of future glory is given
to us.
Lyrics.

O magnum mysterium is a O sacrum convivium!

responsorial chant from the Matins
of Christmas. Palestrina used the
first half of the third and fourth
Responsories of the Matins on
Christmas Day. It is a simple
polyphonic work in which most of
the voices sing the same syllables
on the same beats.
in quo Christus sumitur
recolitur memoria passionis eius
mens impletur gratia
et futurae gloriae nobis pignus
datur.
Alleluia.

2} O sacrum convivium 3} O Bone Jesu

Lyrics.
History
O bone Jesu, exaudi me
O sacrum convivium is a Latin
prose text honoring the Blessed Et ne permittas me separari a te
Sacrament. It was included as an
Ab hoste maligno defende me
antiphon to Magnificat in the
vespers of the liturgical office on In hora mortis meae
the feast of Corpus Christi. The
Voca me et pone me juxta te
text of the office is attributed with
some probability to Saint Thomas Ut cum angelis et sanctis tuis
Aquinas.[1] Its sentiments express
Laudem te, Dominum, Salvatorem
the profound affinity of the
meum
Eucharistic celebration, described
as a banquet, to the Paschal In saecula saeculorum. Amen.
mystery : "O sacred banquet at
which Christ is consumed, the
memory of his Passion is recalled, History
O bone Jesu ist eine Motette des Dufay and Giovanni Pierluigi da
Renaissance-Komponisten
Palestrina, and is usually considered to
Marc’Antonio Ingegneri (1535/36–
1592) für vierstimmigen Chor a be the central figure of the Franco-
cappella. Es existiert ferner ein Flemish School. Josquin is widely
doppelchöriger Chorsatz über
considered by music scholars to be the
dasselbe Thema, jedoch anderer
Textfassung, die möglicherweise first master of the high Renaissance style
dem Anima Christi entlehnt ist. Die of polyphonic vocal music that was
Komposition wurde, wie viele
emerging during his lifetime.
andere Werke Ingegneris, lange
Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina
(1514/15–1594) zugeschrieben, von
dem aber lediglich eine During the 16th century, Josquin
Bearbeitung für sechsstimmigen
gradually acquired the reputation as the
Chor stammt.
greatest composer of the age, his
mastery of technique and expression
universally imitated and admired. Writers

Josquin des Prez (French: as diverse as Baldassare Castiglione and

[ʒɔskɛ̃ depʁe]; c. 1450/1455 – 27 Martin Luther wrote about his reputation

August 1521), often referred to simply as and fame, with Luther declaring that "he

Josquin, was a French[2] composer of is the master of the notes. They must do

the Renaissance. His original name is as he wills; as for the other composers,

sometimes given as Josquin Lebloitte they have to do as the notes will." [5]

and his later name is given under a wide Theorists such as Heinrich Glarean and

variety of spellings in French, Italian, and Gioseffo Zarlino held his style as that

Latin, including Iosquinus Pratensis and best representing perfection.[6] He was

Iodocus a Prato. His motet Illibata Dei so admired that many anonymous

virgo nutrix includes an acrostic of his compositions were attributed to him by

name, where he spelled it "Josquin des copyists, probably to increase their

Prez".[3][4] He was the most famous sales.[7] More than 370 works are

European composer between Guillaume attributed to him;[8] it was only after the
advent of modern analytical scholarship
that some of these attributions were
challenged, and revealed as mistaken, on
the basis of stylistic features and
manuscript evidence. Yet in spite of
Josquin's colossal reputation, which
endured until the beginning of the
Baroque era and was revived in the 20th
century, his biography is shadowy, and
virtually nothing is known about his
personality. The only surviving work
which may be in his own hand is a
graffito on the wall of the Sistine Chapel,
and only one contemporary mention of
his character is known, in a letter to Duke
Ercole I of Ferrara. The lives of dozens of
less revered Renaissance composers are
better documented than that of Josquin.
Josquin wrote both sacred and secular
music, and in all of the significant vocal
forms of the age, including masses,
motets, chansons and frottole. During
the 16th century, he was praised for both
his supreme melodic gift and his use of
ingenious technical devices. In modern
times, scholars have attempted to
ascertain the basic details of his
biography, and have tried to define the
key characteristics of his style to correct
misattributions, a task that has proved
difficult, as Josquin liked to solve
compositional problems in different ways
in successive compositions—sometimes
he wrote in an austere style devoid of
ornamentation, and at other times he
wrote music requiring considerable
virtuosity.[10] Heinrich Glarean wrote in
1547 that Josquin was not only a
"magnificent virtuoso" (the Latin can be
translated also as "show-off") but
capable of being a "mocker", using satire
effectively.[11] While the focus of
scholarship in recent years has been to
remove music from the "Josquin canon"
(including some of his most famous
pieces) and to reattribute it to his
contemporaries, the remaining music
represents some of the most famous and
enduring of the Renaissance.
The Life of Des Prez
Little is known for certain of Josquin's
early life. Much is inferential and
speculative, though numerous clues Matthews and Merkley, "des Prez" was
have emerged from his works and the an alternative name.[13]
writings of contemporary composers,
According to an account by Claude
theorists, and writers of the next several
Hémeré, a friend and librarian of
generations. Josquin was born in the
Cardinal Richelieu whose evidence dates
area controlled by the Dukes of
as late as 1633, and who used the
Burgundy, and was possibly born either
records of the collegiate church of Saint-
in Hainaut (modern-day Belgium), or
Quentin,[14] Josquin became a choirboy
immediately across the border in
with his friend and colleague the Franco
modern-day France, since several times
Flemish composer Jean Mouton at Saint-
in his life he was classified legally as a
Quentin's royal church, probably around
Frenchman (for instance, when he made
1460. Doubt has been cast on the
his will). Josquin was long mistaken for a
accuracy of Hémeré's account,
man with a similar name, Josquin de
however.[15] Josquin may have studied
Kessalia, born around the year 1440, who
counterpoint under Ockeghem, whom
sang in Milan from 1459 to 1474, dying in
he greatly admired throughout his life:
1498. More recent scholarship has shown
this is suggested both by the testimony
that Josquin des Prez was born around
of Gioseffo Zarlino and Lodovico
1450 or a few years later, and did not go
Zacconi, writing later in the 16th century,
to Italy until the early 1480s.[citation
and by Josquin's eloquent lament on the
needed]
death of Ockeghem in 1497, Nymphes
des bois/Requiem aeternam, based on
the poem by Jean Molinet.[15] All
Around 1466, perhaps on the death of
records from Saint-Quentin were
his father, Josquin was named by his
destroyed in 1669; however the
uncle and aunt, Gille Lebloitte dit
collegiate chapel there was a center of
Desprez and Jacque Banestonne, as their
music-making for the entire area, and in
heir. Their will gives Josquin's actual
addition was an important center of
surname as Lebloitte. According to
royal patronage. Both Jean Mouton and
Loyset Compère were buried there and it
is certainly possible that Josquin
acquired his later connections with the
French royal chapel through early
experiences at Saint-Quentin.
The first definite record of his
employment is dated 19 April 1477, and
it shows that he was a singer at the
chapel of René, Duke of Anjou, in Aix-
en-Provence. He remained there at least
until 1478. No certain records of his
movements exist for the period from
March 1478 until 1483, but if he
remained in the employ of René he
would have transferred to Paris in 1481
along with the rest of the chapel. One of
Josquin's early motets, Misericordias
Domini in aeternum cantabo, suggests a
direct connection with Louis XI, who was
king during this time. In 1483 Josquin
returned to Condé to claim his
inheritance from his aunt and uncle, who
may have been killed by the army of
Louis XI in May 1478, when they
besieged the town, locked the
population into the church, and burned
them alive.
The Songs of Des
Prez
1} Mille Regretz
History
Mille Regretz is a French chanson
which in its 4 part setting is usually
credited to Josquin des Prez.
Josquin's version is in the Phrygian
mode. Its plangent simplicity made
it a popular basis for reworkings
(such as the mass setting by
Cristóbal de Morales, and the 6vv
(SATTBB) chanson by Nicolas
Gombert), the variations for vihuela
known as "La Canción del
Emperador" by Luis de Narváez, as
well as more recent sets of
variations and threnody.
Translations of the song differ in
their interpretation of the words
'fache/face amoureuse' in line 2.
(variously 'amorous anger' or
'loving face'.)
Lyrics
Mille regretz de vous abandonner
Et d'eslonger vostre fache
amoureuse,
Jay si grand dueil et paine
douloureuse,
Quon me verra brief mes jours
definer.
2} Missa Pange lingua
History
The Missa Pange lingua is a
musical setting of the Ordinary of
the Mass by Franco-Flemish
composer Josquin des Prez,
probably dating from around 1515,
near the end of his life. Most likely
his last mass, it is an extended
fantasia on the Pange Lingua hymn,
and is one of Josquin's most
famous mass settings.
Lyrics.
Pange, lingua, gloriósi
Córporis mystérium,
Sanguinísque pretiósi,
Quem in mundi prétium
Fructus ventris generósi
Rex effúdit géntium.
Nobis datus, nobis natus
Ex intácta Vírgine,
Et in mundo conversátus,
Sparso verbi sémine,
Sui moras incolátus
Miro clausit órdine.
Tantum…
3} Ave Maria
History
Hi There are 3 different works
beginning Ave Maria by Josquin des
Prez, the best known being:
Ave Maria … Virgo serena a 4, the
basis for:
Ave Maria … Virgo serena, a 6
(anonymous 2 extra voices added
to the above)
Ave Maria (Ludwig Senfl) (a
reworking for 6 voices of Josquin's
composition)
He also wrote two settings of the
'standard' text, Ave Maria …
benedicta:
Ave Maria … benedicta tu, a 4
Ave Maria … benedicta tu, a 6 story
Lyrics.

Ave Maria,

Gratia plena,

Dominus tecum,

Benedicta tu.

As I kneel before you,

As I bow my head in prayer,

Take this day, make it yours Johann Sebastian Bach

And fill me with your love.

Ave Maria,
The Life of Bach
Gratia plena,
Johann Sebastian Bach[a] (31
Dominus tecum, March [O.S. 21 March] 1685 – 28
July 1750) was a German composer
Benedicta tu.
and musician of the Baroque
All I have I give you, period. He is known for
instrumental compositions such as
Every dream and wish are yours,
the Art of Fugue, the Brandenburg
Mother of Christ, Concertos, and the Goldberg
Mother of mine, present them to my Variations, and for vocal music
Lord. such as the St Matthew Passion
and the Mass in B minor. Since the
Ave Maria, 19th-century Bach Revival he has
Gratia plena, been generally regarded as one of
the greatest composers of the
Dominus tecum,… Western art musical canon.[3]
The Bach family already counted
several composers when Johann
Sebastian was born as the last
child of a city musician in
Eisenach. After being orphaned at
age 10, he lived for five years with
his eldest brother Johann Christoph
Bach, after which he continued his
musical development in Lüneburg.
From 1703 he was back in
Thuringia, working as a musician
for Protestant churches in Arnstadt
and Mühlhausen and, for longer
stretches of time, at courts in
Weimar—where he expanded his
repertoire for the organ—and
Köthen—where he was mostly
engaged with chamber music. From
1723 he was employed as
Thomaskantor (cantor at St.
Thomas) in Leipzig. He composed
music for the principal Lutheran
churches of the city, and for its
university's student ensemble
Collegium Musicum. From 1726 he
published some of his keyboard
music. In Leipzig, as had happened
during some of his earlier positions,
he had difficult relations with his
employer, a situation that was little
remedied when he was granted the
title of court composer by his
sovereign, Augustus, Elector of
Saxony and King of Poland, in 1736.
In the last decades of his life he
reworked and extended many of his
earlier compositions. He died of
complications after eye surgery in
1750 at the age of 65.
Bach enriched established German
styles through his mastery of
counterpoint, harmonic and motivic
organisation, and his adaptation of
rhythms, forms, and textures from
abroad, particularly from Italy and
France. Bach's compositions
include hundreds of cantatas, both
sacred and secular.[4] He
composed Latin church music,
Passions, oratorios, and motets. He
often adopted Lutheran hymns, not
only in his larger vocal works, but
for instance also in his four-part
chorales and sacred songs. He
wrote extensively for organ and for
other keyboard instruments. He
composed concertos, for instance
for violin and for harpsichord, and s
uites, as chamber music as well as
for orchestra. Many of his works
employ contrapuntal genres such
as fugue.
Throughout the 18th century Bach
was mostly renowned as an
organist,[5] while his keyboard
music, such as The Well-Tempered
Clavier, was appreciated for its
didactic qualities.[6] The 19th
century saw the publication of
some major Bach biographies, and
by the end of that century all of his
known music had been printed.
Dissemination of scholarship on the
composer continued through
periodicals exclusively devoted to
him, and publications such as the
Bach-Werke-Verzeichnis (BWV, a
numbered catalogue of his works)
and new critical editions of his
compositions. His music was
further popularised through a
multitude of arrangements,
including the Air on the G String.
Songs of Bach
1} St. Matthew Passion
History
St Matthew Passion (German:
Matthäus-Passion), BWV 244, is a
Passion, a sacred oratorio written
by Johann Sebastian Bach in 1727
for solo voices, double choir and
double orchestra, with libretto by
Picander. It sets chapters 26 and
27 of the Gospel of Matthew (in the
Luther Bible) to music, with
interspersed chorales and arias. It
is widely regarded as one of the
masterpieces of classical sacred
music. The original Latin title
Passio Domini nostri J.C. secundum
Evangelistam Matthæum translates
to "The Passion of our Lord J[esus]
C[hrist] according to the Evangelist
Matthew".
2} The Well Tempered
Clavier
History
The Well-Tempered Clavier, BWV
846–893, is a collection of two sets
of preludes and fugues in all 24
major and minor keys, composed
for solo keyboard by Johann
Sebastian Bach. In Bach's time
Clavier (keyboard) was a generic
name indicating a variety of
keyboard instruments, most
typically a harpsichord or
clavichord – but not excluding an
organ either.
The modern German spelling for
the collection is Das
wohltemperierte Klavier (WTK;
German pronunciation: [das
ˌvoːlˌtɛmpəˈʁiːɐ̯tə klaˈviːɐ̯]). Bach
gave the title Das Wohltemperirte
Clavier to a book of preludes and
fugues in all 24 major and minor
keys, dated 1722, composed "for
the profit and use of musical youth
desirous of learning, and especially
for the pastime of those already
skilled in this study". Some 20
years later Bach compiled a second
book of the same kind, which
became known as The Well-
Tempered Clavier, Part Two (in
German: Zweyter Theil, modern
spelling: Zweiter Teil).
Modern editions usually refer to
both parts as The Well-Tempered
Clavier, Book I (WTC I) and The
Well-Tempered Clavier, Book II
(WTC II), respectively.[1] The
collection is generally regarded as
being among the most important
works in the history of classical
music.
It was unusual for composers
working in the Lutheran tradition to
compose a Missa tota and Bach's
motivations remain a matter of
scholarly debate. The Mass was
never performed in its entirety
during Bach's lifetime; the first
documented complete performance
took place in 1859. Since the
nineteenth century it has been
widely hailed as one of the greatest
compositions in musical history,
and today it is frequently performed
and recorded.[1][2][3][4] Carl
Philipp Emanuel Bach archived this
work as the Great Catholic Mass.

3} Mass in B Minor
The Mass in B minor (BWV 232) by
Johann Sebastian Bach is a
musical setting of the complete
Ordinary of the Latin Mass. The
work was one of Bach's last
compositions, not completed until
1749, the year before his death.
Much of the Mass gave new form to
vocal music that Bach had
composed throughout his career,
dating back (in the case of the
Crucifixus) to 1714, but extensively
revised. To complete the work, in
the late 1740s Bach composed new
sections of the Credo such as Et
incarnatus est.
George Frideric Handel
 works. After his success with
Messiah (1742) he never composed
The Life of Handel an Italian opera again. Almost
blind, and having lived in England
George Frideric (or Frederick)
for nearly fifty years, he died in
Handel (/ˈhændəl/;[a] born Georg
1759, a respected and rich man.
Friederich Händel[b] [ˈɡeːɔɐ̯k
His funeral was given full state
ˈfʁiːdʁɪç ˈhɛndl̩] (About this
honours, and he was buried in
soundlisten); 23 February 1685
Westminster Abbey in London.
(O.S.) [(N.S.) 5 March] – 14 April
1759)[2][c] was a German, later
British, Baroque composer who
Born the same year as Johann
spent the bulk of his career in
Sebastian Bach and Domenico
London, becoming well known for
Scarlatti, Handel is regarded as
his operas, oratorios, anthems, and
one of the greatest composers of
organ concertos. Handel received
the Baroque era, with works such
important training in Halle-upon-
as Messiah, Water Music, and
Saale and worked as a composer in
Music for the Royal Fireworks
Hamburg and Italy before settling
remaining steadfastly popular.[7]
in London in 1712; he became a
One of his four coronation anthems,
naturalised British subject in
Zadok the Priest (1727), composed
1727.[5] He was strongly
for the coronation of George II, has
influenced both by the great
been performed at every
composers of the Italian Baroque
subsequent British coronation,
and by the middle-German
traditionally during the sovereign's
polyphonic choral tradition.
anointing. Another of his English
oratorios, Solomon (1748), has also
remained popular, with the Sinfonia
Within fifteen years, Handel had
that opens act 3 (known more
started three commercial opera
commonly as "The Arrival of the
companies to supply the English
Queen of Sheba") featuring at the
nobility with Italian opera.
2012 London Olympics opening
Musicologist Winton Dean writes
ceremony. Handel composed more
that his operas show that "Handel
than forty operas in over thirty
was not only a great composer; he
years, and since the late 1960s,
was a dramatic genius of the first
with the revival of baroque music
order."[6] As Alexander's Feast
and historically informed musical
(1736) was well received, Handel
made a transition to English choral
performance, interest in Handel's
operas has grown.
Songs of Handel
1} For unto us Child is born
History
“For unto us a child is born, unto us
a Son is given ... and His name
shall be called Wonderful
Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting
Father, Prince of Peace.”
These words were written by the
prophet Isaiah more than 700 years
before the birth of Jesus. As far as
I’m concerned, that simple fact is
sufficient proof that the Bible is
God’s word. Some people try to
claim that the Old Testament
prophecies are actually just
stories, written after the events to
make it seem like God had revealed
it beforehand. While I totally reject
that idea, it simply doesn’t arise in
relation to this verse. Seven
hundred years! This is no
fabrication, this is the revealed
word of God spoken through Isaiah.
“For unto us a child is born, unto us
a Son is given ... and His name
shall be called Wonderful
Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting
Father, Prince of Peace.”
Some people try to claim that these
words merely predicted the birth of
another one of Israel’s kings, a
good king to replace the evil Ahaz
who reigned at the time. But as I
will show in a moment, this is
totally impossible.
It is appropriate to read these
words at Christmas because they
were clearly fulfilled in the Lord
Jesus Christ, God’s Son. No one in
the history of the world comes
even close to being worthy of the
name given in this verse. This is
the revealed word of God spoken
through Isaiah.
Lyrics
For unto us a Child is born,
unto us a Son is given,
For unto us a Child is born,
unto us a Son is given,
For unto us a Child is born,
unto us a Son is given,
and the government shall be upon
His shoulder;
and his name shall be called
Wonderful Counsellor,
the Mighty God,
the Everlasting Father,
the Prince of Peace.
For unto us a Child is born,
unto us a Son is given,
For unto us a Child is born,
unto us a Son is given,
and the government shall be upon
His shoulder;
and his name shall be called
Wonderful Counsellor,
the Mighty God,
the Everlasting Father,
the Prince of Peace.
For unto us a Child is born,
unto us a Son is given,
and the government shall be upon
His shoulder;
and his name shall be called
Wonderful Counsellor,
the Mighty God,
the Everlasting Father,
the Prince of Peace.
For unto us a Child is born,
unto us a Son is given,
and the government shall be upon
His shoulder;
and his name shall be called
Wonderful Counsellor,
the Mighty God,
the Everlasting Father,
the Prince of Peace.
the Everlasting Father,
the Prince of Peace.
2} Lascia ch'io pianga
History
"Lascia ch'io pianga", originally
"Lascia la spina, cogli la rosa", is
an Italian-language soprano aria by
composer George Frideric Handel
that has become a popular concert
piece.
Lyrics
Lascia ch'io pianga
Mia cruda sorte,
E che sospiri
La libertà.
E che sospiri
E che sospiri
La libertà.

Lascia ch'io pianga

History
Mia cruda sorte,
Zadok the Priest (HWV 258) is a
E che sospiri British anthem which was
composed by George Frideric
La libertà.
Handel for the coronation of King
Il duolo infranga George II in 1727. Alongside The
King Shall Rejoice, My Heart is
Queste ritorte,
Inditing and Let Thy Hand Be
De' miei martiri Strengthened, Zadok the Priest is
Sol per pietà. one of Handel's Coronation
Anthems. One of Handel's best-
De' miei martiri known works, Zadok the Priest has
Sol per pietà. been sung prior to the anointing of
the sovereign at the coronation of
Lascia ch'io pianga every British monarch since its
Mia cruda sorte, composition and has become
recognised as a British patriotic
E che sospiri anthem.
La libertà.

E che sospiri

E che sospiri Lyrics.

La libertà. Zadok the priest
Lascia ch'io pianga And Nathan the prophet
Mia cruda sorte, Anointed Soloman, king
E che sospiri And all the people
La libertà. Rejoiced.

And all the people (Alleluia)

3} Zandok The Priest Rejoiced.…


Antonio Lucio Vivaldi
History
Antonio Lucio Vivaldi (UK:
/vɪˈvældi/, US: /vɪˈvɑːldi, -ˈvɔːl-
/,[2][3][4][5] Italian: [anˈtɔːnjo ˈluːtʃo
viˈvaldi] (About this soundlisten); 4
March 1678 – 28 July 1741) was an
Italian[6] Baroque musical
composer, virtuoso violinist,
teacher, and priest. Born in Venice,
the capital of the Venetian
Republic, he is regarded as one of
the greatest Baroque composers,
and his influence during his lifetime
was widespread across Europe. He
composed many instrumental
concertos, for the violin and a
variety of other instruments, as
well as sacred choral works and
more than forty operas. His best-
known work is a series of violin
concertos known as the Four
Seasons.
Many of his compositions were
written for the all-female music
ensemble of the Ospedale della
Pietà, a home for abandoned
children. Vivaldi had worked there
as a Catholic priest for 1 1/2 years
and was employed there from 1703
to 1715 and from 1723 to 1740.
Vivaldi also had some success with
expensive stagings of his operas in
Venice, Mantua and Vienna. After
meeting the Emperor Charles VI,
Vivaldi moved to Vienna, hoping for
royal support. However, the
Emperor died soon after Vivaldi's
arrival, and Vivaldi himself died, in
poverty, less than a year later.
Songs of Vivaldi
1} The Four Seasons
History
The Four Seasons (Italian: Le
quattro stagioni) is a group of four
violin concerti by Italian composer
Antonio Vivaldi, each of which
gives musical expression to a
season of the year. They were
written around 1716–1717 and
published in 1725 in Amsterdam,
together with eight additional
concerti, as Il cimento dell'armonia
e dell'inventione (The Contest
Between Harmony and Invention).
The Four Seasons is the best
known of Vivaldi's works. Though
three of the concerti are wholly
original, the first, "Spring", borrows
motifs from a sinfonia in the first
act of Vivaldi's contemporaneous
opera Il Giustino. The inspiration
for the concertos is not the
countryside around Mantua, as
initially supposed, where Vivaldi
was living at the time, since
according to Karl Heller[1] they
could have been written as early as
1716–1717, while Vivaldi was
engaged with the court of Mantua
only in 1718. They were a
revolution in musical conception: in
them Vivaldi represented flowing
creeks, singing birds (of different
species, each specifically
characterized), a shepherd and his
barking dog, buzzing flies, storms,
drunken dancers, hunting parties
from both the hunters' and the
prey's point of view, frozen
landscapes, and warm winter fires.
Unusually for the period, Vivaldi
published the concerti with
accompanying sonnets (possibly
written by the composer himself)
that elucidated what it was in the
spirit of each season that his music
was intended to evoke. The
concerti therefore stand as one of
the earliest and most detailed
examples of what would come to
be called program music—i.e.,
music with a narrative element.
Vivaldi took great pains to relate
his music to the texts of the
poems, translating the poetic lines
themselves directly into the music
on the page. For example, in the
middle section of "Spring", when
the goatherd sleeps, his barking
dog can be heard in the viola
section. The music is elsewhere
similarly evocative of other natural
sounds. Vivaldi divided each
concerto into three movements
(fast–slow–fast), and, likewise,
each linked sonnet into three
sections.
2} Gloria
History
Antonio Vivaldi wrote at least three
settings of the hymn Gloria in
excelsis Deo, whose words date
probably from the 4th Century and
which is an integral part of the
Ordinary of the Mass. Two survive:
RV 588 and RV 589. A third, RV
590, is mentioned only in the
Kreuzherren catalogue and
presumed lost. The RV 589 Gloria is
a familiar and popular piece among
sacred works by Vivaldi. It was
probably written at about the same
time as the RV 588, possibly in
1715.

3} Stabat Mater

History
Stabat Mater for solo alto and
orchestra, RV 621, is a composition
by the Italian baroque composer
Antonio Vivaldi on one of the
Sorrows of Mary. It was premiered
around 1727. A piano transcription
was featured prominently in the
1999 film The Talented Mr. Ripley.