An overview of style characteristics in the Renaissance

1
Introduction

• An overview of style characteristics in the
  Renaissance

2
Format

• The choir consisted of men and boys.
• 5 line staff is standard.
• C clefs, G clefs, and F clefs were used.
• The variety helped avoid ledger lines.
• Pg. 2 illustrates the chiavette and chiavi
  naturali systems.

3
Format

• Very few scores have survived -- most examples
  are in voice parts.
• Choir Books have the parts written on facing
  pages (figure 1-3, pg. 3) Part Books contain a
  number of compositions for one voice (example
  6-15, pg. 61).

4
Format

• Pitch, while not standardized, is thought to have
  been about a whole step higher than A 440.
• Singers performed with a thin, nasal tone, no
  vibrato, emphasizing a pure tone.
• Church choirs were often doubled with an organ or
  other instruments.

5
Rhythm

• Figure 1-4, pg. 5, illustrates the note durations
  used in the 16th century.
• The Maxima and Longa are fairly rare.
• The semifusa is almost nonexistent in vocal
  music.
• The only means to alter the duration of a note is
  with a dot -- no barlines.
• The duration of a whole note plus a quarter not
  is not possible.

6
Ecclesiastical Modes

• The seven white note pitches plus B-flat are
  used.
• The finalis (last note) determines the mode.
• The final tones were D, E, F, or G -- Dorian,
  Phrygian, Lydian, and Mixolydian modes.
• The authentic mode basically spanned the range of
  finalis to finalis the plagal mode (Hypo-mode)
  basically started a perfect fourth lower.

7
Ecclesiastical Modes

• The other important note in the mode is the
  recitation tone.
• This is usually a perfect fifth above the finalis
  in the authentic modes.
• Figure 1-5, pg. 7, illustrates the finalis and
  recitation tone of each mode.
• The terms tonic and dominant are erroneous as the
  concept of functional tonality does not apply to
  music for another 200 years.

8
Ecclesiastical Modes

• B-flat is the only accidental used.
• It was employed to avoid the tritone or as a
  neighbor tone to A.
• The use of B-flat in the Dorian and Lydian modes
  eventually lead to the Aeolian (natural minor)
  and the Ionian (major) modes which are added by
  the late Renaissance Period.
• Musica Ficta -- accidentals that were not written
  in, but were a matter of performance practice --
  were used to add leading tones for the cadences.

9
Ecclesiastical Modes

• F-sharp is never used to alter the tritone.
• The modes could be transposed up a perfect
  fourth, creating a key signature of one flat.
• Figure 1-7, pg. 13, illustrates the mode-defining
  tones.
• Latin pronunciation is illustrated on pg. 13 and
  14.