MUSIC 15 Chapter Notes - Chapter Week 4: Tomás Luis De Victoria, Josquin Des Prez, Missa Papae Marcelli
•MITA: An Eventful Story-> Chapter 4->”The Mass”
Polyphonic motets and polyphonic Mass
Motets
● Medieval motet, though erected on plainchant, employed vernacular texts as well as
Latin
○ Shows how thin and often irrelevant the line was between sacred and secular
○ Often dealt with secular themes, functioned a symbol of political prestige and
authority
■ Multi-voice (3-6) motets were common, intended to be sung (sometimes
instruments doubled vocal lines)
● each voice moved within its well defined register, though voices
may cross occasionally
The Mass
● Machaut introduced the idea of polyphonic settings of the Mass Ordinary
○ Composers built Mass around a recurring melody (cantus firmus), which they
would elaborate and embellish
○ Elaborate means of musical organization favored by Renaissance composers
undermined the clarity and intelligibility of Mass text
■ Since musical structure tended to overshadow presentation of text,
Renaissance settings of Mass celebrate powers of man equally with
glories of God
■ First peak in Josquin des Prez and final flowering in Giovanni Pierluigi di
Palestrina
Josquin des Pres
● Brought almost ravenous range of techniques to his work
● “L’homme armé”
○ Makes use of the hexachord
○ Kyrie ©, Gloria (D), Credo (E), Sanctus and Osanna (F), Agnus Dei (G) and
Agnus (A)
○ Draws heavily on imitation technique
Giovanni Pierluigi di Palestrina
● Great example of late Renaissance polyphony
○ Greatly influenced by Counter Reformation, centered in the Council of Trent (see
lecture notes)
● Six-voiced “Pope Marcellus Mass”
○ Focused on the clearest possible presentation of the text
■ Starts each line of text together in all the participating voices
● Severely curtails the opportunities for imitation
● Limited melismas
○ Saved polyphonic music from being banned in Catholic services
■ Satisfied the Vatican without sacrificing musical values
Tomas Luis de Victoria
find more resources at oneclass.com
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Document Summary
Medieval motet, though erected on plainchant, employed vernacular texts as well as. Shows how thin and often irrelevant the line was between sacred and secular. Often dealt with secular themes, functioned a symbol of political prestige and authority. Multi-voice (3-6) motets were common, intended to be sung (sometimes instruments doubled vocal lines) Each voice moved within its well defined register, though voices may cross occasionally. Machaut introduced the idea of polyphonic settings of the mass ordinary. Composers built mass around a recurring melody (cantus firmus), which they would elaborate and embellish. Elaborate means of musical organization favored by renaissance composers undermined the clarity and intelligibility of mass text. Since musical structure tended to overshadow presentation of text, Renaissance settings of mass celebrate powers of man equally with glories of god. First peak in josquin des prez and final flowering in giovanni pierluigi di. Brought almost ravenous range of techniques to his work.
