Early Polyphony
Setting
sound
Significance
church music after the great schism. Economic prosperity and stability increased the market for music and allowed for construction of more monasteries, convents, etc. new denominations based on interpretation and practices
Gothic Architecture: Mid 12th century
Tall, and large highly decorated and complexly designed churches.
Scholasticism: Mid 12th Century
Revival of ancient learning and study of philosophy as well as reasoning. Commentary on sacred and secular knowledge
Polyphony: Emerged mid 12th century
Multiple independent melodic lines sounding at once performing its own function. Chant plus ornaments (soloist). Developed to match complexity of the Gothic architecture
Early Polyphony influenced the development of music theory traditions like counterpoint, harmony, notation and composition
Composition: Music had always been composed, performed, and passed down orally. As music with multiple parts started growing longer and more complex, it would have been harder to compose orally and organize the parts. Composing ahead of time using notation became more practical for elaborate polyphony
Counterpoint: For the first time we had two independent lines. These voices could move at the same time or move on their own, either in parallel motion, oblique or contrary motion. Notre Dame Polyphony was the first body of music to ever have more than 2 independent voices
Notation: Similarly to manner of composition, notation developed as a result of increasingly complex music, in order to preserve the ornamented music and be sure it would be performed similarly every time. Rhythmic duration was dictated for the first time in Notre Dame Polyphony. It was easier to learn and memorize complex music if it were written down instead of just listening
Harmony: Early polyphony began using harmonic practices that we still use today. Consonances and dissonances determined how voices could move to create or avoid those intervals. Unisons, Octaves, Fourths and Fifths were considered consonances. The use of cadences was also used more in this time.
Early Organum: 2 voices, a chant (principal voice) and an additional voice to add musical gloss (organal voice)
Parallel: voices move the same but an interval apart (ex. same melody but a fifth below)
Mixed and Oblique: a chant and a lower pitch drone
Free: a chant on Bottom and a decorative voice on top. constantly changing intervals, same time
Aquitanian Polyphony: Early 1100's: 2 voices, Top organal voices moves faster. Principal voice on bottom, slower. Focus has shifted to embellishment
Florid: Top voice is irregular and much faster, several notes per one note in the bottom voice
Discant: Both voices move at about the same pace
Notre Dame Polyphony: Late 1100's to Early 1200's: designed to match ornate, Gothic style cathedrals. Very melissmatic with more than 2 voices
Leononius: Early Notre Dame Polyphony.
2 voices, tenor (lower voice with the original chant) and diplum (higher additional voice)
Perotinus: Later Notre Dame Polyphony
Additional voices: Diplum, triplum, quadruplum. voices can be similar and exchange melodies.
clausula: a self contained section of an organum. set a word or syllable from the chant and closes with a cadence.