Midterm All Terms Flashcards
two or more melodic lines combined
polyphony
melody with supporting harmony
homophony
all voices move in same rhythm
homorhythmic
melodic idea presented then restated in another voice; may be brief, or may last entire work; common unifying technique in polyphony
imitation
strict imitation; each voice enters in succession with the same melody
canon
perpetual canon - never ending
round
organizing principle in music; work’s structure or shape; repetition and contrast; unity and variety
form
only some aspects of music altered
variation
same melody with each stanza of text
strophic
no main section of music or text repeated
through-composed
made-up syllables, wordless vocables
scat singing
wordless vocal melody, singing on a neutral vowel
vocalize
music for worship, religious
sacred
language of Roman Catholic church; Medieval and Renaissance language of learning
Latin
nonreligious music; sung in the vernacular
secular
words and music that recur after each stanza
refrain/chorus
each syllable gets one note
syllabic
single syllable elongated by many notes
melismatic
a few notes to each syllable
neumatic
music pictorializes a word; emphasizes text
word-painting
performing forces of diverse instruments
heterogenous
strings, woodwinds, brass, and percussion
orchestra
performing forces of the same timbre
homogenous
c.400 - 1450
Middle Ages
c.1450 - 1600
Renaissance
c.1600 - 1750
Baroque
c.1750 - 1825
Classical
c.1820 - 1900
Romantic
c.1890 - 1915
Post-Romantic Impressionist
r. 590-604; codified church music, liturgy; credited with more than 3000 Gregorian melodies
Pope Gregory the Great
single-line melody, monophonic texture, Latin text, non-metric, avoids wide leaps, gentle contours, oral tradition, early notation with neumes, modal scales
plainchant/Gregorian chant
most solemn ritual of the church, reenactment of Christ’s Last Supper, contains variable and fixed portions
Catholic Mass
first prayer in the Ordinary of the Mass, only text in Greek, prayer for mercy, three lines long, invokes the Trinity
Kyrie
main melodic idea used as a building block in construction of a larger work
theme
Earliest kind of polyphonic music, which developed from the custom of adding voices above a plainchant; they first ran parallel to the chant at the interval of a fifth or fourth and later moved more freely
organum
Medieval poet-musicians in southern France.
troubadours
Medieval poet-musicians in northern France
trouvères
The set order of religious services and the structure of each service, within a particular denomination (e.g., Roman Catholic)
liturgy
Scale or sequence of notes used as the basis for a composition
mode
Based on principles of major-minor tonality, as distinct from modal.
tonal
Sections of the Roman Catholic Mass that vary from day to day throughout the church year according to the liturgical occasion, as distinct from the Ordinary, in which they remain the same.
Proper
Sections of the Roman Catholic Mass that remain the same from day to day throughout the church year, as distinct from the Proper, which changes daily according to the liturgical occasion
Ordinary
Performance style in which an ensemble is divided into two or more groups, performing in alternation and then together.
antiphonal
Large work for orchestra, generally in three or four movements
symphony
Performing forces employed in a certain musical work.
medium
A number, often part of the title of a piece, designating the work in chronological relationship to other works by the same composer.
opus number
The interweaving of melodic (horizontal) and harmonic (vertical) elements in the musical fabric.
texture
Texture in which two or more voices (or parts) elaborate the same melody simultaneously, often the result of improvisation.
heterophonic
Musical expansion of a theme by varying its melodic outline, harmony, or rhythm.
thematic development
Restatement of an idea or motive at a different pitch level.
sequence
Short melodic or rhythmic idea; the smallest fragment of a theme that forms a melodic-harmonic-rhythmic unit.
motive
Performance style with a singing leader who is imitated by a chorus of followers
call-response
A short melodic, rhythmic, or harmonic pattern that is repeated throughout a work or a section.
ostinato
Complete, self-contained part within a larger musical work.
movement
A unit or verse of poetry; also a stanza.
strophe
Ensemble music for up to about ten players, with one player to a part.
chamber music
A chamber group comprised of a soloist with piano. Also, in the Baroque period, a sonata for a melody instrument and basso continuo.
duo sonata
Polyphonic form popular in the Baroque era, in which one or more themes are developed by imitative counterpoint.
fugue
French monophonic or polyphonic song, especially of the Middle Ages and Renaissance, set to either courtly or popular poetry.
chanson
Musical form in which the first section recurs several times, usually in the tonic. In the Classical multimovement cycle, it appears as the last movement in various forms, such as A-B-A-B-A, A-B-A-C-A, and A-B-A-C-A-B-A
rondo
A form of English street song, popular from the sixteenth through the eighteenth centuries. Ballads are characterized by narrative content and strophic form.
ballad
A striking effect designed to depict the meaning of the text in vocal music; found in many madrigals and other genres of the sixteenth through eighteenth centuries.
madrigalism
Renaissance secular work (originating in Italy) for voices, with or without instruments, set to a short, lyric love poem; also popular in England.
madrigal
“Fixed melody,” usually of very long notes, often based on a fragment of Gregorian chant, that served as the structural basis for a polyphonic composition, particularly in the Renaissance.
cantus firmus
Polyphonic vocal genre, often secular in the Middle Ages but sacred or devotional thereafter.
motet
The second musical section of the Ordinary of the Mass.
Gloria
The third musical section of the Ordinary of the Mass.
Credo
The fourth musical section of the Ordinary of the Mass.
Sanctus
The last musical section of the Ordinary of the Mass.
Agnus Dei
Medieval bowed-string instrument, often with a pear-shaped body.
rebec
Early brass instrument, ancestor of the trombone.
sackbut
Early instrument of the brass family with woodwind-like finger holes; developed from the cow horn but was made of wood.
cornetto
Cylindrical medieval drum
tabor
Stately Renaissance court dance in duple meter.
pavane
Music drama that is generally sung throughout, combining the resources of vocal and instrumental music with poetry and drama, acting and dancing, scenery and costumes.
opera
Baroque practice consisting of an independent bass line that often includes numerals indicating the harmony to be supplied by the performer. Also called thorough-bass.
figured bass
Italian for “continuous bass.” See figured bass. Also refers to a performance group with a chordal instrument (harpsichord, organ) and one bass melody instrument (cello, bassoon)
basso continuo
A prayer of thanks to God, sung after a psalm or at the close of the Magnificat.
doxology
An indication to return to the beginning of a piece.
da capo
Solo vocal declamation that follows the inflections of the text, often resulting in a disjunct vocal style; found in opera, cantata, and oratorio.
recitative
Lyric song for solo voice with orchestral accompaniment, generally expressing intense emotion; found in opera, cantata, and oratorio.
aria
An introductory movement, as in an opera or oratorio, often presenting melodies from arias to come. Also an orchestral work for concert performance.
overture
Short instrumental work, found in Baroque opera, to facilitate scene changes.
sinfonia
English genre of aristocratic entertainment that combined vocal and instrumental music with poetry and dance, developed during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.
masque
Country dance of the British Isles, often in a lively triple meter; optional dance movement of solo and orchestral Baroque suites.
hornpipe
A repeating melody, usually in the bass, throughout a vocal or instrumental composition.
ground bass
Congregational hymn of the German Lutheran church.
chorale
An association of amateur musicians, popular in the Baroque era. Also a modern university ensemble dedicated to the performance of early music.
collegium musicum
Three-part A-A-B form, frequently used in music and poetry, particularly in Germany.
bar form
Large-scale dramatic genre originating in the Baroque, based on a text of religious or serious character, performed by solo voices, chorus, and orchestra; similar to opera but without scenery, costumes, or action.
oratorio
Lyric song in ternary, or A-B-A, form, commonly found in operas, cantatas, and oratorios.
de capo aria
Short, recurring instrumental passage found in the Baroque aria and concerto.
ritornello
A religious choral composition in English; performed liturgically, the Protestant equivalent of the motet.
anthem
Multimovement work made up of a series of contrasting dance movements, generally all in the same key.
suite
German dance in moderate duple meter, popular during the Renaissance and Baroque periods; often the first movement of a Baroque suite.
allemande
French Baroque dance, a standard movement of the suite, in triple meter at a moderate tempo.
courante
Stately Spanish Baroque dance type in triple meter, a standard movement of the Baroque suite.
sarabande
An elegant triple-meter dance type popular in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries; usually in binary form.
minuet
Duple-meter French Baroque dance type with a moderate to quick tempo.
gavotte
Lively French Baroque dance type in duple meter.
bourée
French Baroque court dance type; a faster version of the minuet.
passepied
Popular English Baroque dance type, a standard movement of the Baroque suite, in a lively compound meter.
gigue
Instrumental genre in several movements for solo instrument (or instrumental group) and orchestra.
concerto
Instrumental music endowed with literary or pictorial associations, especially popular in the nineteenth century.
program music
Interlude or intermediate section in the Baroque fugue that serves as an area of relaxation between statements of the subject. In a Baroque concerto, the free and inventive material that alternates with returns of the ritornello, or instrumental refrain.
episode
Instrumental work preceding a larger work.
prelude
Virtuoso composition, generally for organ or harpsichord, in a free and rhapsodic style; in the Baroque era, it often served as the introduction to a fugue.
toccata
The main idea or theme of a fugue.
subject
Second entry of the subject in a fugue, usually pitched a fourth below or a fifth above the subject.
answer
Opening section. In a fugue, the first section in which the voices enter in turn with the subject. In sonata-allegro form, the first section in which the major thematic material is stated. Also statement.
exposition
Texture employing counterpoint, or two or more melodic lines.
contrapuntal
Statement of a melody in longer note values, often twice as slow as the original.
augmentation
Statement of a melody in shorter note values, often twice as fast as the original.
diminution
Backward statement of a melody.
retrograde
Mirror or upside-down image of a melody or pattern, found in fugues and twelve-tone compositions.
inversions
In a fugue, when entries of the subject occur at faster intervals of time so that they overlap, forming dense, imitative counterpoint
stretto
f. 1150 - 1201; Notre Dame composer; compiled Magnus liber organi
Leonin
expanded organum to 3 - 4 voices
Perotin
c.1155-1207, son of a poor knight, in service of Marquis Boniface I of Montferrat, achieved knighthood, 35 surviving poems with 7 preserved in music
Raimbaut de Vaqueriras
essential education in medieval times covering music, mathematics, geometry, and astronomy
quadrivium
given to the church as a tithe, poet, prophet, composer, mystic, founded monastery in Germany, saint
Hildegard of Bingen
religious seclusion; devoted to prayer, scholarship, preaching, charity, healing the sick; arduous discipline; daily Offices
monasteries/convents
wandering, versatile entertainers; musicians on the fringe of society; music not notated
minstrels
c.1300-1377; foremost composer of the Ars Nova; cleric & courtier; worked at various French courts; works for posterity, final years at Cathedral of Reims, composed motets, chansons, earliest complete settings of the Ordinary of the Mass
Guillaume de Machaut
1567-1643; court position in Mantua; choirmaster at St. Mark’s in Venice for 30 years; wrote 9 books of madrigals, sacred music, operas
Claudio Monteverdi
most important secular genre of the Renaissance; three to eight voices, poetry & music; flourished in Italian courts; favorite diversion of cultivated amateurs; sung from part books; topics of love, unrequited love, humor, satire, politics, city life, country life, word-painting
madrigal
early 1300s in France; developments in rhythm, meter, harmony, counterpoint, interest in regularity and complexity of musical patterns, secular
Ars Nova
sacred vocal work with a text in latin; combined newly written texts with prescribed prayers; praise of Virgin Mary
motet
poetic forms of rondeau, virelai, and ballade
fixed forms
1551 collection of popular dance types
Danserye
c.1450-1521; varied career in northern Europe, Italy and France; composed over 100 motets, 17 Masses, French chansons, Italian secular songs
Josquin des Prez
1483-1546; posted 95 Theses in 1517; excommunicated by Catholic Church; believed in monophonic congregational singing in the vernacular as basis of Christian worship
Martin Luther
1545-1563; Catholic Reformation; regulated every aspect of religious discipline; objected to instruments, popular songs, and secular spirit in Masses, corruption of traditional change; complex polyphony obscuring sacred text
Council of Trent
c.1515-1571; composer, instrumentalist, printer; played all brass and woodwind instruments of his day; Antwerp city band
Tielman Susato
c.1525-1594; Italian composer, organist and choirmaster at St. Peter’s in Rome (Vatican); known for clear vocal declamation of text and piety; composed mostly sacred music, over 100 Masses, madrigals, and motets
Giovanni Pierluigi de Palestrina
solo soprano with harpsichord or lute
monody
1602-c.1676; Benedictine nun, choir director, composer, works published; circulated beyond the convent; complete set of Vespers psalms, motets, dialogues, Magnificats; prioress at St.Radegunda in Milan
Chiara Margarita Cozzolani
1619-c.1677; secular singer/composer; probably illegitimate daughter of Venetian poet; possibly a courtesan; 8 volumes of music published in her lifetime
Barbara Strozzi
originated as a country dance, circle or line dance; AABB
ronde
lyrical song; highly emotional; character dwells on intense emotion; action is frozen, release of tension in the action
aria
Canticle of Mary; text from Gospel of Luke; closes with doxology
Magnificat
repeating bass line used as a means of composing and creating form
ground bass
instruments providing the harmonic accompaniment; usually played by a harpsichord or lute with a cello or bassoon
basso continuo
1689; based on episode in Virgil’s Aeneid; contains “When I am laid in earth” aria over a ground bass
Dido and Aeneas
1659-1695; English court musician, composer, organist, and singer; taught at a girls’ boarding school; assimilated Italian, French and English styles; composed masques, operas, sacred and secular vocal music and instrumental music
Henry Purcell
1685-1750; culminating figure of Baroque style; German composer, organ virtuoso, devout Lutheran; held court positions at Weimar and Anhalt-Cöthen; music director at St. Thomas Church in Leipzig; unequalled mastery of counterpoint; composed in all genres EXCEPT opera; wrote The Well-Tempered Clavier, The Art of the Fugue
Bach
large-scale dramatic genre for solo voices, chorus, orchestra; performed in concert setting without scenery or costumes; includes recitatives, arias, duets, trios, choruses; biblical story
oratorio
German hymn tunes; composed or recycled melodies; German poetry, translated or interpreted Biblical passages; specifically integrated into weekly service; sung in unison by congregation and in four-part harmony by professional choir
Chorales
multimovement work for soloists, chorus, and orchestra with solo arias, recitatives, and choruses; “musical sermon”; elaboration of weekly hymn; based on Gospel reading of the day
Lutheran cantata
1678-1741; virtuoso violinist, composer, and priest; music master at the Pieta in Venice; over 230 violin concertos; other solo, double, triple, and orchestra concertos; sinfonias, vocal music; operas; oratorios; Mass movements; Magnificat; died in poverty due to overspending
Antonio Vivaldi
published in 1770 featuring original works by William Billings; frontispiece engraved by Paul Revere; introduction discussed basics of notation and music theory; simple homophonic textures with melody often in tenor
The New England Psalm Singer
1746-1800; most famous American composer of polyphonic repertory; self-taught musician; practiced at other trades; taught at Boston-area singing schools; musical publications became popular; mixed sacred texts with political references, close connections to radical elements of independence movement; composed over 340 works used in singing schools and churches
William Billings
1685-1759; German composer, director, producer; worked in Italy, Germany, England; wrote, directed and produced Italian-style opera; Royal Academy of Music (1720); buried at Westminster Abbey; composed over 40 Italian operas, English oratorio, orchestral suites, concertos, keyboard and chamber music
George Friederic Handel
an instrumental genre, typically in three movements, that generally featured either a solo instrument or a small group of soloists set against a larger ensemble
concerto
refrain-based structure featuring orchestra alternating with a solo section to create the form of a movement
ritornello
alternating section in a concerto movement that features the soloist/soloists
episodes
free-form piece for organ based on improvisation, showcasing the performer’s dexterity with highly contrasting musical ideas and tempos; often paired with an organized form
toccata and prelude
genre and process; contrapuntal composition based on imitation; systematic elaboration of short musical ideas; written for solo keyboard, groups of instruments, or voices
fugue
overlapping statements of the fugue subject
stretto
contrapuntal device by which the fugue theme is presented in shorter rhythmic values
diminution
