Terms Flashcards
Antiphon
refers properly to short syllabic pieces that precede and follow a psalm or canticle, but the term is loosely used for longer works of a processional nature as well as for settings of four texts dealing with the Virgin Mary (the Marian Antiphons)
Ballade
a prominent Medieval type of chanson, one of the three formes fixes; musical scheme is AAB or AABB
Bar Form
an AAB form used frequently in the songs of the Minnesinger and Meistersinger; later used in Lutheran hymns and Bach chorales
Clausula
a short section of polyphony in an otherwise monophonic chant
Conductus
polyphonic 2-part genre of the ars antiqua
Discant
note-against-note counterpoint in the rhythmic modes; usually in contrary motion and mostly in imperfect consonances; all parts move at the same speed
Perfect tempus, greater prolation
9/8
Imperfect tempus, greater prolation
6/8
Perfect tempus, lesser prolation
3/4
Imperfect tempus, lesser prolation
2/4
Neumatic
an adjective describing a style of performing chant in which two to four notes are often used on one syllable
Organum
the earliest form of polyphony; based on chant as cantus firmus
Types of organum
parallel (movement in same direction)
free (oblique and/or contrary motion)
melismatic (top voice contains many notes, bottom one)
measured (motion according to rhythmic modes)
Recitation tone
a melodic pattern centered on the fifth note of the appropriate church mode; used to intone long liturgical texts such as the Epistle
Rondeau (French)
a significant Medieval type of chanson; form ABaAabAB; formes fixes
Sequence
a poetic and musical trope added in Medieval times to the Gregorian Alleluia
Trope
a textual and/or musical interpolation into the liturgy and its established musical repertory; sequences are tropes
Virelai (French)
an important Medieval type of chanson; form AbbaA; formes fixes
Portative organ
a portable organ small enough that one player could operate the bellows with the left hand and the keyboard with the right
Air de cour (French)
an accompanied French strophic song for one or two voices from the Late Renaissance and Baroque periods
Anthem (English)
evolved from the Latin motet after the Reformation; sacred text in English; assumed the role of the motet in English Anglican and Protestant services; simpler, more homophonic than motet
Balletto (Italian)
a dance-like vocal piece in homophonic style; principal composer was Giovanni Gastoldi
Canzonetta (Italian)
a short composition of the canzona type for voices; light dance-like character
Concertato (Italian)
a term derived from concerto and used as an adjective to mean concerto-like with reference to the contrasting instrumental and/or vocal groups in music of the late sixteenth and seventeenth centuries
Familiar style
a term referring to passages in vocal music sung in chordal or homophonic fashion; contrast learned, contrapuntal style
Madrigalism / Madrigalian
the highly developed use of tone-painting in the madrigal, a characteristic that then appeared in both chanson and motet
Motto theme
the term refers to a motive that appears at the beginning of several or all of the movements of a Renaissance Mass
Parody
the practice of reworking a polyphonic composition (such as a motet or chanson) so that it forms the basis for a Mass
Psalter
a book of musical settings for Protestant congregational singing
Service
the musical portions of the Anglican liturgy, including the portions from the Mass Ordinary; Short (set syllabically) and Great (contrapuntal)
Verse anthem
an anthem which juxtaposed instrumental sections and solo voice sections with full choir
Full anthem
an anthem which is written only for choir, a cappella
Villancico (Spanish)
a Spanish song of the Renaissance in a form similar to the Italian ballata; three or four voices; also for accompanied solo voice
Arioso (Italian)
a type of solo vocal writing that is more song-like than recitative and less formal than aria
Basso seguente
a bass part which plays only the lowest notes, regardless of texture
Camerata
a small Renaissance academy, the most famous of which met in FLorence about 1580 at the palace of Count Giovanni de’ Bardi; seeking to rediscover the expressive power of Greek music led the group to experiment with Baroque monody
Doctrine of Affections
an attempt by Baroque theorists and composers to codify the means of expressing emotions in music by imparting conventional meanings to certain keys, tempi, rhythmic patterns, and even to intervals; once created, melodic figures or motives were then spun-out throughout a movement or section of a piece in accordance with the Baroque musico-dramatic practice of presenting one affection at a tim
Ritornello (Italian)
a recurring instrumental theme that serves to unify a composition, whether instrumental or vocal
Stile concitato (Italian)
a style of dramatic expression in which excitement is conveyed by rapid reiteration of single notes, generally in string tremolos
Empfindsamer Stil
an expressive German style of the early Classical period which relies strongly on changes of mood and dynamics
Intermezzo
a 17th and 18th c. type of comic opera in 2 parts (e.g. Pergolesi’s “La serva padrona”
Minuet
an elegant French dance in moderate triple meter; optional in the Baroque suite, it became the standard 3rd movement of the Classical symphony
Rondo-form
a sectional form featuring one prominent theme set off by contrasting episodes, as in the following pattern: ABACABA. Often found as the clowing movement of a sonata or concerto.
Sonatina
a short, simple sonata; or, a modification of the sonata-form in which there is no development
Style galant
a light-textured, elegant style of the early Classical period
Absolute music
music without extra-musical or programmatic associations
Cabaletta
the second part of a 19thc double aria, with a faster tempo and requiring greater virtuosity from the singer
Cavatina
the first part of a 19thc double aria, normally shorter and simpler than the second
Cross-rhythm
simultaneous use of conflicting rhythmic patterns or accents
Leitmotif
a theme or motive that represents a character, emotion, idea, or even object. Leitmotifs are used as short, symbolic musical building blocks in the operas of Wagner and later composers.
Nationalism
characterized by the use of folk-like rhythms and melodies, as in the works of Mussorgsky, Smetana, and others
Parlando
a style of delivering recitative rapidly with some approximation of speech; features many repeated pitches
Thematic transformation
considerable variation of a recurring theme, especially of its mood and character; a practice employed often by programmatic composers of the Romantic period (Berlioz’s “Symphonie fantastique”)
Third relationship
when the roots of adjacent chords are a third apart
Dodecaphonic
an ambiguous term referring to the use of the 12 chromatic pitches but not making clear how they are being used; often used synonymously with the word serial
Expressionism
a word borrowed from art history to describe German and Austrian composers of the early 20th century who shared a deeply subjective approach to their craft, most prominently Schoenberg and Berg
Musique concrete
music made on tape with sounds drawn from nature and man-made noises (including human voices) rather than musical instruments; often altered electronically
Alternatim
alternation of polyphony and Gregorian chant, usually in sections of music set to verses of Biblical text; a compositional technique seen in settings of many Magnificats during the early decades of the Renaissance era
Cantoris
the portion of a choral ensemble in an Anglican church that is on the left side (facing the high altar) of the chancel area - the cantor’s side
Decani
the portion of a choral ensemble in an Anglican church that is on the right side (facing the high altar) of the chancel area - the dean’s side
Catch
a type of English round set to a humorous or ribald text and scored for 3 male voices
Cecilian
a reference to St. Cecilia, patron saint of music, and to societies of composers in Germany and Austria during the Romantic era who desired a return of church music to the motet style of Palestrina
Chantre ordinaire
normal singer in chapels and courts of the French Renaissance and Baroque
Collegium musicum
a society of amateur musicians, usually in a college or university, that presents regular concerts
Concerto della donne
an ensemble of women in the court of Ferrara in the mid- and late-16thc; famous for virtuosic performance of madrigals
Gebrauchsmusik
German for practical or useful music, used to describe compositions in the first half of the 20th century that were harmonically accessible and technically unchallenging and that could be performed by amateurs
Haute-contre
French term for a male alto or the alto part of a composition to be sung by an adult male
Head motif
a group of notes, usually from four to six, used as a motto or compositional unifying device at the beginning of the Kyrie, Gloria, Credo, Sanctus, and Agnus Dei portions of masses during the Renaissance era
Historicus
the evangelist or narrator in an oratorio
Intermedi
musical interludes for soloists and chorus; performed between acts of spoken plays during the 16th century in Italy
Kantorei
the singers and instrumentalists in a German chapel, court, or cathedral
Lai (p. Lais)
monophonic secular song of the Medieval era
Lauda
a nonliturgical monophonic sacred somposition of the 13th and 14th centuries, generally syllabic and set in verse/refrain format to an Italian text
Magnificat
a musical setting of the text from Luke 1:46-55; also called “Canticle of the Virgin”
Mean
a soprano voice part in music of the Renaissance era in England of medium range; lower than the treble part
Messe basse solennelle
French term for solemn low mass
Musica reservata
term used during the Renaissance era to describe compositions that set texts in an expressive manner without overt word painting
Note nere
a style of composition in the Renaissance era characterized by black notes (1/4s and 1/8s), as opposed to white notes (1/2s and wholes); usually seen in Italian madrigals of the latter half of the sixteenth century
Oratory
Baroque-era building or part of a church where prayer services were held and oratorios were presented
Pandiatonic
a composition of the 20th century characterized by the use of all eight notes of the diatonic scale in a tonal manner
Pantonal
a composition of the 20th century characterized by the use of all or most of the twelve notes of the chromatic scale used in a tonal or diatonic manner
Pastorale
a play that incorporates songs and choruses
Precentor
the staff member of an Anglican church who is responsible for leading the singing during liturgical services
Quodlibet
a composition in which multiple preexisting melodies are presented either successively or simultaneously
Responsorial
the alternation of a soloist(s) and chorus
Sepolcra
a type of Passion oratorio, generally performed on Maundy Thursday and Good Friday during the Baroque era, with costumes, some acting, and stage scenery consisting of a replica of the holy sepulchre
Soggetto cavato
Italian for “carved from the words”; a cantus firmus constructed of pitches that correspond to vowels of a name
Stile rappresentativo
Italian for representative style; used to refer to compositions of the early Baroque era that employ freedom of rhythm, as in recitative, to emulate natural speech patterns
Te Deum
a musical seeting of the sacred text “Te Deum laudamus, te Dominum confitemur” (We praise thee, O God, we acknowledge thee to be the Lord); usually set in Latin or English for services of thanksgiving, consecration, and other celebratory events
Voice exchange
(in German, Stimmtausch) - the scoring of two voices of the same vocal ragne that exchange melodic passages during the course of a composition
Cheironomy
use of hand signals to direct vocal music performance
Point of Imitation
a section of a polyphonic composition that is based on a single imitative idea
