Sunday, February 26, 2017

Welcome to the course on early Western Classical Music (c. 400 - 1600)


      Course Description

                Survey the development of Western classical music from the Christian plainchants 
        of the late Roman Empire to the 1607 premier of Claudio Monteverdi's L'Orfeo, music's 
        first great opera.  Learn of developments in melody, harmony, and musical notation, as  
        well as many genres, both sacred and secular, including chansons, motets, madrigals, and  
        the mass ordinary.  

                Experience the music of over a dozen composers including Hildegard of Bingen, 
        Guillaume de Machaut,  Josquin des Prez, and Giovanni Palestrina.  Learn of  medieval 
        troubadours and their songs of courtly love, how Renaissance humanism affected 16th 
        century music, and how changes in Late Renaissance music led to the Baroque era.
        Understand how historical events like the rise of the  Carolingian Empire, the Hundred 
        Years' war, and the Reformation and Counter-Reformation affected music history. 

                 Audio recordings and performance videos compliment instructor talks.  Class  
        discussion is encouraged.  


Course Syllabus

                 Day 1  -  Music of the Middle Ages  c. 400 - 1400 
 

                 Day 2  -  Renaissance Music c.  1400 - 1600