Early Medieval Music

Monophony  -  the simplest of musical textures, consisting of a melody (or "tune"), typically sung or played by an instrument  (e.g., a flute player) without accompanying harmony or chords.

Homophony  -  is a texture in which a primary part is supported by one or more additional strands that flesh out the harmony and often provide rhythmic contrast

Polyphony   -  consists of two or more simultaneous lines of independent melody, as opposed to a musical texture with just one voice, monophony, or a texture with one dominant melodic voice accompanied by chords, which is called homophony.

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The Medieval era (or the Middle Ages) began around 400 A.D. depending on what historical event is used as a marker for the Fall of the Western Roman Empire.

The Roman Empire was at its greatest territorial extent and power with the accession of Diocletian in 284.  Constantine "the Great" issues the Edict of Milan in 313 declaring toleration for Christianity.

Irreversible major territorial loss began in 376 with invasions of Goths and others. By 476 when Odoacer deposed the Emperor Romulus, the Western Roman Emperor wielded negligible military, political, or financial power and had no effective control over the scattered Western domains that could still be described as Roman.  Invading "barbarians" had established their own power in most of the area of the Western  Empire.  While its legitimacy lasted for centuries longer and its cultural influence remains today, the Western Roman Empire never rebounded. 


Medieval art was mostly religious; very focused on creating symbols of Christian concepts/values.   It served a purpose: "Before a worshipper has even entered the church, he would find images of saints and sinners, of angelic beings and the punishment of the damned (suffering).  All stood as a reminder of the importance of holding one's thoughts to God."  Medieval art was not concerned with realism.  Statues and paintings were shallow and flat (two dimensional).  Bodies might be out of proportion.  Faces were largely expressionless. 

John - 8th century

Early Medieval Music

Ambrose  (c. 314 - 397)  Traditionally, Ambrose is credited with promoting "antiphonal chant", a style
              of chanting in which one side of the choir responds alternately to the other, as well as with
              composing Veni redemptor gentium (Come, redeemer of nations), an Advent hymn.


Augustine of Hippo  (354 - 430)  de Musica  Augustine on music and religion

         “What cries I used to send up to Thee in those songs, and how I was enkindled toward Thee by them! 

           I burned to sing them if possible, throughout the whole world, against the pride of the human race”

         “The voices flowed into my ears; and the truth was poured forth into my heart, where the tide of my 

           devotion overflowed, and my tears ran down, and I was happy in all these things”


Boethius  (477 - 524)  De institutione musica

Pope Gregory I  (c. 540 - 604)  Gregorian chants are erroneously attributed to him.

Carolingian Empire

Pepin the Short  - King of the Franks, 751 - 768.   Charlemagne  (742 - 814)  

The Holy Roman Empire begins from Carolingian Empire (963)

         Roman chant and Gallician (Frankish / French) chant.  It is possible that Charlemagne 

         named the Roman Chant "Gregorian" chant to convince Franks of his empire to accept the 

         Roman chant over their Frankish chants. 

Alcuin of York  (c. 735 - 814)  and the Carolingian Renaissance

       Alcuin was an English scholar invited to Aachen by Charlemagne in 781 to set up a cathedral 

       school.  A great proponent of literacy, Alcuin devised one of the earliest standard curriculums 

       for elementary education.

Early medieval monasteries were central to the development of early Christian music.

The first musical notation (neumes) was created to spread Christian music from Rome throughout the Carolingian Empire sometime between 800 and 900.  Neumes could express the general shape of a melody line (move up, move down), but not the exact notes.  Below is an example of Neumes from Metz in northeastern France; an important center in the development of Christian chants.

The Early Development of Harmony...

     Video  -  Howard Goodall - The Story of Music - Part 1  (12 min)

           3rd or 4th century -  Plainchant  (Unison chants) 

           7th? century   -  Octave Chants   -  (men & boys) 

            Organum  -  Deum verum ("God, the true")

            Kassia of Constantinople  (c. 810 - 860)  1st woman composer  -
                       she mixed Parallel Organum & Drone Organum


    Before there were modern scales (in the 17th century), there were modes.  Unlike our modern set of 12 notes, medieval music had only 7 - they did not have sharps and flats (the 5 black keys of the piano)

    Psalmody -  singing to the texts of the Psalms - documented as early as 400 C.E.

The Psalms have always been an important part of Catholic liturgy.  The Liturgy of the Hours is centered on chanting or recitation of the Psalms, using fixed melodic formulas known as psalm tones.  Early Catholics employed the Psalms widely in their individual prayers also; however, as knowledge of Latin (the language of the Roman Rite) became uncommon, this practice ceased among the unlearned.  However, until the end of the Middle Ages, it was not unknown for the laity to join in the singing of the Little Office of Our Lady, which was a shortened version of the Liturgy of the Hours providing a fixed daily cycle of twenty-five psalms to be recited, and nine other psalms divided across Matins (on or after midnight).


    Melismatic singing  -  Multiple notes sang on one word syllable.  Melisma slows down the words of 

                                         a prayer so the listener can focus more on them.

    Tropes  -  

        Troping was an important compositional technique where local composers could add their own 

        voice to the body of liturgical music. These added ideas are valuable tools to examine compositional 

        trends in the Middle Ages, and help modern scholars determine the point of origin of the pieces


    Late 9th century  -  Notker the Stammerer & medieval musical sequences.

          A sequence (Latin: sequentia, plural: sequentiae) is a chant or hymn sung or recited during the 

          liturgical celebration of the Eucharist for many Christian denominations, before the proclamation 

          of the Gospel.  By the time of the Council of Trent (1543–1563) there were sequences for many 

          feasts in the Church's year.  The sequence has always been sung directly before the Gospel, after the 

          Alleluia. 

    c.  300 - 1000  -  The gradual development of the Mass Ordinary 


    c. 1000   -   Guido of Arezzo invents modern musical notation       Article - Origins of Notation

      900 - 1400  -   minstrel or jongleur (pronounce) -  Chanson de geste -  epic poems of bravery
                              avg 4,000 lines.   Song of Roland, The Poem of the Cid