Music History - Year B
Music in the Middle Ages
Most of the music created after Rome fell was commissioned by the church. The Catholic religion has a long history of involvement with the musical arts. In 600 AD Pope Gregory had the Schola Cantarum built. This was the first music school in Europe.
Meanwhile in China, music was progressing also: it was reported that in 612 AD there were orchestras with hundreds of musicians performing for the assorted dynasties. Although the specific music from this period in China is unknown, the distinct style developed there is reflected even in recent orchestral Asiatic pieces.
In 650 AD a new system of writing music was developed using "neumes" as a notation for groups of notes in music.
144 years after the Schola Cantarum was built, a singing school opened in the Monastery of Fuda, fueling the interest in musical vocation. And by 790 AD, there were splinters of the Schola Cantarum in Paris, Cologne and Metz.
In 800 AD the great unifier Charlemagne had poems and psalms set to music.
In 850 AD Catholic musicians had a breakthrough by inventing the church "modes." These modes would later metamorphose into today's major and minor scales. In 855 the first polyphonic (2 unrelated melodies/voices at once) piece was recorded, and by 1056 this polyphonic style replaced Gregorian chants as the music of choice. Though the Church banned the use of polyphonic music in the Liturgy; the ban was later lifted.
In 980, the great tome Antiphononium Codex Montpellier was scribed.
In 1000 Guido D'Arezzo made many improvements in music theory. He first improved and reworked standard notation to be more user-friendly by adding time signatures. Then he invented solfege. This is the vocal note scale: do, re, mi, fa, so, la ,ti, do. This innovation has affected almost every modern vocalist.
In 1100, a new secular movement began. This separation of Church from music was a straddling one, and soon this new "folk" music was looked down upon as pagan and borderline blasphemous.
Meanwhile in China, music was progressing also: it was reported that in 612 AD there were orchestras with hundreds of musicians performing for the assorted dynasties. Although the specific music from this period in China is unknown, the distinct style developed there is reflected even in recent orchestral Asiatic pieces.
In 650 AD a new system of writing music was developed using "neumes" as a notation for groups of notes in music.
144 years after the Schola Cantarum was built, a singing school opened in the Monastery of Fuda, fueling the interest in musical vocation. And by 790 AD, there were splinters of the Schola Cantarum in Paris, Cologne and Metz.
In 800 AD the great unifier Charlemagne had poems and psalms set to music.
In 850 AD Catholic musicians had a breakthrough by inventing the church "modes." These modes would later metamorphose into today's major and minor scales. In 855 the first polyphonic (2 unrelated melodies/voices at once) piece was recorded, and by 1056 this polyphonic style replaced Gregorian chants as the music of choice. Though the Church banned the use of polyphonic music in the Liturgy; the ban was later lifted.
In 980, the great tome Antiphononium Codex Montpellier was scribed.
In 1000 Guido D'Arezzo made many improvements in music theory. He first improved and reworked standard notation to be more user-friendly by adding time signatures. Then he invented solfege. This is the vocal note scale: do, re, mi, fa, so, la ,ti, do. This innovation has affected almost every modern vocalist.
In 1100, a new secular movement began. This separation of Church from music was a straddling one, and soon this new "folk" music was looked down upon as pagan and borderline blasphemous.
Folk Singers and Wandering Minstrels
The Renaissance
On the dawn of the Renaissance in 1465 the printing press was first used to print music. By using a press a composer could organize his pieces and profit from them with great ease.
In 1490 Boethius's writings on opera were republished in Italian.
With the onset of the Renaissance, the rules of music were about to change drastically. This was the beginning of a new enlightened age that would showcase some of the greatest musical minds ever produced.
In 1490 Boethius's writings on opera were republished in Italian.
With the onset of the Renaissance, the rules of music were about to change drastically. This was the beginning of a new enlightened age that would showcase some of the greatest musical minds ever produced.
Source: https://method-behind-the-music.com/history/history/