Palestrina, Lamentations

I. Ars perfecta (The Perfect Art)

A. Ars perfecta = Catholic Sacred Music of the Late Renaissance

B. Dates = ca. 1550 - 1600

C. Ars perfecta connotes esp. Josquin + sacred music of late Renaissance composers:

•Lasso (Germany), •Byrd (England), •Victoria (Spain) and

•Palestrina (Italy)

II. Placing the Ars perfecta historically

II. Placing the Ars Perfecta historically

Early Ren 1. Dufay Binchois 1425-75

2. Ockeghem, Busnois and Contemporaries 1450-1500

High 3. Josquin and Contemporaries 1480-1520

4. Arcadelt, Gombert, Willaert 1500-60

Late ARS PERFECTA 1550-1600

5. Palestrina, Lasso, Victoria, Byrd

A. Chronology:

Stable Features? Changing Features?

1.Performing Forces?2.Texture?3.Tempo (Fast – Slow – Moderate)?4.Tempo (Steady Pulses or Fluctuating)?5.Number of Different Voices?6.Amount of Dissonance?7.Amount of Imitation?8.Phrases clearly set off or “Run on”?

II. Renaissance in Review: Placing the Ars Perfecta historically

Early Ren 1. Dufay Binchois 1425-75

2. Ockeghem, Busnois and Contemporaries 1450-1500

High 3. Josquin and Contemporaries 1480-1520

4. Arcadelt, Gombert, Willaert 1500-60

Late ARS PERFECTA 1550-1600

5. Palestrina, Lasso, Victoria, Byrd

A. Chronology:

Stable Features? Changing Features?

III. Placing the Ars Perfecta Musically

1. Stable Traits from Early to Late

2. Changing Traits •increasing preference for more voices (fuller textures)

3. Imitative polyphony in many voices + careful control of dissonances= A “Perfect Art”

•texture: polyphony; some homophonic texture

•performance style: a cappella

•phrases: seamless, no sharp breaks, stops, or silences

•tempo: moderate and steady pulse

•increasing control of dissonance

•increasing use of imitation

IV. Sacred Music and Catholic Liturgy

A. Mass vs. Offices (Hours)

B. Proper of the Mass vs. Ordinary of the Mass (see Wright, p. 83)

C. The Texts of the Ordinary

Kyrie, Gloria, Credo, Sanctus, Agnus Dei

D. Masses often take titles from borrowed music:

cantus firmus, paraphrase, parody (a.k.a. imitation Mass)

Sanctus from the Mass, Eternal Gifts of Christ by Palestrina

*Ite missa est (rarely set as polyphony)

V. Palestrina and the Counter-Reformation

A. Council of Trent, 1545 - 1563

B. Controversies Surrounding Music

C. Palestrina and the Myth of the Pope Marcellus Mass

•Lack of standardization

•Use of profane melodies in cantus firmus compositions

•Complicated imitative polyphony renders sacred words unintelligible

No problemo!

Palestrina, Pope Marcellus Mass, Gloria

Et in terra pax hominibus, bonae voluntatis,

Laudamus te, benedicimus te, adoramus te, glorificamus te

Gratias agimus tibi, propter magnum gloriam tuam . . .

Palestrina, Pope Marcellus Mass: Agnus Dei

VII. A Perfect Art: The Musical Style of Palestrina and the Late Renaissance

A. Melody

B. Harmony

C. Dissonance

Suspension:1. Preceded by Consonance (Cons)2. 1 voice “hangs onto” its note while other voice moves (Diss) 3. Suspended note “catches up” resolves down by step (Cons)

(Finetti Suspensions)

V. A Perfect Art: The Musical Style of Palestrina and the Late Renaissance

A. Melody

B. Harmony

C. Dissonance Treatment

D. Texture

E. Pulse or Beat

Holy, Holy, Holy, Heaven and earth are full of Thy glory.

Wright Textbook, p. 100:

Even today, courses for advanced music students

include practice in composing in the pure contrapuntally

correct style of Palestrina. Thus, the spirit of the

Counter-Reformation continued to influence

musicians long after the Renaissance had come to an end.