Chapter 8: Church Music of the Late Renaissance and Reformation

The Music of the Reformation in Germany

1. Historical Background
1. Martin Luther was a singer and composer, and admired the music of Josquin des Prez.
2. Luther believed in the ethical power of music and wanted the entire congregation to participate.
3. Although some larger Lutheran churches retained the Latin liturgy and its polyphony, other churches developed new liturgy and musical styles.
2. The German Mass
1. Luther first published his German Mass in 1526.
2. He retained some features of the Roman Mass and discarded others.
3. Texts were in sometimes in German, and recitation formulas were adapted to the German language.
4. Hymns in German (chorales) replaced some musical portions of the Mass.
5. Local churches used the German and Latin Masses in individualized combinations.
3. The Lutheran Chorale
1. Strophic congregational hymn (chorale or Kirchenlied, church song)
2. Luther himself wrote many texts and some melodies, for example, the text of Ein' feste Burg ist unser Gott, 1529.
3. Many melodies came from Gregorian hymns, for example, Victimae Paschali laudes (NAWM 5) became Christ lag in Todesbanden (Christ Lay in the Bonds of Death).
4. Many chorales were contrafacta of secular songs (e.g., NAWM 34 and HWM, ex. 8.1; contrafacta are new or spiritualized texts added to extant music).
5. Polyphonic chorale settings used lied techniques, imitation, or cantus firmus techniques.
6. Arrangements with the tune in the highest voice to an accompaniment of block chords, became the favored technique in the last third of the century.
7. Lasso and other composers used the chorale melodies freely as the basis for composed polyphonic compositions (chorale motets).
4. Reformation Church Music Outside of Germany
1. Calvinist churches
1. Founded by Jean Calvin (1509–1564)
2. Allowed only monophonic singing of psalms in the vernacular
3. For singing at home, four-part settings in chorale or motet style were preferred.
4. The French Psalter was translated and published in other countries, such as England, Holland, and Germany.
5. Example: CHWM, ex. 8.32 (Psalm 134 in France, "Old Hundredth" in English psalters)
6. The 1620 Psalter of the New England pilgrims combined English and Dutch versions of psalms.
7. Calvinist churches discouraged elaboration, so never expanded into other forms the way Lutheran chorales did.
5. England in the Sixteenth Century (before England's separation from the Roman Catholic Church in 1534)
1. English composers were isolated from the continent until after 1510.
2. English composers preferred five- and six-part voice textures, with long melismas.
3. John Taverner (ca. 1490–1545) was the greatest English musician of the early sixteenth century
1. Wrote Latin music under Henry VIII
2. Composed Anglican music with English texts under Edward VI
3. Under Catholic Queen Mary composed to both Latin and English texts
4. His style is full and florid, and typical of English music.
4. Service
1. Replaced the Mass (except under Queen Mary)
2. Combines parts of Matins and Vespers (Morning and Evening Prayer) and Holy Communion, from the Mass, with fewer sung portions than in a Catholic Mass
3. Great Service used contrapuntal, melismatic music.
4. Short Service used chordal, syllabic music.
5. Anthem corresponds to the Latin motet, but the language is English.
1. Full anthems were written in contrapuntal style for a cappella chorus: Example: NAWM 50, Sing joyfully unto God by Byrd
2. Verse anthems alternated accompanied solo voice(s) with passages for chorus. © 2002 W. W. Norton & Company

Chapter 8: Church Music of the Late Renaissance and Reformation

Catholic Music at the End of the Sixteenth Century

1. The Counter-Reformation
1. The Council of Trent was a special council that met from 1545 to 1563 to address problems in the church, including complaints about its music.
1. Secular cantus firmi used as the basis for sacred works.
2. Complex polyphony made it impossible to understand the words.
3. Inappropriate behavior of church musicians
4. Inappropriate use of instruments
5. See vignette in CHWM for the Council's (vague) recommendations.
2. Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina (1525 or 1526–1594)
1. A legend from the 1590s credits him with saving polyphony by composing a polyphonic Mass that incorporated Council of Trent Reforms, the Missa Papae Marcelli, published in 1567 (NAWM 47).
2. Biography
1. Educated and was a choirboy in Rome
2. Was choirmaster at the Cappella Giula at St. Peter's 1551–54
3. Sang in the pope's official chapel briefly but could not continue because he was married
4. Spent last forty years as choirmaster and teacher at influential churches in Rome
5. Supervised the revision of the official chantbooks to bring them in line with the Council of Trent's orders
1. The council ordered that chants be purged of "barbarisms, obscurities, contrarities, and superfluities."
2. The resulting chantbook (the Medicean edition of the Gradual) was completed by others after his death, published in 1614, and used as the church's official chantbook until 1908.
6. Palestrina's output was mostly sacred, including 104 Masses, about 250 motets, and other liturgical works. He also composed about 100 secular madrigals, but "blushed and grieved" to have composed music for love poems.
3. Palestrina's style
1. His style is representative of the Counter-Reformation's conservative attitude (The "Palestrina Style" is still synonymous with polyphonic church music)
2. Palestrina studied Franco-Flemish composers' works and sometimes used their polyphonic works as the basis for his imitation Masses
3. Palestrina composed Masses using all the techniques available to him: cantus firmus, paraphrasing of a chant in all voice parts, canon, and imitation
4. His melodies often move stepwise in an arched line (see CHWM, example 8.3, from NAWM 47b).
5. His style preserves the modes and uses very little chromaticism.
6. Counterpoint follows Zarlino's rules (Le istitutioni harmoniche) closely.
1. Dissonances introduced in weak beats and resolved on strong beats
2. Resulting harmonic style is alternation of consonance and dissonance.
7. Text is comprehensible (e.g., NAWM 47a, Credo).
3. Spain
1. Spanish and Roman composers had close ties throughout the sixteenth century.
2. Tomás Luis de Victoria (1548–1611)
1. Studied in Rome, possibly with Palestrina
2. In 1587, returned to Spain to work in the chapel of the Empress Maria
3. His style combines Roman and Spanish qualities:
1. Palestrina's polyphonic style
2. Notes outside the modal system for expressivity
4. Example: NAWM 48b and CHWM ex. 8.5, Missa O magnum mysterium: Kyrie
1. Imitation Mass, which preserves the opening characteristics of his own motet (NAWM 48a)
2. Similar to Palestrina's style, but with more drama
4. Orlando di Lasso (1532–1594)
1. Lasso's style combined several styles: Franco-Flemish counterpoint, Italian harmony, Venetian opulence, French vivacity, German severity.
2. Composed secular and scared music
3. Known for the high quality of his motets (e.g., NAWM 49, Tristis est anima mea)
1. Pictorial representations of the text, similar to madrigalist word-painting:
1. Descending semitone representing sadness ("tristis")
2. "vos fugam capietis" (you will take flight) represented with fugal subject that is repeated eleven times to represent the eleven disciples who ran away while Jesus was being beaten
4. At the end of his life Lasso composed spiritual madrigals.
5. William Byrd (1543–1623)
1. Byrd was the last of the great Catholic Church composers of the sixteenth century.
2. He possibly studied with Thomas Tallis as a boy.
3. 1575–1585, Byrd and Tallis had a monopoly on music printing in England (through royal grant), which made them very influential.
4. He remained a Catholic all his life but worked for the royal family during both Catholic and Protestant periods.
5. He composed a few very fine Masses and many motets.
6. His Gradualia, two books of motets (1605, 1607), were published for liturgical use. © 2002 W. W. Norton & Company