MUST 0812 Study Guide - Quiz Guide: Word Painting, Melisma, Counterpoint
16 Feb 2017
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Document Summary
Two main spheres for culture - the church and the court. A primary impulse for the medieval aesthetic is: god at the center, man in the background. Intellectual and cultural life dominated by the church. Notation has defined the development of western music. Notation in the west first served the goals of christian worship, and most examples of notated music are from this tradition. The goal was to provide a unified liturgy for all christians. Notated secular music survives from later in the period. Most of the music from the middle ages that has come down to us is in the form of plainchant (also called. It is anonymous, unaccompanied, and monophonic music meant for religious worship. Projects the words of the sacred liturgy in a way that is both clear and moving. Conjunct motion with a range normally limited to less than 1 octave. Polyphony became increasingly important from the 10th century on as notation continued to be developed.
