In the history of music, the Renaissance (1450– 1600) was a golden age. The Renaissance composers forged a new path forward, freed from the restrictions of Medieval musical norms. Josquin des Prez is recognized as one of the greatest masters of the polyphonic style among early Renaissance composers, often combining multiple voices to produce elaborate musical textures.
Later composers such as Palestrina, Thomas Tallis, and William Byrd built on des Pres' ideas, creating some of the most beautiful motets, masses, chansons, and instrumental works. While there were strict rules governing the use of dissonance, the expressive qualities of Renaissance music were practically unrivaled. With the acceptance of instrumental pieces into the repertoire, we see the development of instruments such as the bassoon and trombone, resulting in larger and more elaborate instrumental groupings.
Key composer: Josquin des Prez, Ockeghem, Thomas Talis, Palestrina and Byrd.
EXAMPLE OF MUSIC
"Scaramella"(frottola) - Josquin des Prez
As a master of Renaissance music, des Prez became known internationally,tried to define the key characteristics of his style in order to correct misattributions, likely wrote one of his most famous secular compositions, the frottola.
Third Mode Melody by Thomas Tallis
The renowned English composer Thomas Tallis composed the nine tunes contained in this Psalter; the third of these tunes was printed with the words of Psalm no. 2, though the Psalter gave guidance on using each tune with a variety of the Psalms.
SOUL SOUND