Studies key genres and styles of vocal and instrumental music that developed across Europe in churches, courts, and public venues prior to the age of "common practice" harmony. After a survey of the Medieval background, focuses on works by great Renaissance and early Baroque composers, including Dunstable, Dufay, Ockeghem, Josquin, Willaert, Palestrina, Lasso, Victoria, Byrd, Gibbons, Monteverdi, Gabrieli, Praetorius, and Schutz. Student assignments explore selected repertoires in depth, such as chant, madrigals, motets, species counterpoint models, Lutheran chorales, the first operas, or early styles of keyboard, wind, or string music. Minimal score-reading ability needed for papers, oral presentations, and possible performance projects. This class covers the history of Western music from antiquity until approximately 1680, about 2000 years worth of music. Rather than cover each topic at the same level of depth, we will focus on four topics in particular and glue them together with a broad overview of other topics. The four topics chosen for this term are (1) chant structure, performance, and development; (2) 14th century music of Italy and France; (3) Elizabethan London; and (4) Venice in the Baroque era. The class will also introduce many of the tools we use in studying music history such as manuscript study, original notation work (the musical equivalent of foreign language study), and historical performance practice.
