Guillaume de Machaut was a medieval French poet. He created both secular and sacred music. His secular work was written about courtly love and composed in five genres: the lai, the virelai, the motet, the ballade, and the rondeau. Within this he used cadences and long melisma. His sacred work was different to most cyclic Masses as it does not hold a tonal cnetre, neither did have a clear, extended melodic theme.
