Medieval Music (jan 1, 500 – jan 1, 1420)

Description:

Early [Ars Antiqua] (500–1150)
High [Ars Nova] (1000–1300)
Late [Ars Subtilior] (1300–1400)

Music was both secular and sacred. Music using voice and instruments were usually the instruments accompanying the voices.
Gregorian chant was huge.

During the Medieval period the foundation was laid for the music notation (writing music, rather than sharing 'by ear') and music theory (rhythm and polyphony) practices that would shape Western music into the norms that developed during the common practice period.

Though we can assume that music began far before 1150, the Medieval period is the first in which we can be sure as to how music sounded during this time. Most notated manuscripts from the Medieval period came from the church or places connected to the church, and so most pieces have a religious subject.
Instruments used during this time included the flute, the recorder, and plucked string instruments, like the lute. Early versions of the organ and fiddle also existed.
Perhaps the most known type of music to come out of the Medieval period was the Gregorian Chant. Gregorian Chants were monophonic, (a single, unaccompanied melodic line) and most commonly sung by monks. Though the monophonic style was a staple in the Medieval period, it’s important to note that polyphonic vocal genres also developed in this time. Polyphony is the use of multiple independent voice types, as opposed to the one melody line in monophonic singing. It can be concluded that the introduction of harmony began in the Medieval period. Though a large portion of the music written in this era is not attributed to any author, John Dunstable, Adam de la Halle, Phillippe de Vitry, Guillaume de Machaut, and Francesco Landini were all notable composers in this period.

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