The document provides a summary of the history of Western music from the Medieval era to the Romantic era. It discusses the origins and characteristics of music in each era, including the development of polyphony in the Renaissance and the introduction of opera and increased instrumentation in the Baroque era. The Classical era saw the rise of homophonic music and genres like the sonata and symphony. The Romantic era was characterized by an emphasis on emotion and expression through techniques like expanded instrumentation and chromaticism.

1. Chris Weis
English Lit. /Comp. A
Ms. Tillery
14 October 2011
Throughout the centuries the arts have been a source of inspiration, imagination,
and emotion. Historically nearly every single culture has a form of music and that has
influenced the cultures themselves and music itself. Music has evolved drastically from
many forms and into many forms over the different time periods that generally stay
consistent with historic era labeling.
The earliest record of music that we have is from the Medieval Era which
encompasses c. 1150 – c. 1400. The music of this time period was religiously based and
consisted of virelais, estampies and ballades to be used in church. Most of the records
originate from churches of the time periods because music was used strictly in church
only for worship. “Gregorian chant and plainsong which are monodic (i.e. written as one
musical line) gradually developed during the 11th to 13th centuries into organum (i.e.
two or three lines moving simultaneously but independently, therefore almost
inadvertently representing the beginnings of harmony).” ("History of Classical").
However, organum is associated with strict rules of harmony and melody writing which
is one of the first rules in the musical world.
One of the earliest forms of a band is found in the Middle Ages. The Troubadours
were traveling groups of musicians that performed on the road for different villages.
Troubadours sung songs of courtly love and chivalry. Another group, the Minstrels,

2. “earned a living by the arts of poetry and music, and sang verses to the accompaniment of
a lute, harp or other instruments.” ("Medieval Music Index"). String instruments such as
the harp and wind instruments such as the lute were commonly used instruments of the
time. Most of the instruments and concepts of the time were carried on into the next era
of music.
“The fifteenth century witnessed vastly increased freedoms, most particularly in
terms of what is actually perceived as 'harmony' and 'polyphony' (the simultaneous
movement of two or three interrelated parts).” (“History of Classical”). The greatest
accomplishment that the Renaissance Era of music produced was the advance of music in
the form of polyphony. Polyphony used two or more independent melodic voices in
composing a song. The individual parts of polyphony were written, in relation to each
other, at specific intervals to form chords that sounded pleasant. The Renaissance saw the
blending of parts as opposed to the contrasting of parts and more detail to the flow of
harmony and a steady chord progression. These developments gave a basis for broader
possibilities for musical growth.
During the Renaissance there is the outbreak of secular music. “The main type[s]
was the song, lied (German), frottola (Italian), chanson (French), madrigal (Italian) and
villancico (Spanish).” ("Renaissance Music"). In 1588 Italian Madrigals were published
in England in English and they became extremely popular. There are three types of
madrigal. One type of madrigal is the “…Madrigal Proper - This kind was 'through-
composed' (The music is different all the time.) There is a lot of word-painting music that
illustrates words.” ("Renaissance Music"). Another type is “The Ballett - It was
sometimes danced as well as sung. The texture is mainly chordal. Whereas a madrigal

3. proper is through-composed, a ballett is strophic (two or more verses set to the same
music. The most noticeable feature of a ballett is the 'fa-la-la' refrain.” ("Renaissance
Music"). These songs were performed mainly for upper class entertainment.
Instrumentation of one of these groups could range from a lute, a viol, a sackbut, or a
valve less trumpet.
The next period of music is the Baroque Era. The Baroque Era when compared to
the predecessors can be said to be extravagant, formal, and ornate. The Baroque period’s
greatest evolution is of the finer details in music such as tempo, volume control, and most
importantly the belief in the doctrine of affection. Composers during this period could
express themselves through their music and did this through the tempo changes and
volume mechanics used still to this day.
Another substantial development of the Baroque Era was homophony and
monody. “Imitative polyphony (more than one line of music) still was an extremely
important factor in writing and playing music, while the homophonic method (a musical
technique that displays a vast separation amongst the melody line and the
accompaniment) was gaining acceptance and use quite rapidly.” ("The Baroque Era").
Homophony is the composing of multiple voices or instruments to move together
harmonically and in doing so form chords much like polyphony did. However, the
differences in polyphony and homophony are slightly different but make a vast difference
musically. Homophony uses one dominant voice over accompanying voices that form
chords.

4. The Baroque Era music can be most described as dramatic. The opera was
introduced in the Baroque Era along with the formation of the orchestra. Soloist parts
were written more commonly in Baroque pieces than before giving more importance on
instrumentalists. Composers paid more attention to the properties of the instruments they
were writing for and formed concepts of instrument grouping. The Baroque period is a
wealth of musical expansion.
The Classical Era of music is when composers such as Wolfgang Amadeus
Mozart and Ludwig van Beethoven focus on clarity of thought and form through music.
Classical pieces have a lighter feel than Baroque music had but was also mainly
homophonic. Diversity of melodies and key changes within a song became more
common allowing for a change in mood. The Classical period is known for the sonata
style written frequently during this time. A sonata is used at the beginning of a
composition and highlights themes from the exposition before hand by a small group of
instruments. The symphony is another style that arose out of this time period. “The
standard symphony has four movements; the inner two usually include a slow movement
and a movement based on a dance form or having a dance-like quality. There are several
popular choices for the forms of the outer two movements, but some version of sonata
form is the most common.” ("Classical Music and the Music"). During this time
composers also wrote concertos which is a style of song that features a soloist instrument
accompanied by the orchestra or a smaller group of instruments. The end of the Classical
period is marked by the development and exploration of musical limits by its composers,
which gave into the next most common period, the Romantic Era.

5. The Romantic Era of music is as much if not more affected by the cultural
changes of its time then of its predecessors. “More than anything else, the 17th and 18th
centuries in Europe had been an era of discovery--a discovery not only of ‘new’ worlds,
but also of the laws of science which govern and explain the universe.” ("Classical Music
and Romantic"). Throughout this time period artist portray Nature as mysterious and awe
inspiring which still stands true in the eyes of the composers of the time. The composers
of this time were very much affected by the change to city life as well.
“Concretely we may say that music of the 19th century is: more concerned with
color, whether of chord or instrumentation…” (Augusta State University). The works of
this period tend to do the radical to achieve emotional effect on its audience. The use of
random key changes and sub dominant motion instead of dominant is more common.
Unlike its predecessor, Romanticism strives for “a more radical kind of expression,
seeking out the new, the curious, and the adventurous…” (Augusta State University). The
extreme works of either arrangement or of texture is held more highly than the controlled
and balanced works of the Classical Era during the Romantic Era. Romantic Era music
gained a sense of philosophy or of deeper meaning. Emotion became more important than
technical details.
The Romantic Era also gave expansion to instrumentation adding the
piccolo, English horn, contrabassoon, bass and soprano clarinets, trombone, tuba, and
harp to the orchestra. The size of works during this time was as large as the symphony to
as small as a nocturne. The Romantic Era was expressive and boundless.
The history of music is overwhelming in complexity. Many have argued who can
be attributed to inventing certain aspects. Music style has changed more that the actual

6. mechanics of writing music and with each time there is its own changes whether they be
mechanics or stylistic. The outcome of the Western development of music is extravagant
and took a lot of evolving to reach what it is today.

7. Works Cited
Augusta State University. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Sept. 2011. <http://www.aug.edu/‌~cshotwel/‌
4350.Romantictraits.html>. We see the in the Romantic Period several perfections
of the predecessing methods and styles of music composition. New forms consist
of: nocturne, ballade, etude, impromptu, intermezzo, mazurka, and polonaise.
Music cycle is developed. Symphonic poem is another concept developed.
“The Baroque Era.” Think Quest Library. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Oct. 2011.
<http://library.thinkquest.org/‌15413/‌history/‌history-bar.htm>. The term Baroque
era describes the style or period of European music between the years of 1600 and
1750. The term Baroque was derived from a Portuguese word meaning “a pearl of
irregular shape.” The word Baroque was initially used to imply strangeness,
abnormality and extravagance, applying more to art than music. It is only in the
20th century that this term has been employed to refer to a period in music
history.
“Classical Music and Romantic Music.” Music 345. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Sept. 2011.
<http://trumpet.sdsu.edu/‌M151/‌Romantic_Music1.html>. Beethoven’s Ninth
Symphony, the culmination of the Classical Period, ended the Classical Period
and ushered the Romantic period in. The Romantic Era’s musical changes and
developements can be attributed to what the art world was experiencing at the
time. Progression and the Age of Reason, using science and technology to explain
things.
“Classical Music and the Music of the Classical Era.” Connexions . N.p., n.d. Web. 16
Sept. 2011. <http://cnx.org/‌content/‌m15294/‌latest/>. The Classical Era, came

8. after Baroque, gave way to more natural and less complex music. Simple
harmonies and melodies instead of just multiple harmonies competing for the
main theme of the song.
Classical Works. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Sept. 2011.
<http://www.classicalworks.com/‌html/‌glossary.html>. A glossary of music terms
and music references.
Columbia . N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Sept. 2011.
<http://www.columbia.edu/‌itc/‌music/‌ito/‌history/>. 10th and 11th centuries saw
the application of sacred lyrics to polyphonic music.
Dr. Estrella’s Incredibly Abridged Dictionary of Composers. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Sept.
2011. <http://www.stevenestrella.com/‌composers/‌index.html?styletimeline.html>.
Timeline, starting from the 500 b.c.a. to the 21st century, of the composers and
noteable achievements in musical history.
“History of Classical Music.” Naxos. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Sept. 2011.
<http://www.naxos.com/‌education/‌brief_history.asp>. The Gregorian chant and
Polyphonic methods, which are monodic, of composing music develope in the
eleventh through thirteenth century into organum.
ipl2. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Sept. 2011. <http://ipl2server-2.ischool.drexel.edu/‌div/‌mushist/>.
The Renaissance is where we see the developement of polyphony in the
Netherlands. Secular music started to flourish in this period as well.
“Medieval Music Index.” Medieval Life and Times. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Oct. 2011. <http://
www.medieval-life-and-times.info/‌medieval-music/‌index.htm>.

9. “Music of the Classical Period.” Washington State University. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Sept.
2011. <http://public.wsu.edu/‌~brians/‌hum_303/‌classical.html>. The classical
period is where we see the music developement we are familiar with and that is
most appealing and natural feeling, homophonic music.
“Renaissance Music .” RPFuller. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Oct. 2011.
<http://www.rpfuller.com/‌gcse/‌music/‌renaissance.html>.
Think Quest Library. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Sept. 2011. <http://library.thinkquest.org/‌15413/‌
history/‌music-history.htm>. The Medieval Period is the most remote and longest
of the music era’s in history.