Music History Finale Quiz 3

Renaissance

• A period from about 1400–1600 marked by renewed interest in classical learning, art, and human-centered thinking.

Burgundian states

Powerful regions in present-day France and the Low Countries that became important musical centers in the early Renaissance.

Humanism

An intellectual movement emphasizing human experience, education, and classical texts.

Realism in art

An artistic approach focused on natural, lifelike representation of people and objects.

Musical features of the Renaissance

Smooth vocal lines, balanced polyphony, modal harmony, and careful text expression.

Imitative counterpoint

A texture in which musical lines enter one after another with the same or similar melody.

Homophony

A musical texture where all voices move together rhythmically, with one main melody.

Temperament

A tuning system that adjusts pitch intervals to allow instruments to play in multiple keys.

Guillaume Du Fay

An early Renaissance composer who helped bridge medieval and Renaissance musical styles.

Musica ficta

Accidentals added by performers to avoid dissonance or improve melodic flow.

“Low Countries”

A region including modern-day Belgium, the Netherlands, and northern France, known for influential composers.

Cantus firmus

A pre-existing melody used as the foundation of a polyphonic composition.

Imitative counterpoint

A texture where voices successively imitate the same melodic idea.

Music printing

The development of printed music, which allowed compositions to spread widely and quickly.

Reformation

A 16th-century movement that challenged the Catholic Church and changed religious and musical practices.

95 Theses

Martin Luther’s written statements criticizing church practices, sparking the Reformation.

Lutheranism / Protestantism

Christian movements that emphasized scripture, congregational singing, and worship in the vernacular.

Lutheran chorale

A simple, hymn-like melody sung by the entire congregation in Lutheran services.

Counter-Reformation

The Catholic Church’s response to the Reformation, aiming to reform practices and strengthen faith.

Reformation in England

The English break from the Catholic Church, leading to the Church of England.

English madrigal

A light, secular vocal piece in English, often cheerful and written for several voices.

Lute song

A solo song with lute accompaniment popular in Renaissance England.

Consort

An ensemble of instruments from the same family or a mixed group of instruments.

Shawm

A loud, double-reed wind instrument, an ancestor of the oboe.

Cornetto

A curved wind instrument with finger holes, often used to double voices.

Sackbut

An early form of the trombone with a slide.

Crumhorn

A capped double-reed wind instrument with a buzzing tone.

Antiphonal

A performance style where two groups alternate musical phrases.

Harpsichord

A keyboard instrument that plucks strings

Pavane

A slow, stately Renaissance dance in duple meter.

Galliard

A lively Renaissance dance in triple meter, often paired with a pavane.

Baroque

A musical period (c. 1600–1750) emphasizing contrast, emotion, and ornamentation.

Seconda pratica

A Baroque approach allowing expressive text to override strict musical rules

Thirty Years’ War

A major European conflict (1618–1648) tied to religious and political tensions.

Affect

The emotional character a piece of music aims to express.

Basso continuo

A Baroque accompaniment consisting of a bass line with harmonies indicated by figures.