RFLA 200 EXAM 2

Why is music considered spiritual?

Because it’s transitory and intangible — before notation and recording, music couldn’t be captured, only experienced.

What role does music play across cultures?

It preserves stories, traditions, history, and spiritual teachings.

How do conquerors often erase cultural identity?

By banning or replacing traditional music and arts to suppress heritage.

Why can music survive cultural erasure?

Because it’s stored in the mind, not in physical objects like art or architecture.

Oldest known instrument?

A 35,000-year-old vulture bone flute that played a pentatonic (5-note) scale.

Earliest known music notation?

From Babylonia (modern Iraq) around 1400 BC, honoring goddess Nikkal.

Who was Nikkal?

A Babylonian fertility goddess, meaning “Great Lady and Fruitful.”

Why were the earliest notations created?

For spiritual or religious purposes.

Why did monasteries develop music notation?

To preserve and standardize Christian chants, leading to Gregorian Chant.

What is Gregorian Chant?

A body of sacred monophonic chants used in Christian worship.

Antiphonal

Call and response style between two choirs or singers.

Responsorial

Leader sings a phrase and a group responds; found in many cultures.

Chant

Simple repetitive melody sung on few pitches; often sacred.

Drone

A continuous tone or note sounded throughout a piece.

Monophonic

One melody without harmony (one “voice”).

Polyphonic

Multiple independent melodies played or sung simultaneously.

Homophonic

One clear melody with harmonic accompaniment.

Mass

A sacred choral composition based on the Eucharistic liturgy.

Hymn

A religious song of praise, typically directed to a deity.

Requiem

A musical setting of the Mass for the dead.

Gospel

Christian music style featuring call-and-response and repetition.

Medieval Period (500–1400)

Troubadours and trouvères performed secular, monophonic songs with instruments like lutes.

Renaissance Era (1400–1600)

“Rebirth” of classical learning; music became expressive and layered.

Baroque Era (1600–1750)

Dramatic, ornate music with contrasts and polyphony; featured basso continuo.

Meaning of “Baroque”

Comes from Portuguese barroco, meaning “oddly shaped pearl.”

Baroque Composers

Antonio Vivaldi, George Frideric Handel, Johann Sebastian Bach.

Basso Continuo

Continuous bass line providing harmonic structure in Baroque music.

Classical Era (1750–1820)

Simpler, clearer, mainly homophonic texture; focused on melody.

Classical Composers

Mozart, Haydn, Beethoven.

Romantic Era (1800–1910)

Emphasized emotion, imagination, and inspiration from art and nature.

Stereophonic

Sound using two or more channels for a surround effect.

Troubadours and Trouvères

Medieval traveling musicians who performed monophonic songs accompanied by string instruments.