Baroque Solo Concerto – Sacred Music Comparison (Palestrina vs Monteverdi)

18 question-and-answer flashcards reviewing the key contrasts between Palestrina’s late-Renaissance Kyrie and Monteverdi’s early-Baroque Nisi Dominus, covering forces, texture, melody, rhythm, harmony, dynamics, structure, and textual treatment.

What is the title and composer of the late-Renaissance sacred work studied?

"Kyrie" from Mass De Beata Virgine by Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina (published 1570).

What is the title and composer of the early-Baroque sacred work studied?

Motet "Nisi Dominus" (Psalm 129) by Claudio Monteverdi (published 1650).

How many voice parts are employed in both Palestrina’s Kyrie and Monteverdi’s Nisi Dominus?

A six-part choir.

What additional performing forces does Monteverdi use that Palestrina does not?

Instrumental accompaniment/continuo.

Describe the melodic style of Palestrina’s Kyrie.

Smooth, conjunct, melismatic lines that rise and fall in gentle arcs.

Which compositional technique opens Palestrina’s Kyrie and shapes its texture?

Imitation between voices, producing flowing polyphony.

How does Monteverdi create variety in texture within Nisi Dominus?

By switching among monophonic, homophonic, antiphonal, and polyphonic sections, plus brief chanted passages.

Contrast the rhythmic character of Palestrina’s Kyrie with Monteverdi’s Nisi Dominus.

Palestrina uses smooth, relatively simple rhythms; Monteverdi features metre and tempo changes with striking contrasts between long and short notes.

Which piece exhibits greater dynamic contrasts and sectional variety?

Monteverdi’s Nisi Dominus.

What expressive technique does Monteverdi employ to illuminate the text?

Word painting.

How is the harmony in both works broadly similar, and how does Monteverdi extend it?

Both are largely consonant; Palestrina highlights suspensions, while Monteverdi adds more frequent cadences for clarity.

Describe the overall mood evoked by Palestrina’s Kyrie.

Calm, serene, prayerful – suitable for worship.

Which composer’s work presents a more continuous musical flow, and which is more sectional?

Palestrina’s Kyrie is continuous; Monteverdi’s Nisi Dominus is broken into many contrasted sections.

What liturgical text does Palestrina set in his Kyrie?

The "Kyrie eleison / Christe eleison" portion of the Mass Ordinary.

From which Psalm is Monteverdi’s Nisi Dominus text taken?

Psalm 129 (also numbered as Psalm 127 in some traditions).

In what years were the two works published?

Palestrina’s Kyrie in 1570; Monteverdi’s Nisi Dominus in 1650.

Name two musical elements in which Monteverdi departs from typical Renaissance practice.

Stronger dynamic contrasts and frequent metre/tempo changes.

What primary structural device creates unity in Palestrina’s Kyrie?

Long, flowing lines of imitative polyphony.