“Young people can learn from my example that something can come from nothing. What I have become is the result of my hard efforts.” -Franz Joseph Haydn 2 INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC Instrumental music is a musical composition that is without lyrics, or singing, although it might include some inarticulate vocals. This music is primarily produced by instruments. The commencement of this genre of music is significant for it paved the way for the invention and development of musical instruments with tone qualities as people understands it today. Instrumental music marked the beginnings of the elements of harmony, rhythm and melody that made music beautiful then and still is up to now. It can mimic the sound of nature as well that they can effectively stir the deepest of human emotion. 3 HISTORY OF INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC The history of instrumental music is usually dated back from the Middle Ages. During this period the texture of the music was monophonic. Sacred vocal music such as Gregorian chants were set to Latin text and sung unaccompanied. Subsequently, church choirs added one or more melodic lines to the Gregorian chants. This created polyphonic texture. During the Renaissance, the size of church choirs grew, and with it, more voice parts were added. 4 Polyphony was widely used during this period, but soon music become homophonic. During the Baroque period musical quality was also polyphonic and/or homophonic. With the addition of the instruments and the development of certain musical techniques (ex. Basso, continuo), music during this period become more fascinating. Musical texture of Classical music is mostly homophonic but flexible. During the Romantic period, some forms used during the Classical period were continued but was made more subjective. 5 All the various changes that happened to music from the Middle Ages to the Romantic period contributed to the music of the 20th century. Although 20th century composers used and/or were influenced by composers and music forms of the past, they created their own unique sound. This unique sound has many different layers to it, coming from the combination of instruments, noisemakers, and shifts in dynamics, meter, pitch, etc. The music of the 20th century differs from the music of the past. 6 MEDIEVAL MUSIC (1550- 1400) During medieval period, music was primarily vocal. Instruments were used to accompany vocal lines or to improvise instrumental dances. Rhythm was not notated and tradition regarding sacred text, meter of the text and musical abilities of singers and instrumentalist. Harmony and tonality were not functional during this period. Monophonic texture was predominantly used during the first period of era. It is the simplest of musical texture consisting of the melody typically sung by a single singer or played by a single instrument player without accompanying harmony or chords. 7 MEDIEVAL MUSIC (1550- 1400) Polyphonic texture began to be used in the middle to late medieval period. It is one type of musical texture, where a texture is the way that melodic, rhythm, and harmonic aspects of a musical compositions are combined to shape the overall sound. Polyphony consist of two or more simultaneous lines of independent melody. 8 MEDIEVAL MUSIC (1550- 1400) CHRACTERISTICS: Secular music with notated manuscripts showing connections with the church; organum indicated the beginnings of harmony. TYPE OF MUSIC: Gregorian Chant and Plainsong which are monodic or written as one musical line. Gregorian chants: a monophonic vocal line sung by monks, as well as choral music for a group of singers. 9 MEDIEVAL MUSIC (1550- 1400) 10 RENAISSANCE MUSIC (1400-1600) The renaissance or “rebirth” was a period from 1400 to 1600 of significant changes in history including music. Moving away from the medieval period, where every facet of life, include music was church-driven, you begin to see that the church was starting to lose some of its influence. Instead, the kings, princes, and other prominent members of the courts were beginning to have an impact on he direction of m
