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Questions for Wiess and Taruskin
Please read the selections listed and answer the question briefly by e-mail. All answers are due BEFORE CLASS on the day assigned. Be sure to put the reading's number in the subject line of your message.
Unit I:
Reading 14: Guido talks about a method "by which a
previously unknown melody is learned." How do you think melodies
were taught before this? What makes this truly revolutionary?
Reading 13: In the first section, Notker tells about how he "invented" the sequence. What seems to be the true nature of his role? Did he create or improve?
Reading 15: Raimbaut was a knight in the service of the Marquis of Montferrat, where he fell in love with the sister of the Marquis. She was married, yet returned his love. What would we call that today? Why do you think it was tolerated and even encouraged?
Unit II
Reading 16: The final excerpt is an attack against
polyphony. From the language and images he uses, what do you think
John of Salisbury sees as the biggest danger of this new practice?
Reading 18: Pope John XXII's infamous prohibition against complex polyphony (starting on page 71) brings up a concern often voiced about the role of music in the church. What is it? Do you think there is justification for John's views?
Reading 20: Machaut’s private letter to Peronnelle became part of a public document: Machaut’s Le Livre du Voir-Dit. Keeping that in mind as you read the letter, do you think Machaut’s love for Peronnelle was a reality or an artistic ideal? What suggests that?
Reading 19: How would you describe Landini’s musical training? How does it seem to differ from the expected path a musician would take? Do you think the author is being fully truthful, or is he exaggerating?
Unit III
Reading 21: In the last excerpt, Tinctoris clearly sees a
new era beginning. How does he make this clear? How does his
attitude toward earlier music compare to our own?
Reading 22: These two excerpts describe two important events. The first was the consecration of a great cathedral, the second was a lavish banquet for the Burgundian nobility. What do the two have in common, and what does that suggest about the sacred and secular rulers of the Renaissance?
Reading 25: Without question, Castiglione sees music as a virtuous pursuit for men and women of the aristocracy. At the same time he is careful to point out where and when it is to be practiced. His fear is that the courtier will be seen as a professional and not a talented amateur. Why do you think this is a concern?
Reading 26: What evidence do you find in these descriptions of Josquin to support the notion that he fits our modern idea of the "artist"?
Reading 30: How does Zarlino's discussion of the use of dissonance compare to the approach you used in your basic harmony class. How does it differ from that of the middle ages?
Reading 31: In the second excerpt, the writer essentially says
that Willaert's music is good because it is easy to sing. Why do
you think that was important to musicians of his generation?
Unit IV
Reading 38: Like Willaert, Morley is concerned about
the expression of the words. How do all the techniques of text painting
he describes fulfill Miglionico's desire (stated in the first excerpt)
that music be the body while the words are the soul?
Reading 39: After listening to Gesualdo's music yourself, do you think that the statement: "It is obvious that his art is infinite, but it is full of attitudes, and moves in an extraordinary way" is accurate? Why? (As an aside, note how Gesualdo's "open profession" of music and his desire to publish his compositions seem to be a matter of concern to the writer--see question 25 above.)
Reading 43: In the last excerpt, Vincenzo Galilei (the astronomer's father!) hints at a new way of re-creating the emotional effects attributed to the Greeks (read the excerpt on page 165 to see just how seriously they took this). What did Galilei say was the problem of the music of his time, and what basic solution did he offer?
Reading 35: All the readings of this section deal in one way of the other with the rules for different genres. Why do you think they were so concerned with this? Why was it especially important in writing Masses?
Reading 23: Do the instrumental combinations described in this reading seem realistic? Why or why not?
Reading 42: The description of Francesco da Milano's playing and the rules for the civic musicians of Lucca show the wide range of musical performance experiences in the Renaissance. If these were being written today, who would you cast as Milano, and who would be the town musicians?
Reading 27: What passage from the first reading do you think best shows the high esteem that Luther had for music? Do you think he was restrictive or expansive in choosing music that was proper for the church?
Reading 36: How does Bishop Franco's view of music compare to an earlier writer, John XXII (see reading 18)? Do you think he would be satisfied with the rules set out in the second excerpt, the decree on church music issued by the Council of Trent?
Reading 34: Which of the 18 rules for the Maestro di Cappella of Milan do you find the most surprising? Why?