Reference no: EM132381211
Music from the Middle Ages to the Baroque MCGY2611
Essay Topics 2019
Write a 2000 word essay on one of the topics below.
Presentation
The essay should be submitted in MS Word or .RTF format, in a plain font such as Times New Roman or Calibri, and a font size no smaller than 11 point. Make sure to proofread carefully.
Topics
1. "Until recently there was an almost unquestioned assumption that the chansons of Du Fay, Binchois, and their contemporaries (as well as those of the surrounding generations) were examples of ‘accompanied song'; that is, the top line was sung by a solo voice, while the lower lines were played on instruments. The late 1970s and early 1980s witnessed a fundamental reassessment of this assumption, as a few scholars argued that chansons were customarily sung a cappella, one singer to a part... this view did not go unchallenged: indeed, it was quickly dubbed the ‘new secular a cappella heresy'." (Allan W. Atlas, Renaissance Music, 1998).
Assess the current state of the scholarly debate over the performance practice of French secular songs in the 14th and 15th centuries. In your opinion, does the evidence indicate that these songs were performed with instruments, or by voices alone? Illustrate your response with reference to specific songs by relevant composers.
2. ‘If "Early Music" is no longer Early, let's call it by a more a accurate name. ... The idea that captures the spirit of the period we've been calling "Early," the principle that motivated artists, intellectuals, and musicians of the time, was Rhetoric, the art of communication. ... Music was such an eminent example of applied Rhetoric, it would be logical to call it by this, its principal paradigm, its operating system... [The term] Rhetorical music thus expresses the essence of the musical spirit prior to the Romantic Revolution.' (Bruce Haynes, The End of Early Music. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2007, p.12).
How did the art of rhetoric inform the theory and practice of music before 1750? Is Haynes' claim that "Early Music" should be renamed "Rhetorical music" justified?
3. What were the main features that characterised the various kinds of keyboard suite during the 17th and early 18th centuries, and how did they change over time? Your response should take into account the geographical distribution of keyboard repertoire, its social uses and instrumental technologies, and be illustrated with specific examples from the repertoire.
4. Why were castrato singers so prominent and so much in demand in the baroque period, particularly in opera? Was castration a reasonable price to pay for the chance of a singing career in the 17th and 18th centuries? Illustrate your discussion with reference to specific singers and repertoire.
Attachment:- Music from the Middle Ages.rar