Madrigals & Opera

Madrigals we

Madrigals & Opera

Madrigals were mainly in four-part harmony. The music was written for people to sing; and expressed the imagery and meaning of the text through harmonic, rhythmic and melodic means – sometimes with exquisite results.

Following the separation of England from Rome at the Reformation there was a demand for music that was simple in style and for vocal music (especially for the church) to be written in a way so that the words were very clear.

Tye, Tallis and Orlando Gibbons contributed a good deal to the body of Anglican church music.

In the period 1600 – 1750 music became more "decorative' as the bass began to be understood as the basis of all harmony and the "age of tonality' was established.

The first operas

From the madrigal emerged the form of musical drama known as opera (literally "works') in which composers expressed drama through solo, choral and instrumental music.

The earliest operas were written by Peri, Caccini and Rinuccini around the year 1600.

However, it was Claudio Monteverdi's first opera Orfeo (1607) which demonstrated the highly-charged and harmonically rich expression which became characteristic of the time.

English Composers

In England John Jenkins, Matthew Locke and Henry Purcell were writing ensemble or consort music for instruments such as viols or recorder.

Purcell also wrote opera including most famously, Dido and Aeneas.

The end of an era

As the seventeenth century moved forward, we begin to move out of the 'early music era.

Modern scholars and performers are continually researching ways of bringing this "not so distant' period alive using fresh understanding of notation and particularly of instrumental technique.

Understanding

Many academics, musicians and enthusiasts believe that performance is the only way to understand the past in musical terms.

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