The Renaissance

The Renaissance (1400-1600)

"Renaissance," French for "rebirth," perfectly describes the intellectual and economic changes that occurred in Europe from the fourteenth through the sixteenth centuries. During the era known by this name, Europe emerged from the economic stagnation of the Middle Ages and experienced a time of financial growth. Also, and perhaps most importantly, the Renaissance was an age in which artistic, social, scientific, and political thought turned in new directions. (http://www.learner.org/exhibits/renaissance/).

The Renaissance Era (Website no longer available)

Historical Themes

• A rebirth of classical learning

• The gradual change from the feudal system to the modern state

• A change in people's views of the earth and the cosmos

Musical Context

• Increased interest in humanist learning

• Increased patronage of music

• Territorial expansion and increased wealth

Style

• The composers of the Renaissance concerned themselves with three different areas of music. All are unified by many shared musical features

Wikipedia Resources on the Renaissance - http://en.wikipedia.org/

In the traditional view, the Renaissance was understood as a historical age in Europe that followed the Middle Ages and preceded the Reformation, spanning roughly the 14th through the 16th century. The Italian Renaissance of the 15th century represented a reconnection of the west with classical antiquity, the absorption of knowledge (particularly mathematics), a focus on the importance of living well in the present (Renaissance humanism), and an explosion of the dissemination of knowledge brought on by the advent of printing. In addition, the creation of new techniques in art, poetry, and architecture led in turn to a radical change in the style and substance of the arts and letters. The Italian Renaissance was often labeled as the beginning of the Modern Age, or the Early Modern. Present day historians are skeptical about excessive claims for the modernity of the period and the common assumption that previous centuries were in some way "darker", viewing the Renaissance as a cultural program or movement based on humanism, arts, and the classics rather than an entire historical age. (From Wikipedia)

• Renaissance - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Renaissance

• Performing Arts - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Performing_arts

• Renaissance Music - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Renaissance_music

• Gutenberg Printing Press - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johannes_Gutenberg

• Renaissance Dance - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Renaissance_dance

• English Renaissance Theatre - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_Renaissance_theatre

• William Shakespeare - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Shakespeare

• Shakespearian Dance - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shakespearean_dance

Renaissance Websites

• Learner.org - the Renaissance - http://www.learner.org/exhibits/renaissance/

• Music Theory Academy: The Renaissance - https://www.musictheoryacademy.com/periods-of-music/renaissance-music/

• Elizabethan.org - http://elizabethan.org/

• History.org: The Renaissance - https://www.history.com/topics/renaissance/renaissance

  • History of the Renaissance - http://www.historyworld.net/wrldhis/PlainTextHistories.asp?historyid=ac88

Music

• Music Antiqua - http://www.music.iastate.edu/antiqua/

• Guide to Medieval and Renaissance Instruments - http://www.music.iastate.edu/antiqua/instrumt.html

• The Internet Renaissance Band - http://www.curtisclark.org/emusic/

• Music through the Centuries - http://www.dovesong.com/centuries/the_centuries.asp

• Early Music Instrument Database - http://music.cwru.edu/medren/

Theatre

• Theatre History on the Web - http://www.videoccasions-nw.com/history/medieval.html

• English Renaissance Theatre - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_Renaissance_theatre

• William Shakespeare - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Shakespeare

• Luminarium English Renaissance Drama - http://www.luminarium.org/renlit/rendrama.htm

• Commedia dell 'Arte - http://www.delpiano.com/carnival/html/commedia.html

Terms, places, and people of the Renaissance.

Palestrina

Josquin des Pres

Thomas Morley