Everything music from a perspective of a public
school music teacher with subject integration
(especially art, history, and literature) as a focus
to help teach the Common Core Curriculum.
01. Back in the medieval times music was used as an accompaniment to religious activities. 02. During the time between the 9th and 15th centuries there was one recognized church in Europe called the Roman Catholic Church.
In those days religion dominated the life of people.
05. In the early part of the medieval era singing was mostly in unison; everyone singing the same melody.
06. Later composers from that era started to write music for more than one part; bottom part: a lower, slower Gregorian Chant sung by men and an upper part: a newer, higher, faster part added above the established chant.
07. Evidentually compositions of three or more parts were added making the harmony more varied.
08. A form of song popular at this time was called a 3-part motet.
and festivals. There was music for all of these and the term used to describe this type of music is called secular.
13. There were wandering musicians who travelled from place to place singing and playing songs of love and battle. These musicians were called troubadours.
and the crumhorn: an early woodwind instrument. 16. In medieval Italy there was a type of composition which was favored called the caccia or chase. The music described the excitement of an animal hunt.
22. Life without music in medieval times would have been drab and colorless. Music wasa necessity in supporting religious activites. Songs and dances were an important part of noblemen and peasantsalike. 1. Nobles were sheltered within fortified castles surrounded by moats. 2. Peasants - The vast majority of the population - lived miserably in one-room huts. 3. Monks in monasteries held a virtual monopoly on learning: most people - including the nobility - were illiterate. 4. Troubadours were wandering minstrels who performed music and acrobatics in castles, taverns, and town squares. They wrote the first large body of secular songs (during the 12th and 13th centuries) surviving in decipherable notation. 5. Gregorian Chants were the official music of the Roman Catholic Church for over 1000 years. They consist of a Latin texts sung without accompaniment.http://people.vanderbilt.edu/~cynthia.cyrus/ORB/orbgloss.htm
The Middle Ages saw the emergence of great changes. The violent times of the Dark Ages had led to a primitive society lacking in elegance or refinement. The traditions of Western music can be traced back to the social and religious developments that took place in Europe during the Middle Ages, the years roughly spanning from about 500 to 1400 A.D. Because of the domination of the early Catholic Church during this period, sacred music was the most prevalent. Beginning with Gregorian Chant, sacred music slowly developed into a polyphonic music called organum performed at Notre Dame in Paris by the twelfth century. Secular music flourished, too, in the hands of the French trouvères and troubadours, until the period culminated with the sacred and secular compositions of the first true genius of Western music, Guillaume de Machaut (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6GRLRm9oKUM)
Chant (or plainsong) is a monophonic sacred form which represents the earliest known music of the Christian church.
Chant developed separately in several European centres. Although the most important were Rome, Hispania, Gaul, Milan, and Ireland, there were others as well. These chants were all developed to support the regional liturgies used when celebrating the Mass there. Each area developed its own chants and rules for celebration. In Spain and Portugal, Mozarabic chant was used and shows the influence of North African music. The Mozarabic liturgy even survived through Muslim rule, though this was an isolated strand and this music was later suppressed in an attempt to enforce conformity on the entire liturgy. In Milan, Ambrosian chant, named after St. Ambrose, was the standard, while Beneventan chant developed around Benevento, another Italian liturgical center. Gallican chant was used in Gaul, and Celtic chant in Ireland and Great Britain.
Around 1011 AD, the Roman Catholic Church wanted to standardize the Mass and chant. At this time, Rome was the religious centre of western Europe, and Paris was the political centre. The standardization effort consisted mainly of combining these two (Roman and Gallican) regional liturgies. This body of chant became known as Gregorian Chant. By the 12th and 13th centuries, Gregorian chant had superseded all the other Western chant traditions, with the exception of the Ambrosian chant in Milan and the Mozarabic chant in a few specially designated Spanish chapels.
Instruments used to perform medieval music still exist, but in different forms. The flute was once made of wood rather than silver or other metal, and could be made as a side-blown or end-blown instrument. The recorder has more or less retained its past form. The gemshorn is similar to the recorder in having finger holes on its front, though it is actually a member of the ocarina family. One of the flute's predecessors, the pan flute, was popular in mediaeval times, and is possibly of Hellenic origin. This instrument's pipes were made of wood, and were graduated in length to produce different pitches.
Medieval music uses many plucked string instruments like the lute, mandore, gittern and psaltery. The dulcimers, similar in structure to the psaltery and zither, were originally plucked, but became struck in the 14th century after the arrival of the new technology that made metal strings possible.
The bowed lyra of the Byzantine Empire was the first recorded European bowed string instrument. The Persian geographer Ibn Khurradadhbih of the 9th century (d. 911) cited the Byzantine lyra, in his lexicographical discussion of instruments as a bowed instrument equivalent to the Arab rabāb and typical instrument of the Byzantines along with the urghun (organ), shilyani (probably a type of harp or lyre) and the salandj (probably a bagpipe). The hurdy-gurdy was (and still is) a mechanical violin using a rosined wooden wheel attached to a crank to "bow" its strings. Instruments without sound boxes like the jaw harp were also popular in the time. Early versions of the organ, fiddle (or vielle), and trombone (called the sackbut) existed. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7RCM2IeiB00&list=RD6GRLRm9oKUM)
Fingering Problems As successive holes are covered, the sounding length of the tube increases and the pitch gets lower. It's not just about how their fingers are placed to play different note sequences, but what pressure should the fingers have when covering them. Some make the mistake of using their fingertips to cover the holes instead of the pads and when doing that, some grip them tightly. Proper fingering requires pads of the fingers that cover holes at an even, steady pressure - not too tight, not too loose. Improper Tonguing On all wind instruments the tongue is used to articulate the beginning of every individual note and every group of slurred notes. Some people use little to no tonguing control - just tooting on their recorders. This produces a sloppy sound and is prone to excessive overblowing. Playing a note starts with the attack. Silently say the word "Du" or "Tu" for each note. To terminate the note, the tongue moves forward toward the teeth and silently say a stopped "D" or "T". Improper Articulation The fingers should come down like little hammers, completely sealing the hole (unless a half hole fingering is needed, which will be explained in the lessons) and held tight for the duration of the note. When the note has stopped, the fingers must release quickly in order to repostition themselves for the next note.The combination of blowing and fingering is called articulation. Poor Breath Control Blowing is done through exhaling into the mouthpiece with the lips gently sealed around it and the end of the mouthpiece positioned in front of slightly separated teeth. Blow gently, sustaining the same pressure at all times. The greater the pressure, the higher (or sharper) the pitch and conversely, lesser pressure will lower (or flatten) the pitch. Proper blowing is essential to maintain the correct pitch (or intonation) of the note. Proper blowing and breathing is the key to pleasing sounds. Breathing is sometimes a problem. On long passages, one has a tendency to run out of wind. Breaths should be taken from the diaphragm (like in singing) and expelled with support from the diaphragm. The upper chest should not move. This will allow for better breath control. When it becomes necessary to take a breath, it should be taken quickly and quietly. The breathing that produces a focused, unforced, non-vibrato vocal sound for children is the breathing that produces a focused, unforced, non-vibrato recorder sound. A student who can sing in tune and control the breath sufficiently to shape phrases can transfer those skills directly to the recorder. Over Blowing What is overblowing? That's when one blows too hard on his or her instrument often blowing so hard the instrument squeals. Recorders need even, minimal air. Mouthpiece Placement The mouthpiece can also be placed too far in their mouth or too little in the mouth. It should be placed on the bottom lip in front of the lower jaw and played at a diagonal angle, approximately 45 degrees. Upper jaw needs to be relaxed with teeth away from the tops. Lips should not tense very much but be closed enough to discourage squeaks. Recorders do require embouchures. Posture and Position Exactly the same posture needed for good singing, either standing or sitting, is needed for good recorder playing. The back should be straight but relaxed, and the shoulders, arms, hands and fingers should all be relaxed. Tension anywhere in the body can result in poor breath support, poor tone quality, problems with intonation, or fingers that are stiff and unresponsive.
This instrument was created in 1938 and used in American elementary music education as a pre-bandinstrument. This allowed young children to play a simple instrument and learn musical notation. It also allowed the students not only to play simple melodies, either alone or as a group, it allowed groups to perform simple harmonies along with the melodies and begin to experience performing as an ensemble. The Tonette has largely been superseded, through the efforts of Music Educators, by the much more musically accurate recorderfamily of instruments. It is also known as a song flute.
Although this instrument is considered a toy by most, (or at best a traininginstrument) it was featured in Peter Schickele's Gross Concerto under his pen name of P. D. Q. Bach.
PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION:
A small black plastic whistle-type instrument that is end-blown. It has seven finger holes on the front of the instrument and a thumb hole on the back. The small number of finger holes with a limited range and the fact that is is easy to achieve a good sound makes this instrument ideal for young children.
SOUND PROPERTIES:
The Tonette has a very pleasant sound, not unlike a recorder or flute. Overblowing is possible to extend the range, but that sound is not entirely pleasing when performed by a novice and somewhat difficult to control.
RANGE:
The range of the Tonette is just over an octave from middle C (c1) to d2.
MEANING OF THE QUOTE:
01. Back in the 
called the 
painting, 
05. In the early part of the 
was a famous early composer of 
The music functioned as an 
and festivals. There was music for all of these and the term used to describe this type of music is called 
