Pieces written before Classicism period....

[Shagdac]

What pieces from periods before the 1750's are well known? Not including hymns or any type of chorale music, who were considered to be the most popular of composers, and what pieces are well known? Not just for the Broque period, bot also Renaissance and medieval if any. Thanks for your help.

Shag

[bernhard]

Specific pieces? Or composers?

Well known now or at the time?

Well known by classical music afficcionaods or by the population in general?

Pieces for piano? (remember the piano was invented in 1720, and did not become really popular utill 1800), or any keyboard? Or any intrument/consort of instruments?

At this moment in history many obscure composers at the time are quite well known now with the early music movement. Here are a few in roughly chronological order (with dates of birth when known):

John Dunstable (1390)
Josquin des Pres (1450)
Orland de Lassus (1530)
Giovanni Palestrina (1525)
Claudio Monteverdi (1567)
Thomas Taverner
Thomas Tallis
William Byrd (1543)
Orlando Gibbons (1583)
John Dowland
Thomas Campion
Phillip Rosseter
John Bull
Johann Froberger (1616)
Giovanni Lully (1632)
Dietrich Buxtehude (1637)
Johan Kuhnau (1660)
John Blow (1649)
Johann Fischer (1650)
Giuseppe Torelli (1650)
Johann Krieger (1652)
Johann Pachelbel (1653)
Henry Purcell (1659)
Alessandro Scarlatti (1659)
Arcangelo Corelli (1653)
Johann Fux (1660)
Francois Couperin (1668)
Antonio Vivaldi (1678)
Georg Teleman (1681)
Jean Phillipe Rameau (1683)
George F. Handel (1685)
J. S. Bach (1685)
Domenico Scarlatti (1685)
Christoph Gluck
Giovanni Pergolesi (1710)
Tylman Susato

Best wishes,
Bernhard

[comme_le_vent]

im interested in the style of the really early stuff, ive heard some byrd, but what about that dunstable dude? can you descibe the style of the music, and whats different about it compared to byrd etc.?

also, what is the 1st ever piece or pieces for a keyboard instrument, or composer for keyboard?

this is rather interesting  

[Shagdac]

Sorry, I guess should have been more specific. I'm assuming that if the piano was not invented until 1720, there would be NO pieces earlier than the Baroque period...correct? If this is the case, what are the first scores well known (today) from this period. Who are the most well know composers? I am not including sacred music or hymns (Bach had many)...but other types.  

[bernhard]

Yes, the piano was invented somewhere around 1720. However keyboard instruments have been around for a lot longer, and therefore you can play any piece written for a keyboard instrument in a piano (unless you are a boring purist).

The oldest keyboard instrument is the organ which has been around since Roman times. Then we have virginals, spinets, harpsichords, clavicytheriuns, clavichords. There is quite a wealth of music written for these instruments – interchangeably: you can play it in any of those, since the composers at the time did not know what would be available.

Two famous collections of early keyboard music are the “Fitzwilliam Virginal book” (published in modern notation by Dover) which has music of several composers, and
“My Ladye Newells booke of Virginal music”, a collection of pieces by William Byrd. (also published by Dover).

All the composers I mentioned wrote for keyboard, so you  can find pieces by all of them. And of course there is no reason not to play the stuff on the piano.

This is strange music because it follows very different conventions from the ones we are used to. On first hearing, it all sounds exceedingly dull, but trust me, you will grow into it. With repeated hearing you will get used to the idiom and may even develop a taste for it (I must say it is not my favourite kind of music though)

For one thing it is not based on major/minor scales, but on modes. There is much less dissonance, so the concept of tension/resolution although it exists is much more subdued.

Finally this is polyphonic music: strands of melody being weaved together, rather than one melody with accompaniment.

Most of this music was pretty much lost until the Early Music movement started, which means that at this very moment in history we are very fortunate to be able to listen to all this stuff (just go to the early music section in any CD store), and to play it, since scores in modern notation are widely available now (not only Dover publishes a lot of the stuff, as Koneman and others as well – you may even find some of it on the internet).

The first piece ever composed (published in 1731) specifically for the piano was Ludovico Giustini’s “Sonata for soft and loud harpsichord, commonly called the mallet harpsichord”

Giustini went on to write twelve sonatas for the new instrument, and in his scores it is the first time dynamic markings (p and f ) are used. They are not sonatas in the sense of the word in the classical period, but rather like Scarlatti sonatas. The name sonata is used to mean that the piece is to be “sounded” (from the Italian “sonare” – to sound) rather than sung (in which case it would be a “cantata” – from the Italian “cantare”: to sing). They are quite nice.

For a time the piano and harpsichord co-existed, but the piano only really took off after 1760, mostly thanks to J.C.Bach (J. S.’s son) who championed it in the English Court (he was the music director for Queen Charlotte – German by birth and crazy for all things musical)

The rest, as they say, is history.

Best wishes,
Bernhard.

[Hmoll]

Frescobaldi should also be mentioned. One of the great pre-Bach composers for organ and harpsichord, and had a huge influence on Bach.

[rachlisztchopin]

I love modal music..it sounds minor and major at the same time  

[squinchy]

What is modal music?

[bernhard]

What is modal music?

1.      Modal music is music based on modes, rather than major and minor scales.

2.      It was the prevalent kind of music in medieval and renaissance times, and Baroque music has some of its flavour too. It has made a comeback in modern times and is extensively used in jazz.

3.      What are modes? Have a look here:

https://www.medieval.org/emfaq/misc/modes.html

And here you can hear some modal music:
https://www.graupius.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/modes.asp

And this is good too:
https://www.standingstones.com/modeharm.html


Best wishes,
Bernhard.

[Shagdac]

Comme had wondered what the first piece ever written for piano was was....I just read that "the earliest know piece compsed specifically for the piano was by an Italian, Luigi Giustini di Pistoria (sp?) in 1732. It did not give the actual name of the piece. Sorry.

Shag

[bernhard]

I got there first! He he

The first piece ever composed (published in 1731) specifically for the piano was Ludovico Giustini’s “Sonata for soft and loud harpsichord, commonly called the mallet harpsichord”

Giustini went on to write twelve sonatas for the new instrument, and in his scores it is the first time dynamic markings (p and f ) are used.

However we seem to have different names. I've got mine "Lodovico", from Howard Goodall's "Big Bangs"(Vintage). There was actually a TV series (on which the book is based, and Goodall actually played this piece. It is quite a charming piece. I wonder if the score is commercially available (the one he showed on Tv looked very old - probably borrowed from the British Museum).

Best wishes,
Bernhard.

[Shagdac]

Darn it!!!!! I knew I had just read it somewhere!  
Duh! I would like to hear the piece....I haven't checked classicalarchives to see if it's on there. That would be amazing to see the score of the first piece ever written!

Thanks!
Shag