Week 10 - SUMMARY: A Timeline of Medieval through Renaissance Music

Below I present a summary of my notes on Western Music History.
It was also one of my assignments for the OCA Music Foundation course.

I hope this is of some use to you.

A Timeline of Western Music - Medieval through Renaissance Period

Year	Event	Time spaces
313	The Edict of Milan is issued by Emperor Constantine I (ca. 272 – 337), legalizing Christianity.
392	Under Emperor Theodosius (ca. 346 – 395), Christianity becomes the official Roman Religion.
395	Separation of the Roman Empire into Western Empire ruled from Rome or Milan and the Eastern Empire, ruled from Constantinople. As a consequence, church liturgy and chant diversifies into ''dialects''.
ca. 500-510	Boethius (ca. 480 – ca. 524) writes the treatise ''Institutione Musica'' (the Fundamentals of Music), dividing music into three types: 1. Musica Mundana, 2. Musica Humana 3. Musica Instrumentalis. Music for Boethius is a science of numbers, and numerical ratios. The book is compiled from Greek sources (Nicomachus, Ptolemy).
590-604	Reign of Pope Gregory I ( the Great). The existing repertory of Christian music is assembled and structured. The Schola Cantorum is founded.
751-768	Reign of Pippin the Short (ca. 714–768), King of the Franks. As a result of visits by Pope Stephen II (r. 752-754) with the Schola Cantorum, Pippin seeks to import Roman Liturgy and chant within the realm.
ca. 754	Pippin orders the use of Roman Liturgy.
768-814	Reign of Charlemagne (Charles the Great, ca. 748-814), whose conquests expanded his territory throughout France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Western Germany, Switzerland and Northern Italy. He continues the policy of his father Pippin, sending singers from Rome to teach the chant in the north.	Early Middle Ages: Gregorian and early organum.
800	Charlemagne is crowned Emperor by the Pope.	(600-1150):
ca. 850-900	Publication of the treatises ''Musica enchiriadis'' (Music Handbook) and ''Scolica enchiriadis'' (Comments on the Handbook). Musica enchiriadis describes 8 modes, provides exercises for locating semitones in chant, and explains the consonances and how they can be used to sing in an early form of polyphony: organum.
ca. 850	Development of neumes, an early form of music notation.
1025-1028	Guido of Arezzo (991-1033) writes ''Micrologus''. The treatise outlines singing and teaching practice for Gregorian chant, and discusses composition of polyphony (parallel organum, free organum, note-against-note organum). He develops the music staff and uses fingers and hands to represent notes (''Guidonian Hand''). Guido also introduces solmization in music. (do, re, mi, fa, sol, la).
1050	Polyphony replaces Gregorian Chant.
1054	Schism between the Roman and Byzantine churches
1066	The Battle of Hastings: England falls to the Normans. English culture and music become closely allied to those of France.
1095-1099	First Crusade and conquering of Jerusalem.
ca. 1100	Song of Roland, an epic poem based on the Battle of Roncevaux in 778, during the reign of Charlemagne. It is the oldest surviving major work of French vernacular literature and an example examples of the chanson de geste (''song of deeds''), a literary form that flourished between the 11th and 15th centuries and celebrated legendary deeds.
ca. 1125	Beginning of troubadour and trouvere music in France.
ca. 1150	New dance forms begin to appear in France, such as the carole and estampie.
1150-1300	Advent of ''Ars Antiqua'' style. It is marked by two important developments: the further evolution of polyphony in the Notre Dame school and a strong rise in secular repertory.
ca. 1151	Abbess Hildegard von Bingen (1098-1179) writes ''Ordo Virtutum'', a sacres music drama in verse with eighty two songs. It is a morality play with allegorical characters, including the Prophets, the Virtues, the Happy Soul, the Unhappy Soul, and the Penitent Soul, in which the female Virtues lead the fallen soul back to the community of the faithful. The works of Hildegard von Bingen is the first surviving compilation of music that is attributed to a known composer.
ca. 1160	Construction of the Notre Dame Cathedral of Paris begins.	Ars Antiqua
ca. 1165-1200	Leonin and Perotin compose a large collection of church music for the Notre Dame. Leoninus (ca. 1159-ca1201) collected organa for Mass and Office in ''Magnus liber organi'', that he mostly composed himself. Perotinus (ca 1160-1220) revised this book, and added a 3rd (triplum), and 4th (quadruplum) to the organum. The development of polyphony in the Middle Ages was an important step in Western Music History, as harmony became a lively musical element. Musicians at Notre Dame developed the first notation to indicate duration, a step of great importance for later music, resulting in 6 rhythmic modes.	(1150-1300)
ca. 1170	Troubadour Bernart de Ventadorn (ca. 1125-ca. 1190) writes canso (troubadour song) ''Can vei la lauzeta mover''.
ca. 1200	Notre Dame in Paris completed.
ca. 1200	Advent of the German Minnesanger.
Early 13th century	Early motets. The motet developed from the organum, when new text – usually in French instead of Latin – were added to the duplum (2nd voice). In the motet, the various voices are melodically and rhythmically independent from each other.
ca. 1228	Minnesanger Walther von der Vogelweide (ca.1170-ca.1230) writes ''Palastinalied'', a poem written in Middle High German. It is the only song by Walter for which a melody has survived. The oldest source for the melody is the Münster fragment, which is dated to the early 14th century.
ca. 1270-1290	''The Cantigas de Santa Maria'', a collection of over four hundred cantigas (songs) in Galician-Portuguese in honour of the Virgin Mary, is written.
ca. 1284	Trouvere Adam de la Halle writes ''Jeu de Robin et de Marion''.
ca. 1285	Treatise ''Anonymous IV'' written, testifying the work of Leoninus and Perotinus.
1300-1400	Advent of the ''Ars Nova''. In the music of this period, there is an emphasis on unity in the composition (using imitation), significant rhythmic innovation (as a consequence of using smaller note values and application of isorhythm), new genres (ballata, caccia, madrigals) and increasing use of musical instruments.
ca. 1307	Dante Alighieri begins writing te poem ''La Divina Commedia''.	Ars Nova
1309	The Papal seat moves to Avignon, in the South of France.	(1300-1400)
ca. 1320	Publication of ''Ars Nova'', a musical treatise attributed to Philippe de Vitry (1291-1361).
Ca 1325	Francesco Landini born; Italian composer.
ca. 1330	Birth of the Italian Trecento style, of which Francesco Landini (ca. 1325-1397) becomes a well known exponent.
1337-1453	Beginning of the Hundred Year War between England and France.
1347	The Black Death reaches Europe and ultimately kills a third of the population.
ca. 1360	Guilaumme de Machaut (ca. 1300-1377) composes ''Messe de Notre Dame''. De Machaut is the first composer to apply the principle of isorhythm to the Ordinary of Mass. The ''Messe'' is written for four voices is a style that became common during the Renaissance.
1397	Francesco Landini dies.
ca. 1397	Guilaume Du Fay born; Flemish composer
ca. 1400	European economy begins to grow
ca. 1400	Gilles Binchois, Burgundian composer, is born.
1417	End of papal schism
ca. 1426	The Low Countries become the center of music innovation
1420s–50s	Development of a “cosmopolitan style” with impulses from the composers serving the Burgundian court (Gilles Binchois, Guillaume Du Fay)
ca. 1420	Johannes Ockeghem born; Franco-Flemish composer. Profoundly influenced next generation of composers. Introduced new features including greater equality of voices, more use of imitation and expansion of range.
ca. 1430	Antoine Busnoys born; Franco-Flemish composer. Profoundly influenced next generation of composers. Introduced new features including greater equality of voices, more use of imitation and expansion of range.
ca. 1457	Jakob Obrecht born
ca. 1450	Josquin des Prez born;Flemish composer.
1453	Turks conquer Constantinople, ending Byzantine Empire
1453	French defeat English at Bordeaux, ending the Hundred Years' War
1470's	First printed music. Printing from moveable type, known in China for centuries and perfected in Europe by Johann Gutenberg around 1450, is first used for printing music in liturgical books with chant notation.
1474	Guillaume Du Fay dies
1477	Publication of “Liber de arte contrapuncti” by Johannes Tinctoris, the most important treatise on counterpoint of the 15th century.
1477	Charles the Bold (Burgundy) dies in battle, France absorbs duchy of Burgundy
1487	Portuguese round the southern tip of Africa, marking the establishment of colonies and trade routes extending around Africa to India and the East Indies.
1492	Columbus reaches the West Indies
1492	Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand conquered Granada from the Islamic Moors and expelled the Jews from Spain. This ended centuries of coexistence between Muslims, Jews and Christians in Spain.	Renaissance  (1400-1600)
1495	Leonardo da Vinci (1452–1519) paints The last Supper
1498	Portuguese reach India by sea
1504	Music printer Ottaviano Petrucci (1466-1539) publishes thirteen frottola collections. He was not the first music printer in Europe, but he was the first to print in quantity and the first to print polyphonic music. The quality of the prints was considered to be outstanding.
1504	Italian sculptor Michaelangelo (1475-1564) creates the famous statue of David. He has had an unparalleled influence on the development of Western art.
1507	Petrucci issues the first lute tablature.
1515-47	Reign of Francis I (1494-1547) of France. He was a prodigious patron of the arts, and initiated the French Renaissance by attracting many Italian artists to work on the Château de Chambord, including Leonardo da Vinci, who brought the Mona Lisa with him, which Francis had acquired. His reign saw important cultural changes with the rise of absolute monarchy in France, the spread of humanism and Protestantism, and the beginning of French colonialism of the New World.
1517	German composer, priest and professor of theology Martin Luther (1483–1546) posts 95 Theses on a church door in Wittenberg, leading the Protestant Reformation.
1520s	The madrigal originates in Florence. The term refers to musical settings of Italian poetry of various types, from sonnets to free form
1523-24	Luther and Johann Walter write first chorales.
1532	Italian political philosopher Niccolò Machiavelli (1469-1527) publishes Il Principe.
1534	Church of England separates from Rome.
1539	Franco-Flemish composer Jacques Arcadelt (1507-1568), writes the First Book of Madrigals. Arcadelt was the most influential member of the early phase of madrigal composition, the "classic" phase. It was through his publications, that the madrigal became known outside of Italy.
1545-63	The Council of Trent addresses malpractices within the Catholic Church. Church leaders considered eradicating polyphony from the Catholic liturgy. The dense polyphonic textures rendered religious texts inaudible, let alone understandable. Palestrina "saved" polyphonic church music by composing understandable polyphonic church music.
1553-58	Reign of Mary I of England, restores Catholicism.
1558-1603	Reign of Elisabeth I of England, restores Church of England.
1560s	Italian madrigals begin to circulate in England and were sung in the homes of aristocrats and middle class.
1566	Franco-Flemish composer Cipriano de Rore (ca. 1515-1565), active in Italy, publishes his Fifth Book of Madrigals. Not only was he a central representative of the generation of Franco-Flemish composers after Josquin des Prez who went to live and work in Italy, but he was one of the most prominent composers of madrigals in the middle of the 16th century. His experimental, chromatic, and highly expressive style had a decisive influence on the subsequent development of that secular music form.
1567	Italian composer Giovanni Palestrina's (ca.1525–1594) Pope Marcellus Mass published.
1568	Female composer Maddalena Casulana (ca. 1544- ca. 1590) composes her First Book of Madrigals. She was the first woman whose music was published, and the first to regard herself as professional composer.
1570s	Experiments with musique mesurée, a style of vocal musical composition. In this style, longer syllables in the French language were set to longer note values, and shorter syllables to shorter, in a homophonic texture. It was an attempt to imitate contemporary understanding of Ancient Greek music.
1572	William Byrd (ca. 1540-1623) appointed to Chapel Royal. He was one of the most important English composers. He wrote in many of the forms current in England at the time, including various types of sacred and secular polyphony, keyboard (the so-called Virginalist school), and consort music. He produced sacred music for use in Anglican services, although he himself became a Roman Catholic in later life and wrote Catholic sacred music as well.
1573-87	Meetings of Count Giovanni de' Bardi's (1534-1612) “Camerata”. They were a group of humanists, musicians, poets and intellectuals in late Renaissance Florence who gathered to discuss and guide trends in the arts, especially music and drama. Their aim was to revive what they perceived as ancient Greek dramatic style. Their musical experiments led to the development of the stile recitativo.
1579	Franco-Flemish cosmopolitan composer Orlande de Lassus (ca. 1532-1594) writes Cum essem parvulus, a six voice motet. Lassus is important, for his work is a synthesis of all musical styles (Italian, German, French, Flemish) of that time.
1585-1612	Italian composer and organist Giovanni Gabrieli (ca. 1554-1612) at St. Mark's. He was one of the most influential musicians of his time, and represents the style of the Venetian School, during the transition from the Renaissance to the Baroque era.
1594	English poet, playwright and actor William Shakespeare (1564-1616) writes Romeo and Juliet.
1595	English composer, theorist, singer and organist Thomas Morley (ca. 1557–1602) publishes his First Booke of Ballets. He was one of the foremost members of the English Madrigal School.
1597	Giovanni Gabrieli publishes Symphoniae sacrae.
1597	Thomas Morley publishes A Plaine and Easie Introduction to Practicall Musicke.
1597	English Renaissance composer, lutenist, and singer John Dowland (1563-1626) publishes his First Booke of Songs or Ayres.
1598	Henry IV of France issues The Edict of Nantes. It granted the Calvinist Protestants of France (Huguenots) substantial rights in the nation, which was still considered essentially Catholic at the time. The aim of the edict was to promote civil unity.
1598	First opera performed, Jacopo Peri's (1561–1633) Dafne
1600	First surviving opera, Peri's L'Euridice, performed in Florence.