Music in the Renaissance

Prentice Hall History of Music Series

by Howard Mayer Brown, Louise K. Stein

A history of Renaissance music focused on the music itself and the social and institutional contexts that shaped musical genres and performance. This book provides a complete overview of music in the 15th and 16th Centuries. It explains the most significant features of the music and the distinguishing characteristics of Renaissance composers (in Europe and the New World). It includes a large integrated anthology of 94 musical examples, as well as illustrations of musical instruments, notation, and ensembles.

Genres: Music, Nonfiction

416 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 1976

Reviews

[Cole · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a singer for whom early music has been a significant part of my repertoire since college, I wanted to know more about the music I was singing. This book was a great survey of Renaissance music, with just the level of depth I was looking for. It reminded me of things I'd learned but also taught me more about the compositional devices and techniques the composers used. The writing itself is also quite good. I never felt that the text dragged me down, even in areas I was less familiar with or interested in (e.g., instrumental music of the era). If you are a fairly experienced musician or student of music, and you want to understand the characteristics and historical development of the major composers and eras of Renaissance music, this volume is a great place to start. (N.B. I read the 1976 first edition; there is an updated second edition.)