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| France: Lute | Lute music begame HUGE in France during early 17th century= Leading lute composer was Denis Gaultier (1603-1672) |
| Denis Gaultier | Leading lute composer whose 2 published collections instructed amateurs on how to play the lute |
| Clavecin | (French for "harpsichord") Displaced the lute during 17th century as the main solo instrument, while harpsichord music absorbed many characteristics of lute style |
| Important Clavecinists | (i.e. important harpsichord composers) Jacques Champion de Chambonnieres (1601-1672), Jean Henry D'Anglebert (1629-1691), Elisabeth-Claude Jacquet de la Guerre (1665-1729), and Francois Couperin (1668-1733)= All served Louis XIV but are best known for their printed collections of harpsichord music |
| Agrements | Were systematically developed by lutenists and harpsichordists= Ornaments designed to emphasize important notes and give the melody shape and character= Became a fundamental element of all French music, and the proper use of ornaments was a sign of refined taste= Were often left to the discretion of the player (but were also sometimes notated) |
| Style Luthe | ("Lute Style") Sometimes called "STYLE BRISE" (broken style)= Developed by lutenists= Because they often struck 1 note at a time, they sketched in the melody, bass, and harmony by sounding the appropriate toens (now in one register, now in another) and relying on the listener's imagination to supply the continuity of the various lines= (was imitated by harpsichord composers and became HUGE part of French harpsichord style) |
| Dances | Formed the core of the lute/keyboard repertory, reflecting their importance in French life= Composers arranged ballet music for lute/harpsichord= Most dance music for lute or keyboard was stylized, intended not for dancing but for the entertainment of the player or a small audience= Paired 2 and 4 measure phrases are frequent, matching the patterns of many dance steps |
| Most 17th century dances | Were in BINARY FORM |
| Binary Form | 2 roughly equal sections, each repeated, the first leading harmonically from the tonic to close on the dominant (sometimes relative major), the second returning to the tonic= This form was widely used for dance music and other instrumental genres over the next 2 centuries |
| Denis Gaultier's Dances | Most are contained in manuscript of his lute music titled LA COQUETTE VIRTUOSE (the Virtuous Coquette)= Did not write out any agrements (left to performer)= Has many traits characteristic of the STYLE LUTHE (many broken chords) |
| La Coquette Virtuose | Is a COURANTE |
| Courante | A dance in binary form in a moderate triple or compound meter |
| Style Luthe | Many broken chords= Whether simply arpeggiated or embellished by neighbor tones, each chord is presented in a diff. way, creating an irregular, unpredictable, and ever-changing surface garb for a straightforward underlying progression= Also syncopations |
| Suite | French composers often grouped a series of stylized dances into a suite |
| Pieces de Clavecin | (Jacquett de la Guerre's Suite No. 3 in A minor) Illustrates both the structure of a typical suite and the most common types of dance= All but 2 movements (the prelude & chaconne) are in binary form= Beginning of his piece is an UNMEASURED PRELUDE |
| Many suites begin with... | A prelude in the style of a toccata, or other abstract work |
| Unmeasured Prelude | (seen in Pieces de Clavecin) Is a distinctively French genre whose nonmetric notation allows great rhythmic freedom, as if improvising |
| Allemande | could appear in suites (French for "German") No logner danced in the 17th century thus highly stylized= Usually in a moderately fast 4/4 beginning with an upbeat= All voices participate in almost continuous movement and agrements appear often |
| Courante | could appear in suites (French for "running" or "flowing") Begins with an upbeat but is in a moderate tripple or compound meter (3/2 or 6/4) or shifts between the 2 |
| Sarabande | could appear in suites= Was a slow, dignified dance in triple meter with an emphasis on the second beat= Melodic rhythm in first measure is common |
| Gigue | could appear in suites (French for "jig") In france, became stylized as a movement in fast compound meter such as 6/4 or 12/8, with wide melodic leaps and continuous lively triplets= Sections often begin with fugal or quasi-fugal imitation |
| Jacquet de la Guerre's suite continues with a chaconne in the form of a RONDEAU | in which a refrain alternates with a series of contrasting periods called COUPLETS, then returns to close the movement= A GAVOTTE follows; and the suite ends with a MINUET |
| Gavotte | A duple-time dance with a half-measure upbeat and a characteristic rhythm of short-short-long |
| Minuet | An elegant couple dance in moderate triple meter= Dance used various patterns of 4 steps within each 2-measure unit |
| German Suite | Assumed a standard order like this: Allemande, Courante (or corrente, an Italian dance in 3/4 time), Sarabande, and Gigue (often preced by a Preluded and Augmented with optional dances) |
