1.4 Major instruments and performance practices

Medieval music was a vibrant tapestry of sounds and styles. From the haunting melodies of Gregorian chant to the lively tunes of troubadours, it reflected the rich cultural landscape of the Middle Ages.

Instruments like the vielle, psaltery, and shawm shaped the era's musical palette. Performance practices evolved from simple monophony to complex polyphony, while skilled musicians like jongleurs and troubadours brought music to life in courts and towns across Europe.

String Instruments

Bowed Instruments

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• Vielle emerged as a popular medieval bowed string instrument featured curved sides and a flat back
• Vielle played with a bow produced a sustained tone used in both secular and sacred music
• Rebec developed as a smaller bowed instrument with a pear-shaped body and typically three strings
• Rebec often played in higher registers contributed to lively dance music and courtly entertainment

Plucked Instruments

• Psaltery consisted of a flat soundboard with strings stretched across it played by plucking or striking
• Psaltery produced a bright, clear tone used in both solo performances and ensemble settings
• Harp evolved from ancient designs featured a triangular frame with strings of varying lengths
• Harp played by plucking strings with fingers created gentle, melodic sounds in courtly and religious music
• Lute introduced to Europe through Arabic influence had a rounded back and fretted neck
• Lute became increasingly popular in the late medieval period used for accompaniment and solo pieces

Wind Instruments

Woodwind Instruments

• Recorder developed as a simple wind instrument with a whistle mouthpiece and finger holes
• Recorder produced a sweet, clear tone used in both amateur and professional settings
• Shawm functioned as a double-reed instrument with a conical bore and flared bell
• Shawm produced a loud, piercing sound often used in outdoor performances and military contexts
• Bagpipe consisted of an air bag, chanter for melody, and one or more drone pipes
• Bagpipe created a continuous sound popular in folk music and later adopted in courtly settings

Keyboard Wind Instrument

• Organ evolved from ancient designs utilized pipes of various sizes to produce different pitches
• Organ operated by pressing keys to release air into pipes became central to church music
• Portative organ developed as a smaller, portable version allowed for use in processions and secular settings
• Positive organ emerged as a medium-sized instrument placed on a table or stand for domestic use

Musical Textures and Styles

Melodic Structures

• Monophony characterized by a single melodic line without harmonic accompaniment
• Monophony dominated early medieval music included Gregorian chant and secular songs
• Polyphony developed as the use of multiple independent melodic lines sounding simultaneously
• Polyphony evolved from simple parallel motion (organum) to complex counterpoint in later medieval music

Performance Practices

• Improvisation played a crucial role in medieval music allowed performers to embellish existing melodies
• Improvisation techniques included adding ornaments, creating countermelodies, and extending cadences
• Oral tradition served as the primary method of transmitting music before widespread notation
• Oral tradition relied on memorization and imitation resulted in regional variations and interpretations

Medieval Performers

Professional Musicians

• Troubadours emerged in southern France as poet-composers of courtly love songs (canso)
• Troubadours often came from noble backgrounds developed complex poetic and musical forms
• Trouvères appeared in northern France inspired by troubadours but wrote in the langue d'oïl
• Trouvères expanded the repertoire to include various genres (pastourelle, alba, jeu-parti)

Itinerant Entertainers

• Jongleurs functioned as versatile performers traveled between courts and towns
• Jongleurs skills included singing, instrumental playing, acrobatics, and storytelling
• Jongleurs often performed works composed by troubadours and trouvères adapted for popular audiences
• Minstrels emerged as a similar class of performers in England and other parts of Europe