Organum is a genre of Medieval polyphonic music (music with two or more simultaneous, different voice parts) that reached the peak of its sophistication during the late 1100s-early 1200s in France. In organum, new music would be composed and sometimes improvised on top of the “fixed” music of older Gregorian chant.
What are the 3 types of organum?
- parallel organum. no real second voice exists/parallel motion/two voices usually at a perfect 5th or 4th.
- converging organum. oblique motion/both start on the same note, separate, and then come back together at the end.
- free organum. contrary motion.
- melismatic organum. ...
- organum purum. ...
- discant.
What is a organum in music?
Organum, plural Organa, originally, any musical instrument (later in particular an organ); the term attained its lasting sense, however, during the Middle Ages in reference to a polyphonic (many-voiced) setting, in certain specific styles, of Gregorian chant.
What is the importance of organum?
Organum is a musical style based on plainchant. While one voice sings the primary chant melody, at least one other voice sings along to enhance the harmony. This style is important to musicians, particularly music theorists, because it served as the basis for the development of true counterpoint .
What does organum mean in medieval music?
Organum is, in general, a plainchant melody with at least one added voice to enhance the harmony , developed in the Middle Ages. ... In its earliest stages, organum involved two musical voices: a Gregorian chant melody, and the same melody transposed by a consonant interval, usually a perfect fifth or fourth.
What is a free organum?
2. Free Organum (10 th and 11 th Centuries): Added voice moves note-against-note using a variety of intervals . The chant is in the bottom voice. Melismatic Organum (11 th and 12 th Centuries): Added voice has melismas sung over held notes in the lower voice (which still presents the chant).
Why is it called organum?
Organum, plural Organa, originally, any musical instrument (later in particular an organ); the term attained its lasting sense , however, during the Middle Ages in reference to a polyphonic (many-voiced) setting, in certain specific styles, of Gregorian chant.
What is the difference between plainchant and organum?
is that plainsong is (music) a form of monophonic chant, sung in unison using the gregorian scale and sung in various christian churches while organum is (music) a type of medieval polyphony which builds upon an existing plainsong.
Who invented organum?
The history of organum would not be complete without two of its greatest innovators, Léonin and Pérotin . These two men were “the first international composers of polyphonic music”. The innovations of Léonin and Pérotin mark the development of the rhythmic modes.
Is organum sacred or secular?
“Organum” is a type of early polyphony that has a sacred chant sung in long-held unmetered notes in the lowest voice (called the “tenor”–which means “to hold”). One or more voice parts are added above the tenor sung in fast-moving metered rhythmic patterns reminiscent of the secular dance music of the day.
Is organum sacred music?
This article summarizes one of the most significant developments in Western music history: the rise of polyphonic texture in the composition of sacred music. The earliest forms of polyphony in Europe were called organum. Organum reached its height at the hands of the composers at the Cathedral of Notre Dame in Paris.
What is the meaning of monophonic in music?
Monophony, musical texture made up of a single unaccompanied melodic line . It is a basic element of virtually all musical cultures.
What are the two main types of medieval music?
Genres. Medieval music was both sacred and secular . During the earlier medieval period, the liturgical genre, predominantly Gregorian chant, was monophonic. Polyphonic genres began to develop during the high medieval era, becoming prevalent by the later thirteenth and early fourteenth century.
What does Plainsong mean in music?
: a monophonic rhythmically free liturgical chant of any of various Christian rites especially : gregorian chant.
How many voices do you hear in Viderunt Omnes?
“Viderunt omnes” is written in a style called “organum quadruplum.”We’ll get to the “organum” part later, but “quadruplum,” refers to the fact that the work has four voices , which is important because this is historians’ first documented example of a work in four voices.
