History of Music

  • Period: 750 BCE to 100

    Greek Period

  • Period: 300 to 1450

    Medieval Period

  • 1026

    Guido of Arezzo Writes Micrologus

  • Period: 1098 to 1179

    Hildegard of Bingen

  • 1320

    Ars Nova Treatise

    Introduced isorhythm —repeating rhythmic and melodic units (talea and color, respectively) within a piece of music.
  • Period: 1450 to

    Renaissance Period

  • 1529

    Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott (Martin Luther)

    German Chorale; the 'Reformation Anthem'
  • 1538

    Il Bianco e Dolce Cigno (Jacques Arcadelt)

    Italian Renaissance Madrigal
  • 1567

    Pope Marcellus Mass - Second Book of Masses, Palestrina

    As legend goes, this mass for six voices was composed to convince the Council of Trent that polyphonic settings could still be clearly understood and worshipful—thereby saving polyphonic music in the Catholic church.
  • 1580

    Victoria Missa O Magnum Mysterium (Tomás Luis de Victoria)

    Late Spanish Renaissance Mass
  • Period: to

    Baroque Period

  • Monteverdi's L'Orfeo

  • First Public Concerts Take Place in England

  • Period: to

    Johann Sebastian Bach's Lifetime

  • Vivaldi's L'Estro Armonico

    Certain pieces within L'estro armonico greatly exemplify Vivaldi's new ritornello form and will also later serve as foundations for the development of Classical Italian concert symphonies.
  • Rameau's Traité de l'harmonie

    Rameau's treatise standardized the foundations of what is now modern music theory. His theories of intervals, chords, and tonic/dominant relationships won him renown and set the grounds for how harmony was taught going forward.
  • Bach's The Well-Tempered Clavier, Book I

    Bach's book of 24 preludes and fugues displayed the ability of well temperament to play across every key in a variety of different keyboard instruments. His work would later influence Mozart's own composition and eventually start a tradition among composers of writing preludes and fugues in sets for every major and minor key.
  • Period: to

    Classical Period

  • Period: to

    Franz Joseph Haydn's Lifetime

  • Handel's Messiah

  • Period: to

    Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's Lifetime

  • Period: to

    Joseph Bologne Le Chevalier de Saint-Georges serves as music director of the Concert des Amateurs

    Joseph Bologne was the first famous composer and performer of color, director of one of Europe's greatest orchestras at the time, and was recognized as the most accomplished man in Europe by John Adams.
  • Premier of Mozart's opera, Don Giovanni

  • Debut of Haydn's "Surprise Symphony"