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A music treatise introducing innovations such as the staff notation system and solmization (ancestor of solfège). It greatly influenced music education in the Middle Ages and beyond.
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A German Benedictine abbess, composer, and visionary. One of the earliest known female composers, her works (like Ordo Virtutum) show expressive melodic writing and are preserved in neumatic notation. Hildegard von Bingen was born around the year 1098 and died on September 17, 1179. She lived to be approximately 81 years old.
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A treatise by Philippe de Vitry that introduced new rhythmic notation, allowing greater complexity and flexibility. It marks the beginning of the "Ars Nova" style, distinguishing it from the earlier "Ars Antiqua."
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A Lutheran hymn composed during the Reformation, embodying Luther’s ideals of congregational singing and music as a tool for teaching faith.
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A widely popular early madrigal that reflects the humanistic style of the Renaissance, combining expressive text setting with balanced polyphony.
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Allegedly composed to demonstrate that polyphonic music could maintain textual clarity, it became a model of Counter-Reformation style. Though the legend is likely apocryphal, the mass remains iconic.
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A rich, expressive setting based on his earlier motet of the same name. It reflects the Spanish mysticism of the Counter-Reformation and Victoria’s mastery of emotional and spiritual intensity.
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Considered the first great opera in Western music history, blending Renaissance polyphony with early Baroque monody and dramatic expression.
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These concerts, organized by John Banister, marked a major shift from private aristocratic performances to public concerts, paving the way for modern concert culture.
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One of the most influential composers of the Baroque era, known for his mastery of counterpoint, harmonic depth, and contributions to nearly every genre of the time.
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This collection of 12 concertos revolutionized the concerto form, influencing composers like Bach and establishing Vivaldi’s reputation as a master of ritornello form.
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A collection of 24 preludes and fugues in all major and minor keys, demonstrating the possibilities of equal temperament and serving as a pedagogical and compositional model for generations.
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A foundational theoretical text that codified tonal harmony, chord progressions, and the concept of the fundamental bass, shaping 18th-century music theory.
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An English oratorio with the famous “Hallelujah” chorus, blending operatic style with sacred themes. Its enduring popularity marks it as one of the most iconic works of Western choral music.