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It is the oldest complete piece of music wich still exists. It includes both its musical notation and the lyrics. It was found near what is now Turkey. -
A form of monophonic, unaccompanied sacred song in Latin used in the Roman Catholic Church. -
Guido was an Italian. He invented important music tools like the “do-re-mi” system and the musical staff. In the 11th century, his teaching methods changed the way how people learned music. -
Hildegard was a German nun who wrote unique and expressive religious music. In the 12th century she created songs with long, beautiful melodies that were different from anything else at the time. -
One of the most famous troubadours (medieval poet and musician). In the 12th century he wrote songs about courtly love which were very popular in France and influenced later music and poetry. -
Style of medieval music characterized by rhythmic modes and early notation practices. -
He was a composer of the Notre Dame school (Paris), and is regarded as the earliest known master of polyphonic organum. His work, especially the Magnus liber organi, represents a major development in early medieval polyphony and laid the foundations for rhythmic modes and more complex multi-voice writing. -
One of the most important composers of the Notre Dame school of polyphony, asociated to its cathedral. Pérotin's innovations were important, because he helped -
He was the king of Castile. He supported music and culture a lot. In the 13th century, he ordered the creation of the Cantigas de Santa María (a huge collection of songs honoring the Virgin Mary). -
Machaut was a very important composer from the Ars Nova period. In the 14th century he wrote complex pieces, including the Messe de Nostre Dame, the first complete mass by a single composer. -
Later medieval musical style marked by more complex rhythms, notation innovations, and greater independence of voices. -
Landini was a blind Italian musician who became very famous in the 14th century. His music included beautiful melodies and he created a special type of cadence now called the “Landini cadence.” -
Gutenberg wasn’t a musician, but he invented the printing press in the 15th century. This helped music spread more easily because people could print music books faster. -
Juan del Encina was a Spanish poet and musician from the late 1400s and early 1500s. He wrote early Spanish plays and lots of songs like villancicos, which still sound nowadays. -
Martin Luther, besides starting the Protestant Reformation, also created the Lutheran chorales. In the 16th century he wanted people to sing in church in their own language, so he wrote simple, powerful hymns. -
Another important Spanish composer of the Renaissance. In the 16th century his masses and motets were sung all over Europe because of their high quality. -
Cabezón was a Spanish organist and composer, and he was blind too. In the 16th century he wrote very detailed and impressive keyboard music that influenced musicians all over Europe. -
Lasso was one of the most famous composers of the 16th century. He wrote tons of music in many styles and languages, and people admired how expressive his music was. -
A Venetian composer who worked at St. Mark’s Basilica. In the 16th century he helped to develop the style of using separated choirs to create echo effects. -
She was very important, as she was the first woman to publish music under her own name. In the 16th century she wrote expressive madrigals with really good use of harmony. -
Tomás was a Spanish composer, known for his emotional and spiritual sacred music. In the 16th century his style became so important in the Catholic Church due to its clarity and devotion. -
Giovanni was Andrea’s nephew, and he continued that style in the late 1500s and early 1600s. Giovanni was one of the first composers to use dynamic markings and wrote music combining voices and instruments. -
Carlo Gesualdo was an Italian composer famous for his super dramatic madrigals (full of chromatic notes). In the late 1500s and early 1600s, his music sounded so advanced that it feels almost modern. -
He helped create early opera and bridge the Renaissance with the Baroque period. In the early 1600s he wrote works like L’Orfeo, one of the first great operas in history. -
Carissimi was a 17th-century composer who helped develop the oratorio. His music was important in shaping the early Baroque style. -
An Italian singer and composer. In the 17th century she published a lot of vocal music, which was a big deal because women had a hard time getting their work published back then. -
Antonio Stradivari was an Italian violin maker whose instruments are considered the best ever made. In the 17th and 18th centuries he crafted violins, violas, and cellos that today are worth millions because of their amazing sound. -
Henry Purcell was England’s most important composer in the 17th century. He wrote operas, songs, and church music, including Dido and Aeneas, which is still widely performed. -
Vivaldi was an Italian composer and violinist from the Baroque. In the 18th century he wrote tons of concertos (especially The Four Seasons), which is still super famous today. -
Telemann was a German composer who wrote an unbelievable amount of music. In the 18th century he composed in almost every style and was super famous during all his lifetime. -
Händel was a German composer who worked mostly in England. In the 18th century, he created operas and oratorios (including the famous Messiah), which people still sing every Christmas. -
Bach was one of the greatest composers ever. In the 18th century he wrote: cantatas, fugues, and lots of keyboard music that musicians still study and perform everywhere.