Transition to the Baroque

Venetian School:

·        St. Mark’s has been most important music job in Italy since early in the 16^th century, beginning with Willaert (maestro di capella 1527), continuing with other Netherlanders (Rore, Willaert’s student), then gradually Italians take over the job: Andrea Gabrieli (another student of Willaert), later Giovanni Gabrieli (Andrea’s student and nephew): he is culminating figure of Venetian school.

·        Why was St. Mark’s so important? 

• Huge church in very important, free (republic) city-state
• Venice is big center for trade
• Piazza in front of St. Mark’s was a good place to have ceremonial secular music for civic celebrations
• A major center for worship with big demand for sacred music.  Has special properties for music: two choir lofts, each with an organ, many other balconies; composers wrote polychoric works with antiphonal effects, also put instruments in balconies

·        Between Willaert and G. Gabrieli, one of the main Venetian School composers was Andrea Gabrieli (c. 1510-86)

• Wrote many motets in 4 and 5 voices and a book of psalm settings.  All the collections indicate that instruments may be used either instead of voices or along with them. 
• Some of the Psalm settings require multiple choirs; they are pitted against one another in a style called Stile Concertato (Concerted style): brings together contrasting elements

·        Giovanni Gabrieli (1557-1612) the culminating figure of the Venetian School

• Wrote very little secular music (a few madrigals early in life with vivid text painting)
• Sacred works were bulk of his output, especially Motets. His innovations:

·        adapted for multiple choruses

·        added instrumental parts

·        Gabrieli’s polychoric works are fairly homophonic within a chorus, but choruses are in counterpoint with each other.