(MEDIEVAL)

Composers
Adan de la Halle (1245-1306)
Adam de la halle was born at Arras in Picardie, France. He was known
as the greatest and the last trouveres. Adam was describes as a “Master of
Music” and had produced a remarkably useful body of works.
The most famous of his play is the Le Jeu de Robin et de Marion (The
Play about Robin and Marion). It contain the most music in which spoken
dialogue is combines with songs. It was performed in Naples court where
he was working.

Hildegard Von Bingen, OSB (1098—September 7, 1179)

Hildegard Von Bingen was a remarkable woman, first in many field.
She was a poet, author, philosopher, theologian, singer, musician,
composer, playwright, artist, architect, biographer, doctor, botanist,
herbalist, visionary, preacher, seer, prophet, and a saint.
Hildegard was dedicated to the church. She started to have visions of
luminous objects at the age of three. Realizing her uniqueness, she hid her
gift for how many years.
Hildegard was brought to the care of Jutta von Sponheim who became her teacher. She
confided her visions to her and another monk, Volmar. One vision she had that changed the
course of here life was when God gave her instant nderstanding of the meaning of religious
textand directed her to write down all that which she would observe in her vision.

(RENAISSANCE)
Composers
Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina (1525-1594)
The greatest master of Renaissance Catholic church was born on in
Palestrina, Rome. His main focus was to compose sacred music to satisfy
the desires of the church.
He received training and spent the majority of his career in Rome,
including Pope’s chapel. His music has an elegant meodic lines in all vocal
parts. His most refined writing is found in his masses written in various
different ways. The madrigals he composed were both sacred and secular
songs.
He composed more than 100 masses with the Pope Marcellus Mass published in 2567 as
the best.

Thomas Morley (1557-1602)

Morley had the chance to study composition with William Byrd and
organ Sebastian Westcote. He graduated Bachelor of Music from Oxford
University in 1588 and later got the position as organist at St. Paul’s and
join the Chapel Roy after a year. He was an English composer of
madrigalan and ballet. The Triumph of Oriana was the title of the
madrigals he composed in honor of Queen Elizabeth I. Morley was also
the author of the first thesis on music in England called A Plain and Easy
Introduction to Practical Music.
 (BAROQUE)
Composers
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Johann Sebastian Bach came from a
family of musicians. He was born on March
31, 1685 in Eisenach, Germany. He had his
first musicallesson from his father. After his
parents died, he moved in with his brother,
Johann Christoph, who taught him how to
play the organ. And since he became an
orphan in his early age, he started working as
a violinist and organist to support himself. At
the age of 18, he became an organist from
one church to another.
Bach’s career continued to thrive until he became the music
director for the Prince of Kothen. He composed a great deal of
instrumental music and createthe music his patron desired including
the Brandenburg Concerto No.5 in D Major.
He also became the cantor at the Thomasschule in Leipzip in
1723, he held this position for the rest of his life.
His famous works includes: The Passion According To St. Matthew,
The Christmas Oratorio,and The Passion According To St. John. Among
his instrumental works are The Musical Offerin, Brandenburg
Concertos, and so much more.

Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741)

Antonio was born on March 4, 1678 in
Italy. He was known to be the most
celebrated Italian Baroque composer.
Although he was musically trained, he was
ordained as a priest in 1703. This vocation
and his hair color earned him the moniker
“The Red Priest”.
In 1716, Vivaldi managed to perform his
great oratorio, Juditha Triumphans Devicta
Holofernis Barbarie in Ospedale della Pietà.
The work was a symbolic description of the
victory of the Venetiansover the Turks in
August 1716.
One of Vivaldi’s famous works is The Four Seasons, a four-part
violin concerto depictingthe scenes appropriate for each season.
 George Frideric Handel (1685-757)
He is a diverse composer who studied
and incorporated Italian musical style in his
compositions. Handel was born February 23,
1865 in Halle, Germany. He showed
musicality during his childhood but was
encouraged by his father to study law
instead.
As a young boy, he had the opportunity
to play the organ for the duke’s court in
Weissenfels. There he met the composer and
organist Frideric Wilhem Zachow. Impressed
by Handel’s talents, he invited himto become
his pupil. Under his study, Handel mastered
composing for the organ. He started
composing at the age of 11 to 17.
Handel became England’s favorite composer. He composed a
great deal of operas, oratoriors, and well-known coronation anthems.
One of Handel’s famous work, The Messiah was written in 24 days
and was first performedin Dublin. His oratorio Samson was actually a
story how he combat his blindness.