Composers
Bach
des Préz
Palestrina
di Lasso
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Motet
A religious
polyphonic
form, at whose peak, in the 16th century,
presented a sophisticated counterpoint
(including polyphonic effects such as canon,
fugue
etc.), in pieces for 5-8 parts. The motet
was born in the 13th century, and was at first
based on the Gregorian chant,
upon which several parts (singing voices) were added; first those which
were non-verbal voices, and later those singers started singing in the
vernacular (local language), whereas the original chant was still sung
in Latin - the language of the Gregorian source. In
the 16th century, motet was liberated from obligatory religious topics,
and instrumental accompaniment was accepted.
The secular form, parallel to the
motet, is the Madrigal.
Many composers excelled in writing both motet and madrigal, among whom
are Josquin des Préz,
Orlando di Lasso,
Palestrina
and Bach,
who wrote many motets, and in fact ended the age of polyphony in which
the motet held a central role.
The secular brother-form of the motet is the
madrigal
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