Agnus Dei - William Byrd

William Byrd was an English composer of the Renaissance. He was born in 1540 in Lincoln, and died on July 4th 1623 in Stondon Massey. He cultivated many of the forms current in England at the time, including various types of sacred and secular polyphony, keyboard and consort music.

Starting in the early 1570s, Byrd became increasingly involved in Catholicism, which became a major factor in both his personal and creative life. His involvement with Catholicism took on a new dimension in the 1580s, as Catholicism became increasingly identified with sedition in the eyes of the Tudor authorities. Byrd's commitment to the Catholic cause found expression in his motets, of which he composed around 50 between 1575 and 1591.
A special feature of the four-part and five-part Masses is Byrd's treatment of the Agnus Dei.

The final words dona nobis pacem ('grant us peace'), which are set to sequences of distressed suspensions in the Four-Part Mass and expressive block homophony in the five-part setting reflect the wishes of the troubled Catholic community of the 1590s.

Lyrics and Translation of Agnus Dei

Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi, miserere nobis.
Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi, miserere nobis.
Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi, dona nobis pacem.

Lamb of God, who took away the sins of the world, have mercy upon us.
Lamb of God, who took away the sins of the world, have mercy upon us.
Lamb of God, who took away the sins of the world, grant us peace.

Here is the link to Agnus Dei: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4qlgQoVshf4

Messe de Notre Dame - Machaut

Messe de Notre-Dame is a scared work which was composed my Guillaume de Machaut in the 14^th century.

 

The melody has a pivotal/wave shape. This is clear because the melody is based around a central 'line of music', with minimal movement of the range. The range of the piece moves in a stepwise motion, and goes from high C to low C#. There is a build and release of tension in many sections of the piece including in bars 1-6.

 

This piece is based on the plain chant. This is because of the free rhythm and the unaccompanied meldoy. The structure of it follows the mass ordinary. Its first movement is the Kyrie, then the Gloria, Cred, Sanctus and Anus Dei. The Kyrie is iso-rhythmic. The talea is first sung in bars 1-4, and the color is first sung in bars 1-4 also. This repeats for the rest of the movement.