The Instruments of the English Broken Consort in the Time of the Renaissance (c.1430-1600)

Created by Jennifer Peecher on October 11th, 1998

Historical Background

The Renaissance, thus termed because it was a "rebirth" of Europe, saw a rise of interest in the teachings of ancient Greek and Roman culture. The importance of the individual and his ideals were central themes of which historians termed humanism. Humanism was centered around the study of the liberal arts: grammar, rhetoric, logic, arithmetic, geometry, astronomy, philosophy, and music. Music it was thought should evoke passionate and intense emotions. Many musicians claimed that the music of the Medieval Ages was shallow and lacking of any emotional thought.

The standard characteristic of Renaissance music was that music having a polyphonic texture. Polyphony is where there is one voice or more sounding a melody at the same time with another voice. The popular style of polyphony that arose during the Renaissance was imitative polyphony, where the voices could be heard overlapping one another.

There was also a movement that all artists, musicians, and poets alike took part in. They struggled to bring their areas of specialty closer in meaning and format to that of their peers. For example, painting would depict people playing or composing music. Music would attempt to emphasize words in poem by using devices such as ascending and descending scales when the text describe, for example climbing a hill to meet one's beloved.

An obvious increase of instrumental music appeared, as well as did many new and improved instruments. The invent of the printing press made music much more available to the commoner. Composers were aware of this fact and began to write more music than ever before. Composers in England were especially fond of writing music for a certain group of instruments. These groups of instruments came to be known as consorts.

The English Consort

The Recorder

Known as the flute during the Renaissance, the recorder was made out of a piece of wood, in which seven finger holes and one thumb hole were drilled. The walls were thick and finger placement was relatively easy. The diameter and shape of the finger holes determined the tuning and the size of the instrument determined the pitch. Relatively inexpensive, recorders were popular teaching and performing instruments of the masses. Recorders were easy to tune with one another and with other instruments, hence being used in small and large ensembles alike.

The Treble Viol de Gamba

Descendant of the medieval fiddle, the viol was a popular choice for ensemble work. Unlike the fiddle, which was held on the shoulder, the viol was held between the legs. Sound is producing by the bowing method. There were six strings made of gut, that produced a sound quality of that resembling something nasal. This sound that was produced, was ideal for a polyphonic work. Not only was it soft, it had a distinct quality that allowed a player to easily blend with the others in his group. The viol de gamba was used in more places than just the theatre, it could be found played by court musicians and amateurs.

The Bass Viol de Gamba

The only solo viol was the bass viol de gamba. Its shape is similar to that of the rest of the viol family. It is the largest of the viols. Again, this instrument had six strings of gut and was played using a bow. The scroll (or head) of the instrument would often be an elaborate carving. The low register of the bass viol de gamba was perfect for filling out an ensemble's overall sound.

The Cittern

This is another instrument in the string family, but is plucked instead of bowed. It has wire strings and is played with a plectrum, which was usually a piece of material made of wood, bone, or quill. The body is pear shaped. The tuning of the cittern was relatively easy in that the metal wires would stand more stress than the gut strings. The price was also cheaper. therefore the commoner could afford it. The cittern family was made of many different sizes, some of which broke off and became groups of their own, such as the bandora.

The Bandora

Descendant of the cittern, the bandora was a bass instrument with a scallop shaped body. It had iron strings, and wires made of brass. There could be either six or seven strings. It was a popular solo instrument in England because of its relative ease in tuning.

The Lute

The lute was the most popular of all instruments during the Renaissance. It was used extensively in solo and ensemble work, proof of which can be found in the many manuscripts that are written specifically for the lute. At first plucked with fingers, the use of the plectrum revolutionized the lute world. The shape of the lute was also that of a pear. It had a hole or rose cut out of the middle much like today's modern guitar. The peg box was at a right angle to neck, thus making it necessary to play at a vertical angle. The delicacy of the sound was ideal for the accompanying of soft instruments and voices. One can often see lutes in pictures associated with the heavens.

Final Words

The Renaissance was a time of many musical advancements. To limit ones self to only a particular area is doing this elaborate time period a serious injustice. For more information about the Renaissance, visit the following link:

Resources

1. Bragard, Roger. Musical Instruments in Art and History. Trans. Bill Hopkins. New York: The Viking Press, 1967.
2. Cyrus, Cynthia J. "Medieval Women and Music." ORB: On-Line Reference Book for Medieval Studies,Music Section. Ed. Margeret Hasselman. Version dated January 5, 1998. URL for ORBhttp://orb.rhodes.edu;
   URL for index to music section: http://orb.rhodes.edu/encyclop/culture/music/musindex.html.
   Consulted on October 4-10, 1998.
   
3. Grout, Donald J. and Claude V. Palisca. A History of Western Music. 5th ed., New York and London: W.W. Norton & Company, 1996.
   
4. Latham, Alison. The Norton/Grove Concise Encyclopedia of Music. Ed. Stanley Sadie and Alison Latham. New York: W.W. Norton and Company, 1994.
   
5. Montagu, Jeremy.The World of Medieval and Renaissance Musical Instruments. Vancouver: David & Charles Inc., 1976, pp.83-136.

Special Thanks

Michelle Zimmermann (for her help in the visual aspect of this web project)
Dr. Cynthia Cyrus (for her guidance in the construction of my first web page)

Comments

j.peecher@vanderbilt.edu