A study of Solmization and Counterpoint through English treatises of practical music in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries

• Grant number: 12/24030-3
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate
• Start date: March 01, 2013
• End date: February 28, 2017
• Field of knowledge: Linguistics, Literature and Arts - Arts - Music
• Principal Investigator: Monica Isabel Lucas
• Grantee: Nathália Domingos
• Host Institution: Escola de Comunicações e Artes (ECA). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil

Abstract

This research contemplates the theory and practice of the sixteenth and seventeenth century English music. Its main objective is to evidence the importance of Solmization and Counterpoint to musical practice through a systematic study of English treatises from the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. Besides, it will attempt to apprehend how the rules of Solmization and Counterpoint may influence the performance of that repertory. The development of methods of Solmization from the eleventh century eased the difficulty of teaching and learning songs. The syllables of Solmization (ut, re, mi, fa, sol, la) facilitate the sight-reading of any melodic line. The Englishmen, however, used only four syllables - mi, fa, sol, la. The importance of knowing the correct Solmization resides in the fact that it helps the musician identify and, if necessary, correct the notae fictae, since most chromatic alterations were not written. In general, the purpose of practical musical treatises from the XVI-XVII is the teaching of basic music. As well as Solmization, most authors write about Counterpoint. Therefore, the Counterpoint, essential for the understanding of musical opus, was also studied by instrumentalists and singers. This research is fundamental as it provides an elucidative view about issues such as Solmization, Deduction, Mutation, Counterpoint, among others; all of them essential to the understanding of music from that period and, as a result, a true interpretation of that repertory.

Academic Publications

(References retrieved automatically from State of São Paulo Research Institutions)

DOMINGOS, Nathália. A study of solmization and counterpoint by means of English Treatises of practical music in the XVI and XVII centuries.. 2017. Doctoral Thesis - Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Escola de Comunicações e Artes (ECA/SBD) São Paulo.