Listening Journal: Ave Maria by Josquin des Prez

The motet I am analyzing is Ave Maria by Josquin des Prez. This piece was published in 1485, and it is verncaular, as it is in Latin and a sacred text. The timbre is that there are four different parts, two male and two female voices, unaccompanied by any instrumentation. The piece is sung as legato, so the phrases connect together. The tempo of the piece is more adante, as it is slow, but steadily moving forward. The piece is mostly conjuct, as it moves step-wise. With the structure, the piece seems to vaguely relate to Gregorian chant. The dynamics throughout the piece are mostly consistently at a mezzo-forte, but does decrescendo into piano at about 4:05, and gradually works back up to mezzo-forte for the remainder of the piece. The overall tone and mood of the is very worship-esque, and very much a sacred text.  

Medieval Composed Listening Journal: Franco of Cologne

The composer I am looking at is Franco of Cologne and his style of composing. He was primarily a music theorist, but he was also a composer. Franconian notation was developed from his writings, resulting in the basic shapes for notes, and enhanced the possibilities for compositions to come. The idea of Franconian notation itself is that a note should be held for a certain duration based on how it is written on a page, not based on context. Franco even has a motet named after him, the Franconian Motet. An example of a Franconian Motet would be Amours mi font.