The middle ages, (450- 1450), after the Roman empire fell this was a time of
great change through chaos. The later part of the middle ages brought a period
of growth with religious structures and universities. Most of society in the
beginning of this era was influenced by the Roman Catholic church. During the
middle ages the Roman Catholic church’s official music was the Gregorian
chant, named after Pope Gregory I. This music was sung without instruments, set
to sacred Latin texts. It was without meter, and a little sense of beat. The
sound of this chant resulted in the unfamiliar scale also called, church mode.
Music outside the church also greatly attributed to this era. These songs were
usually preformed on court minstrels. Most of these compositions were about
love, the crusades, dance songs, and spinning songs. Most of these songs had a
regular meter and a clearly defined beat, unlike the Gregorian chant. In the
middle ages music was mostly monophonic, however, between 700- 900 the first
steps were taken to transform music. Monks in monastery choirs began to add a
second melodic line to the Gregorian chant. This music was called organum.
Between 900- 1200, organum became polyphonic, and the melody added to the chant
became more independent. From about 1170- 1200, Notre Dame composers developed
rhythmic innovations. They used measured rhythm with definite time and clearly
defined meters. A chant used as a basis for polyphony is known as a cantus
firmus (fixed melody). Near the end of this era, the church weakened after many
suffrages, such as The Hundred Year War and the Bubonic plague. In this time
secular music held more importance than sacred music. A new system of musical
notations had emerged, and a composer could specify any rhythmic pattern. Now
beats could be divided and sometimes use syncopation. The middle ages are not
all that different from any other era. As in each era music has often been
representative of society and the times.