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An Exploration Of Modes In Polyphonic Compositions Of The Sixteenth Century, Marcella Marie Columbus

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

Modes in the Renaissance era were vital to understand the inner workings of a piece. Modal theory implies every Renaissance composition should have a distinct mode in which it belongs. The mode of any piece from this era is theoretically obvious by the first or last note of the piece as well as the range given, but researchers have argued the validity of this claim. Complications arise in the case of pieces with two or more voices. Polyphonic music causes uncertainty regarding the method of identifying the mode of a piece. This paper will look deeply at the Missa Papae …