Pierre Certon (c1510-1520 – February 23, 1572) was a French composer of the Renaissance. He was a representative of the generation after Josquin and Mouton, and was influential in the late development of the French chanson. 1510 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... mary elline m. ... February 23 is the 54th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... January 16 - Thomas Howard, 4th Duke of Norfolk is tried for treason for his part in the Ridolfi plot to restore Catholicism in England. ... Renaissance music is European classical music written during the Renaissance, approximately 1400 to 1600. ... Josquin des Prez Josquin Des Prez (French rendering of Dutch Josken, diminutive of Joseph; latinized Josquinus Pratensis, alternatively Jodocus Pratensis) (c. ... Jean Mouton (c. ... Chanson is a French word for song, and in English-language contexts is often applied to any song with French words, particularly a cabaret song. ...

Life

Most likely he was born in Melun,^[1] but he lived most of his life in Paris. The earliest records of his life date from 1527, where he was in the service of the king. In 1530 he was charged with playing ball at Notre Dame Cathedral as well as refusing to go to a service, both dangerous irreverences which almost cost him prison time—but he was young enough to be forgiven. From this event a birthdate between 1510 and 1520 can be inferred. In 1536 he became a master of choristers at the Sainte-Chapelle, and he remained at this post, with a few additional benefices, for the rest of his life. Melun is a French city and commune on the river Seine, about 50 km south-southeast of Paris. ... City flag City coat of arms Motto: Fluctuat nec mergitur (Latin: Tossed by the waves, she does not sink) Paris Eiffel tower as seen from the esplanade du Trocadéro. ... January 5 - Felix Manz, co-founder of the Swiss Anabaptists, was drowned in the Limmat in Zürich by the Zürich Reformed state church. ... June 25 - Augsburg confession presented to Charles V of Holy Roman Empire. ... This article is about the Notre-Dame cathedral in Paris. ... 1510 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... mary elline m. ... Year 1536 was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. ...

Another post he held late in his life—concurrently with his activity in Paris—was as canon at the cathedral in Melun. He seems to have helped organize many grand entertainments, and doubtless composed many of his works for them. Most likely he was a close friend of the more famous composer Claudin de Sermisy, as evidenced by his dedications, notes, and the poignant lament he wrote for his death in 1562 which was closely modeled on the similar work by Josquin for the death of Johannes Ockeghem. Claudin de Sermisy (c. ... Year 1562 was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. ... Ockeghem (with glasses) and his singers Johannes Ockeghem (c. ...

Music and influence

Certon wrote eight masses which survive, motets, psalm settings, "chansons spirituelles" (chansons with religious texts, related to the Italian "madrigali spirituali"), and numerous secular chansons. His style is relatively typical of mid-century composers, except that he was unusually attentive to large-scale form, for example framing longer masses (such as his Requiem) with very simple movements, with the inner movements showing greater tension and complexity. In addition he was skilled at varying texture between homophonic and polyphonic passages, and often changing the number and register of voices singing at any time. The Mass, a form of sacred musical composition, is a choral composition that sets the fixed portions of the Eucharistic liturgy (principally that of the Roman Catholic Church, the Anglican Church, generally known in the US as the Episcopal Church, and also the Lutheran Church) to music. ... In Western music, motet is a word that is applied to a number of highly varied choral musical compositions. ... A madrigale spirituale (Italian; pl. ... The Requiem or Requiem Mass, also known formally (in Latin) as the Missa pro defunctis or Missa defunctorum, is a liturgical service of the Roman Catholic Church and, in a wholly different ritual form and texts, the Eastern Rite Catholic Churches as well as the Anglican High Church and certain... Homophony is a musical term that describes the texture of two or more instruments or parts moving together and using the same rhythm. ... Polyphony is a musical texture consisting of two or more independent melodic voices, as opposed to music with just one voice (monophony) or music with one dominant melodic voice accompanied by chords (homophony). ...

His chanson settings were famous, and influential in assisting the transformation of the chanson from the previous light, dancelike, four-part texture to the late-century style of careful text setting, emotionalism, greater vocal range, and larger number of voices. Cross-influence with the contemporary Italian form of the madrigal was obvious, but chansons such as those by Certon retained a lightness and a rhythmic element characteristic of the French language itself. A madrigal is a setting for 3–6 voices of a secular text, often in Italian. ... French (français, langue française) is one of the most important Romance languages, outnumbered in speakers only by Spanish and Portuguese. ...

External links

• Free scores by Pierre Certon in the Werner Icking Music Archive

The Werner Icking Music Archive, often abbreviated WIMA, is a web archive of public domain sheet music. ...

References and further reading

• Article "Pierre Certon," in The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, ed. Stanley Sadie. 20 vol. London, Macmillan Publishers Ltd., 1980. ISBN 1-56159-174-2
• Gustave Reese, Music in the Renaissance. New York, W.W. Norton & Co., 1954. ISBN 0-393-09530-4
• Harold Gleason and Warren Becker, Music in the Middle Ages and Renaissance (Music Literature Outlines Series I). Bloomington, Indiana. Frangipani Press, 1986. ISBN 0-89917-034-X

Gustave Reese (November 29, 1899 – September 7, 1977) was an American musicologist and teacher. ...

Notes