The three most important song forms of the Renaissance period were the Madrigal, Motet and Mass. They are similar to madrigals, but with an important difference: motets are religious works, while madrigals are usually love songs. Mass A musical mass is like a motet, only longer.

cappella

: without instrumental accompaniment The choir sang the chants a cappella. A Cappella Has Italian Roots More Example Sentences Learn More about a cappella.

The 14th-century madrigal is based on a relatively constant poetic form of two or three stanzas of three lines each, with 7 or 11 syllables per line. Musically, it is most often set polyphonically (i.e., more than one voice part) in two parts, with the musical form reflecting the structure of the poem.

Although the earliest motets were usually in Latin and intended for church use, there later arose bilingual motets (French–Latin, English–Latin) on secular and sacred texts or combinations of both. Particularly during the late 13th century, the motet was secular in its added texts, which were often all in French.

Chorale – A hymn sung by the choir and congregation often in unison. Chorus – A group singing in unison. Classical – The period of music history which dates from the mid 1700’s to mid 1800’s. The music was spare and emotionally reserved, especially when compared to Romantic and Boroque music.

Eighteen Chorale Preludes

A choir (/ˈkwaɪər/; also known as a chorale or chorus) is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which spans from the medieval era to the present, or popular music repertoire.

A chorister is either a member or the leader of a choir. Any organized group of singers can be called a chorus or choir, and anyone who belongs to the group is a chorister. This term is more common when talking about boys or girls who sing in choirs (along with the alternatives choirboy and choirgirl).

Common Opera voice types

• Soprano. For females, the highest voice type is the soprano.
• Mezzo-soprano. The mezzo-soprano has a lower range than the soprano.
• Contralto or Alto. The contralto or alto is the lowest female voice and the darkest in timbre.
• Tenor.
• Countertenor.
• Baritone.
• Bass.

The choir usually sings in four parts: soprano, alto, tenor and bass:

• Soprano is the highest voice part, and is suitable for women and boys (before their voices break).
• Alto is usually sung by women, but can be sung by male countertenors.

The soprano is the highest voice part of the choir, often used for melody lines – perhaps because the human ear is more sensitive to the higher frequencies of the notes we sing. There are six of us in ORA Singers, and between us we have a pretty extensive range.

accept personal responsibility to learn your part and be attentive at all times. • not hurt, upset or exploit any other choir members — be helpful and supportive instead. • remember that music-making in a choir is a team effort.