In music of the Renaissance and early

Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...

eras, a bicinium (pl. bicinia) was a composition for only two parts, especially one for the purpose of teaching

counterpoint In music, counterpoint is the relationship between two or more musical lines (or voices) which are harmonically interdependent yet independent in rhythm and melodic contour. It has been most commonly identified in the European classical tradi ...

or singing. The term has had two usages in music history: # Recently, the term has come to mean any composition at all from the Renaissance or early Baroque period for two vocal or instrumental parts. # Historically, a bicinium referred specifically to a two-part composition used as a teaching tool, most often in Protestant,

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

-speaking areas. The term was first used in Poland, by

Jan z Lublina Jan z Lublina, or Joannis de Lublin, was a Polish composer and organist who lived in the first half of the 16th century. Not much is known about his life - he was a member of the Order of Canons Regular of the Lateran, circa 1540 he was possibly t ...

in a treatise of 1540. Volumes of bicinia were published in the next several decades in Germany, the Low Countries, and even in Italy, as the usefulness of bicinia as teaching aids became apparent. In addition, Martin Luther had strongly expressed that children should learn both music and the psalms: bicinia with German texts from the Psalms fulfilled his purpose. Students could be expected to master singing a single part in a

duet A duet is a musical composition for two performers in which the performers have equal importance to the piece, often a composition involving two singers or two pianists. It differs from a harmony, as the performers take turns performing a solo ...

more easily than a part in a larger ensemble. Usually a bicinium was designed to be sung or played by students of the same age and ability, rather than for a single student and a teacher. This model of moving from two-part study, writing, and singing to three parts and then more was adopted by Heinrich Glarean in his ''Dodecachordon'' (1547), one of the most influential

music theory Music theory is the study of the practices and possibilities of music. ''The Oxford Companion to Music'' describes three interrelated uses of the term "music theory". The first is the "rudiments", that are needed to understand music notation (ke ...

and pedagogy treatises of the Renaissance. In a similar manner, present-day music students typically learn counterpoint first by writing in two parts, and then later in three, only moving to four or more parts after mastering the earlier stages. A similar pedagogical composition for three voices is known as a tricinium (pl. tricinia).

External links

- Didactic two-part compositions of the Renaissance and the Baroque
A large site dedicated to bicinia, includes lists of composers and works, scores and an extensive bibliography. {{Authority control Renaissance music Baroque music European music Music education

See also

Further reading

External links