''Stile antico'' (literally "ancient style", ), is a term describing a manner of musical composition from the sixteenth century onwards that was historically conscious, as opposed to '' stile moderno'', which adhered to more modern trends. ''Prima pratica'' (

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

, 'first practice') refers to early Baroque music which looks more to the style of

Palestrina Palestrina (ancient ''Praeneste''; grc, Πραίνεστος, ''Prainestos'') is a modern Italian city and ''comune'' (municipality) with a population of about 22,000, in Lazio, about east of Rome. It is connected to the latter by the Via Pre ...

, or the style codified by

Gioseffo Zarlino Gioseffo Zarlino (31 January or 22 March 1517 – 4 February 1590) was an Italian music theorist and composer of the Renaissance. He made a large contribution to the theory of counterpoint as well as to musical tuning. Life and career Zarlin ...

, than to more "modern" styles. It is contrasted with ''

seconda pratica Seconda pratica, Italian for "second practice", is the counterpart to prima pratica and is sometimes referred to as Stile moderno. The term "Seconda pratica" first appeared in 1603 in Giovanni Artusi's book ''Seconda Parte dell'Artusi, overo Delle i ...

'' music. These terms are synonymous to ''stile antico'' and ''stile moderno'', respectively.

History

''Stile antico'' has been associated with composers of the high Baroque and early Classical periods of music, in which composers used controlled dissonance and modal effects and avoided overtly instrumental textures and lavish ornamentation, to imitate the compositional style of the late

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history The history of Europe is traditionally divided into four time periods: prehistoric Europe (prior to about 800 BC), classical antiquity (800 BC to AD ...

. ''Stile antico'' was deemed appropriate in the conservative confines of

church music Church music is Christian music written for performance in church, or any musical setting of ecclesiastical liturgy, or music set to words expressing propositions of a sacred nature, such as a hymn. History Early Christian music The on ...

, or as a compositional exercise as in J. J. Fux's ''Gradus Ad Parnassum'' (1725), the classic textbook on strict counterpoint. Much of the music associated with this style looks to the music of

as a model. The term ''prima pratica'' was first used during the conflict between

Giovanni Artusi Giovanni Maria Artusi (c. 154018 August 1613) was an Italian theorist, composer, and writer. Artusi fiercely condemned the new musical innovations that defined the early Baroque style developing around 1600 in his treatise ''L'Artusi, overo Dell ...

and Claudio Monteverdi about the new musical style. Claude_V._Palisca For 18th-century composers such as

Johann Sebastian Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the '' Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard wo ...

, can refer to music composed as late as the early years of that century (e.g. by

Antonio Lotti Antonio Lotti (5 January 1667 – 5 January 1740) was an Italian composer of the Baroque era. Biography Lotti was born in Venice, although his father Matteo was '' Kapellmeister'' at Hanover at the time. Oral tradition says that in 1682, Lotti ...

Pietro Torri Pietro Torri (c. 1665 or earlier, in Peschiera del Garda_Pietro_Torri,_Neue_Hofkapelle_München,_Christoph_Hammer_(2)_–_Le_Triomphe_de_la_Paixat_Christoph_Hammer">_Pietro_Torri,_Neue_Hofkapelle_München,_Christoph_Hammer_(2)_–_Le_Triomphe_de_l ...

), a style Bach would imitate more frequently in his later compositions (starting in the 1730s, up to his death in 1750).

Monteverdi's era

In the early Baroque Claudio Monteverdi and his

brother A brother is a man or boy who shares one or more parents with another; a male sibling. The female counterpart is a sister. Although the term typically refers to a familial relationship, it is sometimes used endearingly to refer to non-familia ...

coined the term ''prima pratica'' to refer to the older style of Palestrina, and

to refer to Monteverdis' music. At first, ''prima pratica'' referred only to the style of approaching and leaving dissonances. In his ''Seconda parte dell'Artusi'' (1603),

writes about the new style of dissonances, referring specifically to the practice of not properly preparing dissonances (see Counterpoint), and rising after a flattened note or descending after a sharpened note. In another book, his '' L'Artusi, overo Delle imperfettioni della moderna musica'' (1600) ("The Artusi, or imperfections of modern music") Artusi had also attacked Monteverdi specifically, using examples from his madrigal "Cruda Amarilli" to discredit the new style. Monteverdi responded in a preface to his fifth book of madrigals, and his brother

Giulio Cesare Monteverdi Giulio Cesare Monteverdi (1573–1630/31) was an Italian composer and organist. He was the younger brother of Claudio Monteverdi. He entered the service of the Duke of Mantua in 1602, but was dismissed in 1612. He then worked in Crema and becam ...

responded in ''Scherzi Musicali'' (1607) to Artusi's attacks on Monteverdi's music, advancing the view that the old music subordinated text to music, whereas in the new music the text dominated the music. Old rules of counterpoint could be broken in service of the text. According to Giulio Cesare, these concepts were a hearkening back to ancient Greek musical practice.

18th–19th century

The great composers of the late Baroque all wrote compositions in the ''stile antico'', especially

Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the ''Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard wor ...

. His Mass in B minor has sections written in ''stile antico'' which contrast with up-to-date Baroque idioms. Later composers such as

Haydn Franz Joseph Haydn ( , ; 31 March 173231 May 1809) was an Austrian composer of the Classical period. He was instrumental in the development of chamber music such as the string quartet and piano trio. His contributions to musical form have led ...

and Mozart also used ''stile antico''.

Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. Beethoven remains one of the most admired composers in the history of Western music; his works rank amongst the most performed of the classic ...

Missa Solemnis {{Audio, De-Missa solemnis.ogg, Missa solemnis is Latin for Solemn Mass, and is a genre of musical settings of the Mass Ordinary, which are festively scored and render the Latin text extensively, opposed to the more modest Missa brevis. In French ...

, written after the composer's study of Palestrina, is a late flowering of the style.

Late Baroque

For 18th-century composers such as

, can refer to music composed as late as the early years of that century, for example by

and

. Bach's interest in this style grew in the 1730s, and in the last two decades of his life (1730s–1740s) he would write in this style more frequently, leading to an outspoken style shift in this composer's work around 1740.Neuaufgefundenes Bach-Autograph in Weißenfels
at

Classical era

Romantic era

References

Sources

* Stephen R. Miller. "Stile antico", '' Grove Music Online'', ed. L. Macy (accessed March 19, 2006)
grovemusic.com
(subscription access). * Claude V. Palisca. "Prima pratica", '' Grove Music Online'', ed. L. Macy (accessed March 19, 2006)
grovemusic.com
(subscription access). * Grout, Donald J. ''A History of Western Music'' (6th ed.), W.W. Norton and Company, New York, 2001. *