Studying at York
Music & the Reformation in England - MUS00154C
- Department: Music
- Module co-ordinator: Prof. Jo Wainwright
- Credit value: 10 credits
- Credit level: C
- Academic year of delivery: 2023-24
Module summary
The project will trace the development of music in relation to the political and religious events of the period (the 'Reformation'), aiming to place music from the Eton Choirbook through to the end of Queen Elizabeth I’s reign in its liturgical and cultural context.
Module will run
| Occurrence | Teaching period |
|---|---|
| A | Semester 2 2023-24 |
Module aims
This module centres on English church music in the 16th century. The project will trace the development of music in relation to the political and religious events of the period, aiming to place music from the Eton Choirbook through to the end of Queen Elizabeth I’s reign in its liturgical and cultural context. Key works by John Taverner, Thomas Tallis, John Sheppard, and William Byrd will be studied, and the project will introduce students to issues relating to musical sources, editions and performance practice.
Module learning outcomes
By the end of the project students should:
- have acquired an overview of English church music of the period c.1500–1600;
- have acquired a knowledge of the compositional processes used by composers of English church music of the period;
- have acquired
- have gained deeper insight into selected topics (see Content);
- an understanding of recent academic research in aspects of Renaissance and early Modern English church music;
- an understanding of historiographical issues relating to the period;
- have acquired an understanding of performance practice relating to English Church music of the period.
First years: On completion of the module, in their independent work, students should demonstrate Learning Outcomes A1-A6, A9
Second years: On completion of the module, in their independent work, students should demonstrate Learning Outcomes B1-B6, B9
Third years: On completion of the module, in their independent work, students should demonstrate Learning Outcomes C1-C6, C9
Assessment
| Task | Length | % of module mark |
|---|---|---|
| Essay/coursework Essay: 2000 words |
N/A | 100 |
Special assessment rules
None
Reassessment
| Task | Length | % of module mark |
|---|---|---|
| Essay/coursework Essay: 2000 words |
N/A | 100 |
Module feedback
Report form, with marks to student no later than 4 weeks from submission of assessment.
Indicative reading
H. Benham, Latin Church Music in England c.1460-1575 (London, 1977)
S. Bicknell, The History of the English Organ (Cambridge, 1996)
M.C. Boyd, Elizabethan Music and Musical Criticism (Philadelphia, 2/1962)
R. Bray, The Sixteenth Century, The Blackwell History of Music in Britain (Oxford, 1995)
J. Caldwell, The Oxford History of English Music Volume 1: From the Beginnings to c.1715 (Oxford, 1991)
H. Chadwick ed., Not Angels, but Anglicans: A History of Christianity in Britain (Norwich, 2000)
G. Cuming, A History of Anglican Liturgy (2nd edn, London, 1982)
P. Doe, Tallis (London, 2/1976)
E. Fellowes, English Cathedral Music, rev. J. A. Westrup (London, 1969; 1st pub.: 1941)
J. Harper, The Forms and Orders of Western Liturgy from the Tenth to the Eighteenth Century (Oxford, 1991)
F. Harrison, Music in Medieval Britain (London, 1958; 4/Buren, 1980)
J. Kerman, The Masses and Motets of William Byrd (London, 1981)
P. le Huray, Music and the Reformation in England 1549-1660 (London, 1967; rev. edn: Cambridge, 1978)
K. Long, The Music of the English Church (London, 1972, repr. 1991)
N. Temperley, The Music of the English Parish Church (Cambridge, 1979)
D. Wulstan, Tudor Music (London, 1985)