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= Musical Instruments = The women is holding a lute, it is part of the plucked strings family. (Peterman)

· Many instruments of the Middle Ages continued to be played during the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries,some were adjusted in size and shape to meet new tastes and needs, some examples of Renaissance instruments are brass, woodwinds, bowed strings, keyboards, and plucked strings (McGee 223).

· "Instruments that were capable of playing cords (sic) and several lines at a time, such as lute and the keyboards, were in increasing demand for solo performance, accompaniment of solo lines, to consolidate the harmonies in larger ensembles, and for domestic music-making by amateurs" Music changed the lives of many people. It changed peoples social status, and made huge alterations in the way music was played. (McGee 223).

· Music in the early Renaissance was mostly monophonic, meaning only one instrument or voice was heard at a time. When several instruments played together, they most likely took turns, or else played in unison or in octaves. As polyphony developed, so did the idea of a musical ensemble, instruments were chosen because there tone combined well (Renaissance Instruments).



· Noisy instruments were hardly ever played indoors except for in large halls. "Soft instruments, such as recorders, crumhorns, and racketts, were normally played indoors. Cornettos, flutes, and serpents could play with either loud or soft ensembles. Most of the reed instruments of the Renaissance were of the double-reed type, like the modern oboe, rather than the single-reed, like the modern clarinet" (Renaissance Instruments).

 · "Some have survived to the present day; others have disappeared, only to be recreated in order to perform music of the period on authentic instruments" (Renaissance Music). Some examples; The slide trumpet is similar to the trombone today, the cornett was made of wood and played like a recorder, The sackbutt was similar to the slide trumpet and eventually replaced the slide trumpet by the end of the fifteenth century (Renaissance Music).



The Angel is holding a cittern it is also part of the plucked strings family. (Capistrano School)