Madrigals: a brief history
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- Start Date: 23 Apr 2026End Date: 02 Jul 2026Thu (Daytime): 14:00 - 16:00In PersonLocation: Keeley StreetDuration: 10 sessions (over -11 weeks)Course Code: MD816Tutors: Edward BreenFull fee £269.00 Senior fee £215.00 Concession £188.00
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What is the course about?
Madrigals, from early frottola to late English flowering and beyond. This course offers ab overview of key examples in a chronological order and will hopefully inspire you to explore further into the world of renaissance secular song.
What will we cover?
Topics will include:
• Frottole: the forerunners of Italian madrigals
• Arcadelt and WIllaert, the idea of faithful text setting
• Monteverdi’s Madrigals
• Gesualdo’s fractured texts and unique approach to harmony
• Madrigal cycles
• French chansons
• The English School and Fair Oriana
• Ligeti’s Nonsense madrigals.
What will I achieve?
By the end of this course you should be able to...
- feel confident to explore more repertoire with confidence and knowledge
- Identify key features of madrigals.
What level is the course and do I need any particular skills?
This course is for those with some familiarity in listening to a classical music, having taken a previous beginners course, or a willingness to undertake short reading tasks between sessions. We may look at music scores and identify key features of music notation, but this will not be the main focus of the studies.
How will I be taught, and will there be any work outside the class?
Tutor presentation, guided listening and watching, class discussion.
Course materials will be shared via Google Classroom, with recommendations to encourage further exploration after the course.
Are there any other costs? Is there anything I need to bring?
Please have a pen and notebook to make your own notes during class. You may wish to purchase some of the music books or recordings discussed in class; links to these materials will be available after each session. You may also wish to attend live performances.
When I've finished, what course can I do next?
City Lit offers a wide range of Music history courses. For more information, visit our Guide to the Music history programme.
Edward teaches music history and theory at City lit. His specialism is early music (medieval, renaissance and baroque) and he completed a PhD in historical musicology at King's College London (2013) on the performance of medieval music. Outside of teaching, Edward is a regular contributor to Gramophone magazine and has lectured for Dartington International Summer School, London's Southbank Centre and The British Library. He has also worked as a researcher for BBC Proms and written for the journal Early Music (OUP). His essays are published in: The Cambridge Encyclopaedia of Historical Performance in Music, (Cambridge University Press); The Montpellier Codex: Studies in Medieval and Renaissance Music 16 (Boydell Press); Recomposing the Past: Representations of Early Music on Stage and Screen (Ashgate 2018); and 30-Second Classical Music (Ivy Press).
Please note: We reserve the right to change our tutors from those advertised. This happens rarely, but if it does, we are unable to refund fees due to this. Our tutors may have different teaching styles; however we guarantee a consistent quality of teaching in all our courses.
