Elements of Preparation:
c. Historical Facts Relevant to this Piece and Composer
These will vary from piece to piece and period to period, but almost invariably the source for this information will be the TEXTBOOK.
Some important elements—which may or may not apply in any given case:
1. What historical circumstances was the composer working in?
2. Who were his patrons?
3. What are some important biographical facts about the composer?
4. What TERMS are associated with this composer’s music, or even with this piece? Think in terms of: structure ( the names of the parts, as in sonata form: exposition, development, retransition, recapitualation, coda, etc.); aesthetics (humanism; Gothic; Ars Subtilior; Ars Nova; etc.); theory (rhythmic modes; Landini cadence; etc.).
5. Who are some other composers working at the same time, who are either similar or different from this composer?
6. Was this composer part of an artistic or intellectual movement?
7. What was the function of this particular piece?
8. Are there any important sources of information about this piece or similar ones—literary descriptions, paintings, etc?
9. Was this piece included in an important manuscript, publication, or some other source mentioned in the textbook?