Notation Through Time Main Menu Musical Notation Through Time by Courtney Marshall Introduction Original Visualization Baroque Tonality Neumatic Notation How is all of this Related? Imitation Gregorian Chant Arcs

Organum

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Organum can be defined as a form of early polyphony based on an existing plainsong (in medieval music). Our textbook uses the term organum for two or more voices singing different notes in agreeable combinations according to the given rules. There are multiple kinds of organum. These include; parallel organum where the principal voice and the organal voice are moving in exact parallel motion at the distance of a fifth. Another form is mixed parallel and oblique organum (pictured above). Another form is free organum. The last form our book talks about is note-against-note organum. In this form, the organal voice is more independant and prominent. 
For this fourth assignment, I do not have any media to post (if it was returned I can't find it). However we were instructed to look at an organum composition and try to add chords that would harmonize with the preexisting melody. At first we attempted to use software like Sibelius, but that did not work out too well. So, I moved to a piano and a sheet of blank staff paper. This assignment was difficult to me because it caused me to go back to what I learned in theory, so I could make sure that the chords I added would make sense harmonically. I ended up recycling the same chords over and over until the melody was over.