Scholasticism

- A medieval philosophy that systematized all intellectual and religious experience according to rigid rules of medieval logic. This reflected the domination by the Roman Catholic Church over secular and sacred life. The effect of it was two-fold.

1) It regulated the theory and practice of music according to canons of acceptable practice in the church. For example, triple meter was held to be more perfect than duple meter, and perfect intervals were ruled necessary on all strong beats, while dissonant intervals were generally avoided whenever possible.

2) Scholasticism also controlled and codified the emotional content of sacred music. Church officials frowned upon ornate melodies because they felt such melodies obscured the meaning of the texts. Any move to make music more emotionally expressive was avoided because it appealed to the senses and not to the soul.