Chapter Summary

In the early fifteenth century, the trend toward secularization increased and art came to be appreciated for its own sake. Paintings and sculpted figures appeared more natural than they had in earlier works. There was a strong rebirth, or renaissance, of interest in the classical arts of ancient Greece and Rome. The music of this period was predominantly polyphonic and modal. In southern Europe, the Counter Reformation responded to specific criticisms of religious art and music made by leaders of the Reformation in the north.