The Renaissance was a time of renewed humanism and individualism, allowing people to express their opinions and ideas more freely than ever before. This revival caused an increase in the amount of secular music produced, and with this new music came new and controversial dance styles. In this article, I will examine in detail the music, composers, and many dance styles that emerged during the Renaissance. The Renaissance era, spanning from 1450 to 1600 AD, saw a growth of humanism and individualism among various forms of art, including music. In fact, the word “Renaissance” means “reconstruction” or “rebirth”. The increase in creativity and freedom gave artists the opportunity to move away from the extremely controlled ideas of the medieval era. Much of the art produced during this era was rooted in ancient Greek ideas. Renaissance artists were often recognized and praised during their lifetime, rather than years after their death. As new printing methods were developed, music was more easily distributed to the people and could be preserved. Much of the most important music of the Renaissance is polyphonic, meaning that the music was created by multiple melodies being played simultaneously. As in medieval times, sacred music was of great importance, but secular music was becoming more and more common. For this reason, sacred music and secular madrigals began to claim a polyphonic style. As the style of music evolved, instruments were also improved and refined, and many new instruments were invented to create new sounds that had never been heard before in the musical world. community. Some of these new instruments included the virginal and clavichord, both of which were keyboards... middle of paper ...... work: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000–. http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/renm/hd_renm.htm (October 2002) “The Renaissance Period.” ThinkQuest: Library. Np, and Web. April 8, 2014. “The Renaissance”. History of music. Np, and Web. April 8, 2014. .Kamien, Roger. Music: an appreciation. 7th ed. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill, 2012. Print. « Chapter 15: Secular music of the Renaissance | The Pleasure of Music, 11th: WW Norton StudySpace. » Home | WW Norton & Company. Np, and Web. April 8, 2014. "Claudio Monteverdi (Italian composer and musician)." Encyclopedia Britannica. Np, and Web. April 8. 2014. .