Ars antiqua

DEFINITION

Term used by 14th century writers to distinguish the French sacred polyphonic musical style of the 13th century (c. 1260 - 1320) from that of the Ars nova (new art). The term 'antiqua' is now generally extended to include the earlier music of the Notre Dame period (that of Leonin and Perotin), thus covering the musical styles from c. 1160 - 1320."old art". refers to the old musical practices of Europe during the 12th and 13th centuries