Léonin

Léonin (* 1150, † by 1201, even Leoninus ) was Master of the monastery church and cathedral of Notre Dame in Paris and one of the most important representatives of the Notre Dame school.

Léonin was a pioneer of polyphony. His two-part music has a stretched liturgical melody as the basis, to freely composed voices came top in a moving rhythm. Above all, his work Magnus liber organi ( Great Book of Organa ) is a landmark of early polyphonic music. Included are mainly ( two-part ) organ sales and Quartorgana for the fair and the Offizium. Léonin was also called by his contemporaries honorably " Optimus Organista ".

Léonin was together with his successor Pérotin the most important composer of the Notre Dame school. Just like in architecture Léonin tried to make his musical works complex. The music sounded through the development of Parallelorganums to schweifendem Organum now more flexible and sophisticated.