Which term is used for music as it is defined today, specifically in terms of instrumentality?

Which term is used for music as it is defined today, specifically in terms of instrumentality?

• A. Musica Instrumentalis
• B. Musica Humana
• C. Musica Mandana
• D. Musica Mundana

Answer: (A)

Musica Instrumentalis is the term that corresponds to music as we understand it today—the sounds produced by instruments or the human voice, organized in time with pitch and rhythm. In medieval thought, music was viewed in three realms: Mundana (the music of the spheres or cosmic order), Humana (the internal rhythms of the human body), and Instrumentalis (the actual audible sound created by instruments or voices). When we refer to music in the present day, we’re talking about that instrumentally produced sound, so the term that fits is Musica Instrumentalis. The other options describe different, non-instrumental ideas: Mundana is cosmic harmony, Humana is internal bodily rhythm, and Mandana is not a standard category.

Musica Instrumentalis is the term that corresponds to music as we understand it today—the sounds produced by instruments or the human voice, organized in time with pitch and rhythm. In medieval thought, music was viewed in three realms: Mundana (the music of the spheres or cosmic order), Humana (the internal rhythms of the human body), and Instrumentalis (the actual audible sound created by instruments or voices). When we refer to music in the present day, we’re talking about that instrumentally produced sound, so the term that fits is Musica Instrumentalis. The other options describe different, non-instrumental ideas: Mundana is cosmic harmony, Humana is internal bodily rhythm, and Mandana is not a standard category.