early music

American  

noun

1. music of the medieval, Renaissance, and early Baroque periods, especially revived and played on period instruments; European music after ancient music and before the classical music era, from the beginning of the Middle Ages to about 1750.

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early music British  

noun

1. music of the Middle Ages and Renaissance, sometimes also including music of the baroque and early classical periods

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1. of or denoting an approach to musical performance emphasizing the use of period instruments and historically researched scores and playing techniques

   the early-music movement

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• early musician
  noun
• early-music
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of early music

First recorded in 1885–90

Example Sentences

Spears had phenomenal early music success with late 1990s hits like "...Baby One More Time" but has largely stepped back from music in recent years.

From Barron's • Mar. 5, 2026

“Ultimate Rose” from Salvatore Sciarrino’s 1981 opera, “Vanitas,” turns early music, along with vocal and cello production, marvelously inside out.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 19, 2026

Her brother, who was a tour director for the pop star and danced in her early music videos including Lucky Star, died from cancer on Friday in Michigan.

From BBC • Oct. 7, 2024

Indeed, Amsterdam’s transformative new music and early music scenes developed in part as a rebellion to the stodgy Concertgebouw and all it stood for.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 12, 2024

Kassia’s haunting music has recendy been recorded for the first time in a thousand years, and it rather gracefully refutes the assumption that the development of early music is exclusively the handiwork of men.

From "The Story of Music" by Howard Goodall