motet

American  

[moh-tet] / moʊˈtɛt /

noun

Music.

1. a vocal composition in polyphonic style, on a Biblical or similar prose text, intended for use in a church service.

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motet British  

/ məʊˈtɛt /

noun

1. a polyphonic choral composition used as an anthem in the Roman Catholic service

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Etymology

Origin of motet

1350–1400; Middle English < Middle French; mot, -et

Example Sentences

The focus is on the Virgin Mary’s special role in the Nativity story, as in a new arrangement of a Renaissance motet by the Portuguese Vicente Lusitano, the first known, published Black composer.

From Seattle Times • Nov. 14, 2023

In “All for Nothing,” that chorus is shrunk to a chamber motet that is finely blended yet only bitterly poignant, making the novel’s bloodied and epic finale feel insufficiently supported.

From New York Times • May 25, 2018

The short program ended with Dudamel conducting the orchestra and the Soma children's chorus in a performance of the Mozart motet "Ave Verum Corpus" dedicated to those who sacrificed to help in Fukushima.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 3, 2015

The choir also will sing several motets spanning the Renaissance through modern periods, including a Magnificat by Hieronymous Praetorius and a motet by local composer Leo Nestor.

From Washington Post • Mar. 13, 2015

This motet is a reasonably long one for the period, and so he also moves the ‘home’ of the music to new places during the piece, returning at the very end to where he started.

From "The Story of Music" by Howard Goodall