Editing Rhythmic mode (section)

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[[File:Perotin - Alleluia nativitas.jpg|thumb|Pérotin, "Alleluia nativitas", in the third rhythmic mode.]]
In [[medieval music]], the '''rhythmic modes''' were set patterns of long and short [[duration (music)|duration]]s (or [[rhythm]]s). The value of each [[musical notation|note]] is not determined by the form of the written note (as is the case with more recent European musical notation), but rather by its position within a group of notes written as a single figure called a [[Ligature (music)|ligature]], and by the position of the ligature relative to other ligatures. '''Modal notation''' was developed by the composers of the [[Notre Dame school]] from 1170 to 1250, replacing the even and unmeasured rhythm of early [[polyphony]] and [[plainchant]] with patterns based on the metric feet of classical poetry, and was the first step towards the development of modern [[mensural notation]].{{sfn|Hoppin|1978|p=221}} The rhythmic modes of Notre Dame Polyphony were the first coherent system of rhythmic notation developed in Western music since [[Ancient history|antiquity]].