Rondeau

A fixed poetic and musical form built around a recurring refrain and repeated musical material. In poetry, it uses a short refrain drawn from the opening lines; in music, it often follows a recurring sectional design.

Refrain: A line or passage that recurs at intervals in a poem or song. The recurring text or melody gives the rondeau its defining return.
Medieval French poetry: French-language poetry written during the Middle Ages. The poetic rondeau took shape within this literary tradition.
Rondeau (poetic form): A fixed French verse form whose opening phrase returns as a refrain. This is the best-known poetic structure associated with the rondeau.
Ballade: A fixed poetic form with repeated refrains and patterned stanzas, especially in French and English traditions. The ballade also repeats refrains, but uses a different stanza plan and typically a longer refrain.
Rhyme scheme: The pattern of rhymes across the lines of a poem. Rondeau poetry organizes its lines around a constrained pattern of rhymes.
Medieval music: European music composed and performed during the Middle Ages. The musical form grew within medieval practices of song and repeated sections.
Rondeau (medieval musical form): A medieval French song form organized around recurring musical sections. This historical musical design gives the rondeau a distinct identity beyond its verse use.
Virelai: A medieval French fixed poetic and musical form with alternating stanzas and a recurring refrain. The virelai shares the rondeau’s medieval setting but organizes its refrains and stanzas differently.
Stanza: A grouped set of lines forming a unit within a poem. The poetic rondeau arranges its lines into recurring stanza groups.
French poetry: Poetry written in French across historical periods and traditions. French poets developed and later revived the rondeau as a fixed verse form.

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