Guillaume de Machaut (c.1300 -1377) has the distinction ofbeing one of the earliest composers whose name can be verifiably attached  to both major sacred and secular works, and whose biographical details were recorded and have survived for posterity.  (He also has the notable distinction of having lived through  the Black Death that scourged 14th century Europe).An author of over 400 pieces of poetry as well, Machaut was much in demand as a royal courtier and was well know and regarded throughout both France and central Europe.

His composition Rose, liz, printemps, verdure falls under the category of a 'roundeaux', or a love song in the much older tradition of the trouveres, the northern-French equivalent of the more widely known "troubadours."Tills composition  was most likely heard as entertainment at court, where the music and words would be fully appreciated by a well-educated audience.

One of the characteristics of Machaut's and other 14th century French secular music are the long melismatic lines that often don't fall on important words (observe on page 3, the long extended passage on les, or 'the'). Lines like these serve a purely decorative function, and combine with the simplicity of the text and the carefully crafted rhythms and harmonies to

form a hauntingly beautiful, timeless composition