What was the first mass by a known composer?

• A. Bach's Mass in B minor
• B. Machaut's Messe de Notre Dame
• C. Palestrina's Missa Papae Marcelli
• D. Gregorian Mass

Answer: (B)

The main idea here is identifying the earliest complete Mass setting by a named composer, a turning point where a single composer’s name is attached to an entire Mass cycle rather than anonymous chant. Guillaume de Machaut’s Messe de Notre Dame, from the mid-14th century, is widely regarded as the first complete polyphonic Mass Ordinary attributed to one composer. It sets all five standard movements (Kyrie, Gloria, Credo, Sanctus, Agnus Dei) as a unified work, marking a shift from chant settings to fully scored, named-composer Mass cycles. That makes it earlier than the other options: Bach’s Mass in B minor and Palestrina’s Missa Papae Marcelli are much later, and a Gregorian Mass refers to plainchant settings without a specific composer. So Machaut’s mass stands as the earliest known Mass by a named composer.