Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina literally set the compositional standard for a generation of musicians. His over 100 surviving masses not only established a stylistic norm for "serious" church music (music "alla Palestrina"), but his techniques of parody or imitation would be emulated for generations. A famous Italian music theorist in 1613 wrote a manual for the composition of masses in imitation of a motet; he overtly derived his theory from the practice of Palestrina. This is not to imply, however, that Palestrina's "parody" masses are formulaic. In a piece such as his Missa Hodie Christus natus est, Palestrina willfully flaunts his own compositional principles to craft a singular and most effective cycle.

Palestrina modeled his Missa Hodie Christus natus est, or Christmas mass, on his own eight-voiced motet setting of the Christmas antiphon. In his motet, he opposes a high and a low choir in musical antiphony; each phrase of the motet passes from one to the other. Though brief, it also features distinctive melismas that cascade through each voice in a choir, and a joyous triple-meter section at the close. The composer retains these features in the parody mass, extending them to much grander proportions. It is in his extensions, and the departures from his usual practice, where Palestrina's mature genius shows in the mass.

A standard parody mass might begin each movement with the motive that also opens the model, and concludes each with music from its closing; musical motives from inside the motet judiciously appear throughout the internal moments. But Palestrina here is working with a much shorter model and must exercise greater creativity. Indeed, the first three movements open with music strongly reminiscent of the beginning of the motet Hodie Christus natus est. The most common textures throughout the mass, furthermore, are the same antiphonal alternations between the two choirs, often punctuated by the characteristic melismas. And most movements close with distinctive triple-meter music. But Palestrina boldly abandons the model's headmotive in both the Sanctus and Agnus Dei; these two both begin with similarly lush new imitative textures on a rising motive. He uses his freedom to manipulate internal textures, giving aurally striking arrivals on, for instance, the "One Holy and Catholic Church." Both this emphasis, and the generally crystalline clarity of the text-setting, suggest the deeply Catholic Palestrina was composing the Missa Hodie Christus natus est after the Council of Trent.

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