1. Concise History of Western Music
5th edition
Barbara Russano Hanning

2. Polyphony through the Thirteenth Century
Chapter 3
Polyphony through the
Thirteenth Century

3. Prelude 1050–1300 economic growth
increasing trade and commerce throughout western Europe
growing population, modern cities develop
cultural revival, music and the arts
ancient Greek writings translated into Latin
encouraged development of music theory
universities founded: Paris, Oxford, and Bologna
large Romanesque churches erected
donors funded new monasteries, convents
Scholasticism

4. F03-01
A leaf from a manuscript copy of the Gospel of Saint Mark. The central text is heavily glossed with commentary (akin to footnotes) between its lines and along both sides of the page in a process that illustrates the Scholastic method and also has parallels in troping and in the musical layering of early polyphony. (The Morgan Library.)
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5. Prelude (cont’d) 1050–1300 economic growth (cont’d)
reconcile classical Greek philosophy with Christian doctrine
Roger Bacon and St. Thomas Aquinas make contributions
mid-twelfth century, Gothic style
Polyphonic music, Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris
polyphony: added voices sing together in independent parts
heightened grandeur of chant

6. Prelude (cont’d)
Polyphonic music, Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris (cont’d)
written polyphony, inaugurated four concepts in Western music
counterpoint: combination of multiple independent lines
harmony: regulation of simultaneous sounds
centrality of notation
composition as distinct from performance
monophony remained principal medium
polyphonic music grew out of improvisational practice

7. Prelude (cont’d)
Polyphonic music, Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris (cont’d)
development of organum
polyphonic elaboration of plainchant
new genre, motet
breakthrough in rhythmic notation

8. Early Organum Organum, ninth through eleventh centuries
described in anonymous treatise, Musica enchiriadis
parallel organum
chant melody is principal voice
organal voice moves in exact parallel motion 4th or 5th below (NAWM 14a)
may be further duplicated at octave (NAWM 14b)
oblique organum
adjustments made to avoid tritones
wider variety of intervals, dissonance

9. Ex03-01 Parallel organum at the fifth below, from Musica enchiriadis
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10. Ex03-02 Mixed parallel and oblique organum, from Musica enchiriadis
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11. Ex03-03 Free organum, from Ad organum faciendum (ca. 1100)
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12. F03-02
Master of the Platerias Portal, King David bowing a rebec, ca Granite. South portal, cathedral of Santiago de Compostela, Spain. The decorative folds of David’s garment have their counterpart in the florid melismas of the more elaborate melodies of the Mass and Office. (Giraudon/Art Resource, NY.)
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13. F03-03
An example of two-voice Aquitanian organum, also known as free or florid organum, which may have been written as early as The solid lines separate the upper and lower voices. (For a partial transcription, see below and NAWM 16.) (Bibliothèque Nationale, Paris, fonds Latin, MS 1139, fol. 41.)
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14. Ex03-04
Aquitanian (florid) organum and discant in Jubilemus, exultemus
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15. Early Organum (cont’d)
Organum, ninth through eleventh centuries (cont’d)
contrary and oblique motion
predominated in eleventh century
voices grew more independent
parts often cross
organal voice above chant
consonant intervals: unison, octave, 4th, and 5th
eleventh-century polyphony
troped plainchant sections of Mass Ordinary (Kyrie and Gloria)
parts of Mass Proper (Tracts and Sequences)

16. Early Organum (cont’d)
Organum, ninth through eleventh centuries (cont’d)
responsories of the Office and Mass (Graduals and Alleluias)
trained singers improvised solo portions, alternated with monophonic chant by full choir
Alleluia Justus ut palma (NAWM 15)
instructions preserved in Ad organum faciendum (On making organum, ca. 1100)
new style of organum, more rhythmic and melodic independence

17. Early Organum (cont’d)
twelfth-century organum
Aquitainian organum: free and florid
developed in Aquitaine, southwestern France
organum, organum duplum (“double organum”), or organum purum (“pure organum”)
lower voice (existing chant or original melody) sustains long notes
chant became elongated into series of single-note “drones”
lower voice called tenor, Latin tenere (“to hold”)
upper voice sings decorative phrases of varying lengths
upper voice moved independently

18. Early Organum (cont’d)
twelfth-century organum (cont’d)
discantus (discant) style
movement is primarily note against note
Leoninus praised as best singer or composer of organum, optimus organista
Perotinus praised as best maker of discants, discantor
Jubilemus, exultemus (NAWM 16), 2-voice Aquitainian organum
florid organum, melismas of three to fifteen notes
discant passages: one to three notes
contrary motion more common

19. Early Organum (cont’d)
twelfth-century organum (cont’d)
most note groups begin on perfect consonance
phrases end on octaves or unisons, heighten sense of closure
both styles: lower voice holds principal melody, tenor
Notation
score notation, one part above the other
phrases marked off by short vertical strokes
polyphonic complexities create need for rhythmic notation
rhythmic modes devised in northern France

20. Notre Dame Polyphony: Late Twelfth and Early Thirteenth Century
Parisian polyphony even more ornate style
creators associated with Cathedral of Notre Dame
Leoninus (fl. 1150s–ca. 1201), priest and poet-musician
Perotinus (fl. 1200–1230), probably trained as singer under Leoninus
both may have studied at University of Paris
repertory sung for more than a century
primarily composed in writing and read from notation

21. F03-04
Part of the nave and transept of the Cathedral of Notre Dame in Paris, built ca. 1163–1250. Its great height and elaborate interior have parallels in the unprecedented length, intricacy, and carefully worked-out structure of the vocal music that singers collectively created to resound in its vast space. (Laurent Lucuix/Alamy.)
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22. Ex03-05 First section of Viderunt omnes, in organum duplum
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23. Ex03-06 Discant clausula on “do-” of Viderunt omnes
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24. F03-05
Performance textures of organum duplum, where sections of organum alternate with plainchant in the respond and with discant in the verse.
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25. Notre Dame Polyphony: Late Twelfth and Early Thirteenth Century (cont’d)
Magnus Liber Organi (“great book of polyphony”)
compilation attributed to Leoninus
collection of 2-voice settings of solo portions of responsorial chants
Graduals and Alleluias of the Mass, and Office responsories
different settings for same passages of chant
includes organa for two, three, and four voices

26. Notre Dame Polyphony: Late Twelfth and Early Thirteenth Century (cont’d)
Magnus Liber Organi (“great book of polyphony”) (cont’d)
musicians freely altered and added to the collection
Viderunt omnes (NAWM 17), by Leoninus, Gradual for Christmas Day
responsorial chant: polyphonic music performed by soloists, choir sings in unison

27. Notre Dame Polyphony: Late Twelfth and Early Thirteenth Century (cont’d)
Viderunt omnes (NAWM 17), by Leoninus, Gradual for Christmas Day (cont’d)
plainchant, organum, and discant heard side by side
opening section on “Viderunt”
chant melody in tenor, series of drones
upper voice sings expansive melismas
notations suggests free, unmeasured rhythm

28. Notre Dame Polyphony: Late Twelfth and Early Thirteenth Century (cont’d)
Viderunt omnes (NAWM 17), by Leoninus, Gradual for Christmas Day (cont’d)
improvisational practice suggested by use of dissonances
discant passage on “Dominus”
long melisma in original chant
created piece of manageable size

29. Notre Dame Polyphony: Late Twelfth and Early Thirteenth Century (cont’d)
Clausula: self-contained section of an organum
discant style, more consonant than organa, short phrases, more lively pacing
substitute clausulae: new clausulae replace original setting of setting of chant
manuscript includes ten clausulae for “Dominus” from Viderunt omnes (NAWM 18)
repetition and structure:

30. Notre Dame Polyphony: Late Twelfth and Early Thirteenth Century (cont’d)
Clausula: self-contained section of an organum (cont’d)
tenor repeats rhythmic motive
some clausulae tenors repeat melody
repetitions create coherence; becomes significant in thirteenth and fourteenth century
Perotinus “the Great”
Perotinus and his contemporaries created 3- and 4-voice organa

31. F03-06
The six rhythmic modes
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32. F03-07
This tympanum over the main portal of the Romanesque church of Saint Pierre in Moissac, France (1125–1130), shows the medieval delight in small repetitive forms similar to the repeating patterns of modal rhythm. In this case, the module that repeats is one of the Twenty-four Elders of the Apocalypse. Each one holds an identical rebec or fiddle or perhaps a lutelike instrument and has stopped playing to look up in astonishment at Christ, whose Second Coming is depicted above their heads. (Photo courtesy of the author.)
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33. Ex03-07 Two substitute clausulae on “Dominus” from Viderunt omnes
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34. F03-08
Opening of the setting of Viderunt omnes in organum quadruplum. The upper three voices are in modal rhythm over a sustained tenor note. (For a transcription, see Example 3.8 and NAWM 19.) (Biblioteca Medica-Laurenziana, Florence.)
© 2014 W. W. Norton & Company, Inc.

35. Ex03-08
Perotinus, Viderunt omnes, opening, with repeating elements indicated by letter
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36. Notre Dame Polyphony: Late Twelfth and Early Thirteenth Century (cont’d)
Perotinus “the Great” (cont’d)
organum duplum, triplum (3-voice organum), quadruplum
voices above named duplum (second voice), triplum, quadruplum
Viderunt omnes (1198) (NAWM 19), 4-voice organum
upper voices use modal rhythm
long, unmeasured notes in tenor
discant passage on “Dominus,” longest section

37. The Motet New genre, early thirteenth century
originated from troped repertory of clausuale
clausula became separate piece
independent composition in melismatic polyphony
Latin or French words added to upper voice
borrowed chant material in tenor
tenor known as cantus firmus
some motets intended for nonliturgical use
upper voices have vernacular texts
tenor may have been played on instruments
compound titles indicate first words of each voice

38. The Motet (cont’d) Early motets Versatility of motets
Factum est salutare/Dominus (NAWM 21a)
based on substitue clausula from Magnus liber organi
text is trope on original chant text
elaborated meaning: words drawn from a psalm referring back to original chant
ingenious composite artwork, multiple layers of borrowing and meaning
Versatility of motets
became genre independent of church performance
tenor lost its connection to the liturgy

39. F03-09
We have no images of Leoninus or Perotinus. This illumination from an early fourteenth-century French manuscript shows a class at the University of Paris from their era. (British Library.)
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40. Ex03-09 Factum est salutare/Dominus
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41. Ex03-10
Fole acostumance/Dominus
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42. Ex03-11 Super te Ierusalem/Sed fulsit virginitas/Dominus
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43. F03-10
Detail of the Twenty-four Elders and their instruments from the Pórtico de la Gloria, cathedral of Santiago de Compostela, ca (compare Figure 3.7). (Bridgeman Art Library.)
© 2014 W. W. Norton & Company, Inc.

44. Ex03-12
A composite of Examples 3.9, 3.10, and 3.11, all on the same tenor or cantus firmus, “Dominus”
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45. F03-11
The nave of Notre Dame de Laon, looking west. This Gothic cathedral was built from about 1165 to (Anthony Scibilia/Art Resource, NY.)
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46. The Motet (cont’d) Versatility of motets (cont’d)
composers reworked existing motets
different text for duplum in Latin or French
not necessarily linked to chant text, often secular topic
added a third voice to those already present
gave additional parts texts of their own: double or triple motet
deleted original duplum, wrote one or more new voices
motets from scratch using Notre Dame clausula
new rhythmic pattern, new voices added above it

47. The Motet (cont’d) Versatility of motets (cont’d)
Fole acostumance/Dominus (NAWM 21b)
tenor same as Factum est salutare/Dominus, stated twice
substitutes new, more quickly moving duplum
doubled length, faster motion accommodate longer secular French poem
intended for entertainment
Super te/Sed fulsit virginitas/Dominus (NAWM 21c)
unchanged tenor from a clausula
first half of chant melisma on “Dominus” with different modal rhythmic pattern

48. The Motet (cont’d) Versatility of motets (cont’d) Franconian motet
two upper voices: first and second halves of Latin poem on birth of Christ
upper parts rarely rest together, or with tenor
music moves forward in unbroken stream
Franconian motet
each upper voice has distinctive rhythm
no longer conform to rhythmic modes
more rhythmic freedom and variety among and within voices
triplum bears a longer text, faster-moving melody, many short notes
layered texture

49. The Motet (cont’d) Versatility of motets (cont’d)
De ma dame vient/Dieus, comment porroie/Omnes, by Adam de la Halle (ca. 1240– 1288?) (NAWM 22), Franconian motet
upper voices differ in rhythm, reinforce contrast of texts
triplum lover’s complaints
duplum: woman’s thoughts of him
slow-moving tenor: repeats melody of “omnes” from Gradual Viderunt omnes twelve times

50. The Polyphonic Conductus
Notre Dame composers and others in France and England
2- to 4-voice settings of rhymed, metrical, strophic Latin poems
sacred or serious topic
Ave virgo virginum (NAWM 20)
differs from Notre Dame polyphony
tenor: newly composed
all voices sing text together in same rhythm
conductus style: nearly homorhythmic quality
mostly syllabic text setting

51. F03-12
The Last Supper, depicted under the tympanum arch of a mid-twelfth-century church in Charlieu, in the Loire district of France. The modular, multilayered structure of the arch’s sculptural elements is typical of Romanesque and Gothic church portals and resembles
the layered texture of a medieval motet. (Alinari/Art Resource, NY.)
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52. TIMELINE
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53. The Polyphonic Conductus (cont’d)
Notre Dame composers and others in France and England (cont’d)
caudae (“tails”): melismatic passages at beginning, end, before important cadences

54. Postlude Rise of polyphony parallels development of monophonic song
began as manner of performance
practice of oral composition
developed into written tradition
reconstruction from treatises and notated examples
Notre Dame repertory
expanded through troping
combinations of new melodies and texts added to or layered above monophonic lines

55. Postlude (cont’d) Notre Dame repertory (cont’d)
organum and motet genres established by late twelfth century
musicians elaborated on chant tenors

56. Concise History of Western Music StudySpace
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57. Concise History of Western Music, 5th edition
This concludes the Lecture Slide Set for Chapter 3 by
Barbara Russano Hanning
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