Medieval Academy of America

Ars Musica
Author(s): Leonard Ellinwood
Source: Speculum, Vol. 20, No. 3 (Jul., 1945), pp. 290-299
Published by: University of Chicago Press
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/2854611
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ARS MUSICA
BY LEONARD ELLINWOOD
ONE of the most perplexingaspects of our knowledgeof mediaeval music con-

cernsthe breadthand detail withwhichmusic was taught,the relativepercentage of interestin the philosophy,theory,and practiceofmusic in the mediaeval
cathedralschoolsand universitieswhereit was regardedas a branchof the quadriviumwithinthe seven liberalarts. The fact that music was one of the basic
arts, at least formally,has confusedthe question all the more,since in modern
timesso many of the earlierdistinctionshave been completelyobliteratedor are
but vague termswhichhave survivedwithouttheircorresponding
subject material.
As an art,musichas always contributedto humanhappinessthroughthemediums of both composerand performer.
Back of this art stands the science of
music,cultivatedby a fewscholarsand scientistswho, in each generationsince
the time of Pythagoras,have delved into the mechanicsof intervals,tonality,
and all thetechnicalproblemsofbothcomposerand performer.
rhythm,
Withthe
relative decline of popular interestin abstract philosophy,there has come a
virtualcessationofgeneralinterestin questionsas to themeaningofmusic,ethos,
the effectsofmusicon mind,soul, spirit,etc. On the otherhand,withthe evolution of psychologytowardsan exact scienceduringthe presentcentury,certain
aspectsofthe philosophyofmusichave takenon newmeaning.
These threebasic aspectsofmusic,art,science,and philosophy,wererecognized
by HermannusContractus(t1054) when he wrote: 'Oportet autem nos scire,
quod omnismusicae rationisad hoc spectatintentio,ut cantilenaerationabiliter
componendae, regulariteriudicandae, decenter modulandae scientia comparetur."This is a succinctversionof Boethius' (t524) chapter,Quid sit musiCus.2Decentermodulandaeis the art of performer
and composer;rationabiliter
componendae
is the scienceof teacherand theoristwho organizesthe art of the
composerinto logical systems;while regulariter
iudicandae,which Hermannus
considerspre-eminent,
refersto the role of criticand philosopherin the fieldof
music. In a similarvein is the statementof Guido d'Arezzo (t1050):
Musicorum
et cantorum
magnaestdistantia.
Isti dicuntillisciuntquae componit
musica.3
Studies and editionsof music manuscriptssuch as the ChansonnierCang6,4
the Early St AndrewsMusic Manuscript,5and the Montpellierins., H 196,6to
mentionbut a fewbetterknownones,have shed lightin varyingdegreeson the
I Musica HermanniContracti(editedby the author,1936), p. 47.
2 De Institutione
Musica, i, 34.
3 M. Gerbert,ed., ScriptoresEcclesiasticide Musica, ii, 25. Cf. i, 38 (Aurelian of Reome, ninth
century).A statementwidelyquoted duringthe Middle Ages and stillprevalenttoday!
4 Edited by Jean Beck as CorpusCantilenarum
Medii Aevi, 1. ser., t. 1-2.
5 Facsimileeditionby J. H. Baxter. Cf. the authorin Musical Quarterly,
xxvII (1941), 165 ff.
6 Edited by Y. Rokseth as Polyphoniesdu XIIIe sie'cle.
290

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Ars Musica

291

in theMiddleAges,and wellportray
theextent
artofperformer
and composer
decenter
The
of
of achievement
modulandae. development theoryand
toward
led to a seriesof treatises'
componendae
thelawsofnotationforrationabiliter
from
themonasticand cathedralchoir-schools,
written
by specialists
emanating
in musicprimarily
forprofessional
purposes.Guidostatesas muchat theclose
and
of his Epistolade IgnotoCantu2wherehe speaksof his own Micrologus
Oddo's' Enchiriadis(ninthcentury)as 'Boetiuminhocnonsequens,cuiusliber
noncantoribus,
treatises
appear
sed solisphilosophis
utilisest.'Thesetheoretical
the quadrivium
to have circulated
but littleamongthe academiccircleswhere,
inthorough
was studied.Theydealwithscalesand intervals
detail,withspecific
formulas.
directions
formelodicand cadential
Duringthe laterMiddleAges,
added.
rulesfornotation
andcounterpoint
weregradually
In markedcontrastto thesetreatisesare thesectionson musicfoundin the
circlesby suchteachersas
drawnup in university
encyclopedic
compendiums
century),3
RogerBacon (t1294),4Vincentof
Bartholomaeus
Anglicus(thirteenth
thosewhosesections
Beauvais(t1264),5andMichaelScott(t1234?),6tomention
on musicare moreextended
thanothers.Thesechaptersdevotedto musicwere
forregulariter
background
designedto givethe studentof the artsa sufficient
intothenatureand various
iudicandae
bycarefuldefinition
and byexamination
ofmusic,witha minimum
oftheoretical
discussion.
aspectsorcategories
bothtracingback to Boethius:
Thus thereare twodistinctlinesofwriters,
it intocontemtheone attempting
to use thetheoryfoundin Boethius,fitting
artand
porarydevelopments,
and theotherdealingwithmusicas a philosophic
itmay
influenced
byIsidorus(t636)as muchas byBoethius.In thisconnection
be wellto pointoutthattheroleofBoethius,
as thebasictextforall musicstudy
in the MiddleAges,has beenundulystressed.The philosophers
used Isidorus
developedtheirownideasuponthe Boeextensively,
and themusicaltheorists
thianfoundation.
Guido'swritings
Afterthefirsthalfoftheeleventhcentury,
acknowledged
by Francoof
becamethe basis of the latter.This was frankly
Cologne(ca 1280) in the openingsentenceof his Ars CantusMensurabilis:7
sufficienter
'Cumde planamusicaquidamphilosophi
tractaverint,
ipsamquoque
theoricepraecipue
nobistam theoricequam practiceefficaciter
ellucidaverint,
Boetius,practiceveroGuidomonachus....' Not untilMichaelScottdo the
of Al-Farabi's
The introduction
schoolmen
appearto knowGuido'swritings.
confirmed
theancientphilosophies,
in theearlytwelfth
(t950) writings
century
his
oftheart.Indeed,through
but addednothing
to thetheoretical
knowledge
1 The majorityof these appear in the Scriptoresof Gerbert,cited above, and the Scriptorum
de
Musica Medii Aevieditedby Edmond de Cous4emaker(4 vols., Paris, 1864-1876).
2 Gerbert,ii, 50.
3 De Proprietatibus
cantusc. 132Rerum.The music sectionfromthis,De musicasivemodulatione
(1909).
146, has been editedby H. Muller in Riemann-Festschrift
4 Opus Tertium,
M.A. Script.,xv, 228-243.
LIX, LX. Edited in RerumBritannicarum
5 SpeculumDoctrinale,xvii, 10-35.
6 LiberIntroductorius
(Munich ms.,lat. 10268,fol.38v.-43r.).For a generaldiscussionofthiswork
7 Gerbert,iII, 1.
see C. H. Haskins, Studiesin theHistoryofMediaevalScience.

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Ars Musica

292

ofa purelyphilosphical
theGreco-Roman
approachto the
writings
conception
references
to
studyofmusicreceiveda freshimpetus,as witnesstheextensive
Al-Farabiby Vincent.
Examination
ofthesubjectmatterofthefourprincipalacademicwriters
on
withthat of the musicaltheorists
of the
musicmentioned
above, contrasted
and thirteenth
eleventh,
twelfth,
centuries,
bringsout severalfactswhichmay
oftheactualsubjectmatterofthearsmusica.
ourknowledge
helpto clarify
in theirwritings
into
Whereasmanyofthemusictheorists
stepimmediately
on whichtheirintervalsare based,the
of the monochord,
the measurements
to defidevotea considerable
academicwriters
portionoftheirinitialdiscussion
and Scottbeginby quotinga wellknowndefinitions.Bartholomaeus,
Vincent,

nition of Isidorus: 'Musica est peritia modulationissono et cantu consistens,'1

with othersdrawn fromCassiodorus (tca 580)2 and St Augustine (t430).3 In
addition to these definitions
frompatristicwritings,Michael Scott also quotes
one fromOddo ofCluny (t942): 'Musica est scientiaveraciteret canendifacilis
via ad cantandiperfectionem.'4
Vincentquotes anotherfromAl-Farabi: 'Musica
est que comprehenditcognitionemspecierumarmoniae,et illud ex quo componituret quibus modis.'5In possible contrastto these definitionsis that attributedby both Vincentand Jeromeof Moravia (ca 1250)6 to Richard of St
Victor (t1173), but whichhas not yet been traced to its source.The definition,
'Musica est pluriumdissimiliumvocum in unum redactorumconcordia,'may
be no more specificthan the others,particularlysince Vincentcontinueswith
thoseofAl-Farabiand Isidorus; on the otherhand,thereis thepossibilitythat it
refersto the floridstyle of polyphonywhichdeveloped duringthe twelfthcentury,especiallyat Notre Dame in Paris underLeonin and Perotin.In all, Scott
has nine definitionsof music in his openingparagraphs.In marked contrast,
Guido in effecttells his readerto studywhat followsifhe wishesto knowwhat
lead to a detailed
music is. In none of the academic writersdo these definitions
discussionof the materialsofmusic,but ratherto a vague repetitionofIsidore's
discussion.

Most all of the writingsexaminedcontainbriefallusionsto the effectofmusic

on man and beast. These are limitedto citationsofclassicaland Biblical incidents
such as that of David playingbeforeSaul. The most extensivepassage on the
fromthe others,however,
subject is foundin the writingsof Vincent,differing
onlyin that moreincidentsare cited.
Slightlymore space is devoted to the discussionof the originand historyof
music,the moreextensivediscussionsbeingin the workofBartholomaeusAngli1 Gerbert,
2 Gerbert,
i, 20.
i, 16.
8 De Musica,i, 2.
4Dialogus de Musica (Gerbert,i, 252). The pseudo-Johnof Garlandfalselyattributesa variantof
thisto Guido (Coussemaker,i, 157).
on
6 Using the translationof Johnof Seville. Cf. H. G. Farmer,Al-Fdrdbi'sArabic-LatinWritings
is also quoted by severallater writers.
Music,p. 32. This definition
6 Coussemaker,i, 4.

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Ars Musica

293

cus and AegidiusZamorensis(late thirteenth

century).'The former
writesof
thetraditional
originsofvariousinstruments,
thelatter,and others,ofmusic's
supposedderivation
fromtheMuses.
The proportions
ofthePythagorean
systemand theintervals
therein
derived
are mentioned
briefly
by Bartholomaeus
at thecloseofhismusicsection,in a
summarty
derivedentirely
fromBoethius.Out ofthetwenty-five
chapters
which
Vincentdevotesto music,onlyone is specifically
De proportionibus
musicis.In
thisheclearlystatesthesizeofeachoftheproportions
onwhichthevariousintervalsarebased.After
thisbrieftabulation,
twosucceeding
chapters
aredevotedto
thephilosophy
ofconsonance
and dissonance,
withreferences
to PlatoandNicomachus(via Boethius).These are followed
by one morechapter,Qualiter
Pyconsonantiarum
in whichthederivation
proportiones
ofthe
thagoras
investigavit,
proportions
fromthemonochord
is briefly
discussed.Scottdevotesnearlyhalfof
his musicsectionto the discussion
ofproportions
and intervals,
showingtheir
derivation
andanalyzing
intermsoftonesandsemitones.
theirstructure
Discussionoftheoctavescales,commonly
referred
to as themodes,formed
a
considerable
portion
ofthemusicaltreatises
editedbyGerbert
andCoussemaker.
Four-fifths
of Hermannus'Musica and nearlyhalfof Guido'sMicrologus
are
devotedto variousmeansofidentifying
themodes.Yet neither
Bartholomaeus,
Bacon,norVincentso muchas mentiontheirexistence.Scottliststhemin a
passagedrawnfromGuido'sRegulaeMusicaeRhythmicae.2
Again,Scottis theonlyone ofthefourto mention
thenamesofthevarious
degreesor stepsofthe scale.He liststhesebothby thegamma-ut,
etc.,as inauguratedby Guido,and theGreekEpogdous,
etc.,as copiedfromBoethius,in
parallelcolumns.Use or non-useofthe gamutterminology
is significant,
since
all thetheorists
afterGuidorelyon itsuse,bothforclarityin namingindividual
pitchesandforthefacility
whichitimparted,
as a teaching
device,inpitchrecognitionandintonalmemory.
At the same timethatthisdevicecame intouse, the development
of polyphonicmusicat variouscentersinEurope,particularly
at St MartialinLimoges
theearlytwelfth
during
century,
thenat NotreDame inParis,causedoneofthe
mostprofound
changesany art has everundergone
in the courseof twobrief
centuries.
Andyetno reference
to thisphenomenal
transformation
can be discernedin anyoftheacademicwriters
oftheperiod.
The philosophic
conceptionof musicas dividedintothe threecategories,
mundana,
humana,
andinstrumentalis,
wasfirst
developed
byBoethius.3
Although
largelyignored
by themediaevaltheorist,
thisbecamea primary
subjectofdiscussionby the magisterartium.Pietzsch4liststhirty-six
writersfromthe fifthto

thefifteenth
centuries
whomentionor discusstheseand othercategories,
frequentlyquotingBoethius,Cassiodorus,
or Isidoruswordforword.Of all these
writers,
JohnCotton(ca 1100)is theonlyonebetweenBoethiusand thewriters
1 Gerbert,ii, 369 ff.
2 Gerbert,ii, 29.
op. Cit., i, 2. G. Pietzsch, Die Klassifikationder Musik vonBoetius bis UgolinovonOrvieto,
has

foundtwo briefreferences
to musicamundanaby earlierLatin writers.

4 Ibid.

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9294

Ars Musica

ofthemid-thirteenth
century
beginning
withthepseudo-John
of Garlandwho
has anyconsiderable
ofthepracticalmaterials
ofmusicas well.
discussion
In discussing
thesethreecategories
ofmusic,Vincentdoesno morethanquote
theentirechapterofBoethiusverbatim.
Musicamundanawas purelyethereal,
to as 'musicofthespheres':
referred
dealingwithwhathas sincebeenpopularly
'Et primaea, quae est mundana,in his maximeperspicienda
est quae in ipso
coelovel compageelementorum
vel temporum
varietatevisuntur."
Bacon alone makes a further
contribution.
He quotes Aristotle'sCoeli et
mundi,ii, 9, to theeffect
that'nullomodopotestsonusgenerari
in coelestibus.'
He thenquotes'alii subtilius
whoholdthat: 'musicamundana
philosophantes'
nonest ex sonocoelestium
corporum,
sed ex sonogeneratoex radiiscorporum
illorum.. ..' Afterstatingthat sound,i.e., music,is threefold,
first:'ex collisioneduricumduro,de quo estmusicainstrumentalis,
ut in citharis,
et psalteriis,et aliis'; second:'ex motionespiritium
ad vocalemarteriam,
de quo est
musicahumana,ut in vocehominis';and third:'ex radiisrarefacientibus
aerem:
de tali sonoest musicamundana,'Bacon proceedsto pointout thatthisthird
type,musicamundana,
cannotbe heardby thehumanear and cannottherefore
be regarded
as a category
ofmusic.
anddivideswhatto Boethius
Cassiodorus
musicamundana
ignores
completely
is musicahumanaintothreesub-categories:
'Musicapartessunttres;namvelest
illa harmonica,
vel rhythmica
vel metrica,'2
muchinspiration
fromSt
deriving
followsCassiodorus
Augustine.
Isidorus,in his fourthchapter,
verbatim.Here
was something
intowhichthemediaevalmindcouldexplore,and
morespecific
so we findbothMichaelScottand Bartholomaeus
Anglicusexpanding
Cassiodorus'simplestatement
intoextended
ofeachaspect.Bacon,likeSt
discussions
in meterand accent,and so devotesa conAugustine,
was greatlyinterested
siderable
portion
ofhisspacetothelatterofthesesub-categories.
Owingto the speculative,
abstractapproachof the mediaevalwriters,
it is
notat all clearwhether
Boethiusor thosewhofollowed
himintended
thepracticalconsiderations
ofvocalmusicto be includedin musicahumanaor musica
instrumentalis.
Certainly
thereis littleabouttheproblems
in thoseof
ofsinging
the academicwritings
whichdeal withthe categories.
Such problemsare left,
from
alongwiththediscussion
ofintervals
and modes,to thetheorists
writing
the choir-schools.
Richardof St Victorstates:'Musica instrumentalis
alia in
et chordis;alia inflatu,ut intibiiset organis;alia invoce,
pulsu,ut intympanis
ut in carminibus
et cantilenis.'3
Otherwritersare muchless explicit,somein
conbut others,suchas Bacon whomwe quotedabove,expressing
agreement,
traryviews.4
We mentioned,
above,thethree'partes'ofmusicas enumerated
by Cassiodorusand Isodorus.Cassiodorusalso statesthat: 'Instrumentorum
musicorum
1 Boethius,
i, 2.
2 Gerbert,I, 16. Cf. also MartianusCapella (fifth
century),De nuptiisphil.,ix, 936.
3 Migne, P. Lat., cIxxvii, 198b.
4 Cf. G. Reese, Music in theMiddleAges,p. 118,and the references
whichhe cites.

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Ars Musica

295

generasunttria:percussionale;
tensibile;
inflatile.'1
Todaywe stilldividemusical
instruments
intothe percussion,
string,and windtypes.Isidorus,in his fifth
chapter,
dividesmusicintothree'divisiones'
whichappeartorefer
tosubdivisions
ofthemusicainstrumentalis
forhe states:'Primaestharmonica,
category,
quae
ex vocumcantibusconstat.Secundaorganica,quae ex flatuconsistit.
Tertia
rhythmica,
quae impulsudigitorum
numeros
recipit.'2
This is followed
by three
moderately
longchaptersdevotedto each division,
in whichvariousvocaltone
instruments
qualitiesare discussedand the appropriate
are listedand briefly
described.
Vincentquotesthesethreechaptersof Isidorusverbatim,
withbut
a fewminoromissions.
rewrites
Bartholomaeus
thematerialin whatappearto
be hisownwordsbutnamesthesameinstruments
innearlythesameorder.
It maywellbe reasoned
thatthesediscussions
ofinstruments
inthesameterms
as thoseusedeighthundred
as indicative
yearsearliershouldnotbe regarded
of
is thefactthatthereis almost
markedinterest
in thesubject.Moresignificant
on thepartofthetheocompletesilenceon thesubjectofmusicalinstruments
ristsfromthemonasticchoir-schools,
owingto thefactthatthechurchwas apfrom
in vocalmusicalmostexclusively.
The one departure
parently
interested
thissilenceis foundin theshortpassagesDe mensurafistularum,
whichoccurin
manycodicesofmusictheory
beginning
that
duringthetenthclentury,
showing
themonasticgroupsweredefinitely
concerned
In the
withorganconstruction.
discussion
ofinstruments
forin a briefchapJohnCottonis againan exception,
in passing;he
ter,Quotsintinstrumenta
musicisoni,3
he namesfiveinstruments
regardsthisphaseofmusicas 'artificiale,'
however,
and notworthyofserious
thisspellis broken,
consideration.
Withtheadventofthelatethirteenth
century
and instrumental
music,withthe riseof secularmusic,receivesits just due.
Even then,theorists
suchas AegidiusZamorensis
and Jerome
ofMoravia4copy
Isidorusjustas Vincentdoes.Another
whoseviewwriter,
Johannes
de Grocheo,
is discussed
pointis entirely
different,
at thecloseofthisarticle.
inhistext,in a fewsentences
butbriefly
MichaelScottmentions
instruments
basedonCassiodorus.
In thethreetractsonmusicalnotationandtonality
which
havebeenfrequently
attributed
to a JohnofGarland,.thereoccurno references
to any of the categories
mentioned
above,norto musicalinstruments.
These
tracts,however,
are definitely
in theidiomofthemusictheorytexts,and bear
no tracesoftheacademician.
In theDictionarius
definitely
knownto havebeen
list of inwritten
by JohnofGarland(tca 1272),thereoccursthisinteresting
struments:
cumvidulis,
82. In domibus
divitum
vidiliricines,
vidulatores
tibicines,
cornicines,
1 Gerbert,i, 16.
Gerbert,i, 21. These 'divi?iones'are distinctfromthe 'partes' whichIsidorus describedin his
fourthchapter.
3 Gerbert,ii, 234.
4With thesewriters,
the theoristsalso break theirsilenceon the definitions,
derivations,and categorieshithertolargelyavoided,thusreflecting
an extendedacademicbackground.
5 Coussemaker,i, 97 if.,157 ff.,175 ff.,hereinreferred
to as thepseudo-Johnof Garland.
2

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Ars Musica

296

cumgiga,cumsimphonia,
cumpsalteria,
cumchoro,cumcithola,cum
alioscumfistro,
timpano,cumcimbalis.'
The followingtable summarizesin percentagesthe relativeamount of space
devoted to the various topics discussed above by the principalwritersof the
periodbefore1300:
M

-^

B~~~~~~~

0.~~~~~~~
ti2

ce

x,

ce

?c

Definitions
.................
Effect
ofmusic..............
...........
Originand history
Intervalproportions
.........
The modes.................
The gamut
.................
..................
Polyphony
The categories
..............
Instrumental
music
..........
Other..................
2

0
0
0
0
0
0
0
3
.0
.10
.60

ce

.01
.04
.10
.20
0
0
0
.10
.50
.05

ce X

W~~~~~~~~0
Q
i

.04
.10
.03
.30
0
0
0
.30
.15
.08

.05
.05
.05
.50
.10
.05
0
.05
.05
.10

.05
.05
.10
.25
.15
.05
0
.10
.25
0

.05
0
0
.20
.40
.20
03

0
0
.15

.03
.03
.05
.20
.30
.10
.10
.02
.02
.15

0
.03
.01
.30
.40
02

.15
0
0
.11

DiscussedinhisEpistolade IgnotuCantu.
MusicaMensurabili.

8 Discussedin thetwotextsDe

Three factswill be observed.First,the theoristsand academiciansdevote relativelysimilaramountsof space to the firstfourtopics,all drawnfromantiquity.
Secondly,the academiciansshow no particularinterestin those mattersof currentpracticaluse whichconcernthe theoriststhe most. Thirdly,discussionsof
the categoriesand of instruments,
whichconcernthe academiciansthe most,are
of slightinterestto the theorists.Such, then, would appear to have been the
contentof the curriculumin the ars musica,judgingfromthe internalevidence
ofthe fewknowntexts.
The markedemphasison instrumental
music is borneout by certainbitsofexternalevidence.At the close ofScott's sectionon music,somereaderofthe early
fourteenth
centuryhas added a marginalcomment:
pulsandiut violla,salterium,
Insupernotandumquod inmusichasuntmultainstrumenta
lautum, rubeba, arppa, et cetera inter qua lira aut simphonia pertinetad scholares
pauperes;quia si bene utanturaqueritsibi victum,afluenturin omniparte Christianorum.
1 Jahrbuch
vi (1865), 161. L. J. Paetow (iMemoirs
fuirromanische
und englischeLitteratur,
oftheU.
ofCalifornia,iv, 131) is ofthe opinionthat the Dictionariuswas writtenabout 1220.

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Ars Musica

297

Caussa est deus et virtussonacioniscordarumet chancionisdevocioniumdei et eiusmatris

aut Sancti Nicholai, qui in vita et in mortevehementersubvenitscholaribus,puellis,et
musichumquod melliusposit suam vitam conducere
marinariis.Nec est instrumentum
quosque pulsatur ubique quam per liram ut patet experimentouniquis cuiusque qui
vadit ostiatimpulsando.
This same emphasis on the role of instrumental music appears in the vernacular
poems of the mid-thirteenthcentury which deal with the seven arts. The music

sectionofLa batailledes VII ars by Henri d'Andelilreads:

Ma dame Musique aus clochetes
Et si clereplain de changonnetes
Portoientgigueset vieles,
Salterionset fleUteles;
De la note du premierfa
Montoientdusqu'en cc sol fa.
Li douz ton diatesaron,
Diapente, diapason,
Sont hurtezde diversesgerbes.
Par quarreureset par trebles,
Par mi l'ost aloientchantant,
Par lor chant les vont enchantant.

In Le mariage des sept ars by Jean le Teinturier d'Arras,2Music proposes to Speech

with these words:
'C'est devant Dieu, qoi que nus die,
Uns serjanz de grantmelodie,
Bien chantanzet bien orguenanz,
Et je resuibien avenanz,
Et si me rose bien vanter
D'orgueneret de bien chanter;
Nule dame n'en cremiroie.
Por c'est droiz que donee soie
En mariagea Oroison.'
The anonymous poem on the same subject, published with the above, is less
specific:'
Et saveis vos por quoi veul avoir Orison?
Por de que devant Deu faitboin oTrson son.
N'est nule melodiene de lai ne de son
Qui autant plaise a Deu, si cum lisanttrouvon.
Orisonne sera jai en tel leu mucie
Que Deus de son dous son n'oie la melodie:
C'est celle que les angles deduit et eibanie
Et par cui l'arme a Deu est tost racompagnie.
The fifteenthcentury Latin poem, edited by Samuel A. Ives,4 rather than referring to musical instruments and performance, lists the modes and pitches
which were studied in music theory. In this it reflects the tendency toward a
1 LI.

174-185fromeditionby L. J. Paetow in MemoirsoftheU. ofCalifornia,Iv.

Li. 141-149 fromeditionby ArthurLangfors,1923.
3 Op. cit.,11.161-168.
4 SPECULUM, xvii (1942), 417.
2

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298

Ars Musica

andtheacademicwhich
certainamountofamalgamation
betweenthetheoretic
is noticedonthepartofwriters
frombothtraditions
beginning
at theendofthe
thirteenth
century.
as to howlargea rolemusicplayedin thethirteenth
Littlecanbe determined
or howpopularthe subjectwas amongthe studentbody.
century
curriculum,
thesectionsdevotedto musicby
Comparedto themainbodyoftheirwritings,
theacademicians
quotedaboveare small.Therearemanyreferences
to recreabut fewto theirformalstudyof the subject.
tionalsingingby the students,
fromthe De eodemet diverso
Haskins'quotesa statement
by AdelardofBath
relativeto his own studiesin Franceca 1108: 'Cum preterito
anno in eadem
musicagallicisstudiistotussudares2adessetquein serotinotemporemagister
artisuna cumdiscipulis,
cumeorumregineque
rogatucitharem
tangeres.
in the renaissance
universities3
Studiesof musicinstruction
showthat the
ofthe church
trendofinstruction
remained
muchthe same,withthewritings
to
than
of the later
on
more
attention
those
fathers musicconti~nuingreceive
the
to
this
was
use
of
the
theorists.
One exception
considerable
Speculumof
to
as
the
Johannes
de
basictext,
Jacquesde Liege (formerly
attributed
Muris)
superseding
Boethiusin certainoftheuniversities,
notablyat Prague.
forinHarris4notesthatthestatutesof1431at Oxfordlisttherequirements
ceptionto the Bachelor'scourseof studyas singletermsof Grammar,
Ariththreeterms
metic,andMusic,twotermsofRhetoric,
Geometry,
andAstronomy,
ofLogicand NaturalPhilosophy.
By thestatutesof 1564therequirements
for
inthedegree
determination
weretwotermsofGrammar
andMusic,'Musicamper
terminum
anni,videlicet
Boethii,'threeofArithmetic,
fourofRhetoric,
andfive
termsofDialectic.Towardtheendofthesixteenth
theOxford
records
century,
showmanypetitions
forthediscontinuance
ofthemusiclectures,
dueto thelack
ofinterest
and attendance
on thepartofthestudents.
Thesepetitions
usually
proposedthat the musicbe replacedwithadditionallectureson arithmetic.
in musicat Oxfordand
Although
therecordslistthenamesofmanylecturers
noneoftheseareamongthosefamedforElizabethanmusic,possibly
Cambridge,
the reasonwhythemusiccourseswerenotmorepopular.ThreeoftheElizadoctorate.
The latterwas
bethans,
Fairfax,
Tye,andBull,receivedthehonorary
inmusicfora newcollegebeingsetup at London,butthis
appointedas lecturer
to enable
was an exceptional
instanceas he had to receivea specialdispensation
himto lectureinEnglish,sinceheknewso littleLatin.
1 Op.

2 PhilosophyaddressingAdelard.
cit.,p. 21.
I E. J. Dent, 'Scientificstudy of music in England,' Mitteilungen
den I. G. M., ii (1930), 83 if.,
D. G. T. Harris,'Musical educationin Tudor times,'ProceedingsofMus. Ass'n., LXV (1939), 109 if.,
G. Pietzsch,'Zur PflegederMusik an den deutschenIJniversitiiten
. . . ,' ArchivfiirMusikforschung,
i (1936), 257-292; 424-451; iII (1938), 302-330; V (1940), 65-83. A. Pirro,'L'enseignementde la
musiqueaux universit6sfr.,'Mitteilungen
den I. 0. M., ii (1930), 26 ff.,45 if. C. F. AbdyWilliams,
A shorthistoricalaccountofdegreesin musicat Oxford. . . (1893).
4 Op. cit.

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Ars Musica

299

during
theseventeenth
onmusicwritten
published
disputations
Outofeighteen
centuries
whichare availablein the Libraryof Congress,six
and eighteenth
ofmusic,fivewiththehistory
dealwiththenatureofmusic,fivewiththeeffect
of
Thissamedistribution
ofmusictheory.
ofmusic,and onlytwowithproblems
of
subjectmattermaybe observedin thechaptersoftheHarmonieuniverselle
ofinterest
whichmaybe considered
typical
MarinMersenne(1636),a proportion
period.Note howcloselyit coincides
forthe entiremediaevaland renaissance
on the
withthe table of mediaevalwritersgivenearlier.The six disputations
ofbothdefinitions
and categories.
natureofmusicincludediscussion
oursubject.The De menclarifies
Thereis a finalbitofevidencewhichfurther
beendescribed
as a student's
ofAnonymous
iv' has frequently
surisetdiscantu
details
ofca 1260,becauseofitsintimate
notebookfroma Parisianchoir-school
similarcompilation
A somewhat
fromtheunimusiceducation.
aboutcathedral
de Grocheo,ca
by themusicaltreatiseofJohannes
versitycirclesis furnished
evidenceof
is knownaboutitsauthor,buttheinternal
1300.2Nothingwhatever
witha
the texthas led modernscholarsto believehima trainedacademician
at theSorbonne.
The textshows
ifnotactuallya lecturer
Parisianbackground,
withall phasesof secularmusic,bothvocaland instrufamiliarity
remarkable
thesubjectmatterwe
music.Grocheomentions
mental,as wellas theliturgical
thetypeofimpressions
which
above,andthennotesdownat length
haveoutlined
contactwiththe
a personeducatedalongsuchlineswouldformfromfrequent
Pariswas. It is mostsigcentury
dailylifeofa musicalcentersuchas thirteenth
withsucha backthatJohannes
de Grocheo,theonemediaevalwriter
nificant
inthebroaderandmorecontemporary
ground,
shouldshowas markedan interest
notonlywiththenewerorgana,conaspectsoftheart,andthathe wasfamiliar
andthe
butalsowiththeirsecularcounterparts
ducti,andmotetsofthechurch,
music.
as wellas withinstrumental
monodiesofthetroutveres,
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS.
1
2

Coussemaker,i, 327 ff.

i (1899-1900), 65 ff.
Musikgesellsehaft,
Edited by J. Wolfin Sammelbandederinternationalen

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