THE ENSEMBLE OF THE FOURTEENTH CENTURY

directed by John Griffiths and John Stinson

Sopranos: Margo Adelson, Cathy Cameron Alto: Margaret Arnold Countertenors: Hartley Newnham, Ian McDonald Tenors: Lloyd Fleming, Geoffrey Cox : Ruth Wilkinson : John Griffiths

1-12 Jacopo da 13-22 Giovanni da Firenze

The Music of the Fourteenth Century is produced by the Fourteenth Century Recording Project, a performance research project funded by the University of Melbourne, La Trobe University and the Australian Research Grants Scheme. The project involves the collaboration of musicologists, literary scholars and performers under the direction of John Stinson and John Griffiths. The recordings resulting from this collaboration aim at being well-researched readings from the original sources, interpreted according to current scholarship.

The Ensemble of the Fourteenth Century is a collective of specialist singers and instrumentalists brought together for the Fourteenth Century Recording Project. The ensemble was initially formed around the leading Australian medieval ensemble La Romanesca, which was expanded to provide the varied instrumental and vocal combinations required by the repertoire. Bologna. He tells us that they worked under could be associated with in some the patronage of Mastino II della Scala, the way were also included. The performances 1 Sì come al canto (3 part version) 2’52” tyrant of ; and that they competed with on this record follow the readings of the 2 Sì come al canto (2 part version) 2’56” each other in the composition of “ Panciatichiano manuscript wherever possible. 3 Fenice fu’ 2’17” ­ and other songs of wonderful sweetness and When a work appears in a significantly 4 In su bei fiori 2’21” melodies of subtle intricacy”. different version in other sources, e.g. the 5 Giunge ‘l bel tempo de la primavera London manuscript, these versions are 3’26” Johannes de Cascia cum Mastini della Scala included. 6 Aquila altera — Creatura gentile — Uccel tiranni veronensis atria, questus gratia, di dio 2’37” frequentaret et cum magistro Jacopo bononiensi The music of northern in the first half 7 O in Italia felice Liguria 2’23” artis musice peritissimo de artis excellentia of the fourteenth century frequently reflects 8 Osselletto silvagio (3 part caccia) 2’52” contenderet, tiranno eos muneribus irritante, the interests of the patron for whom it was 9 Osselletto silvagio (2 part ) 4’04” mandrialia plura sonosque multos et written. There are several poems alluding to 10 Lux purpurata — Diligite iustitiam — intonuit mire dulcedinis et artificiosissime melodie, Anna, and a particular tree, the perlaro, both Tenor 2’27” in quibus quam magna et quanta doctrina fuerit typical of texts associated with the della Scala 11 O cieco mondo 3’22” in arte manifestavit. Rome, Bibl. Apostolica family. Others contain direct references to 12 Sotto l’imperio del possente prince 3’29” Vaticana, Barberino Latino 2610, fol.70v. a Margherita and indirect references to the Visconti family by way of heraldic devices Giovanni da Firenze This collection of the works of Giovanni and (Fenice fu, Aquila altera). Some references Jacopo reflects the context of their music, are quite specific: O in Italia spells out the 13 Più no mi curo 3’52” written under the patronage of the della Scala birthday of the twin sons of Luchino Visconti; 14 O perlaro gentil 3’02” family in Verona and the Visconti family in Lux purpurata spells out his name in a latin 15 Per larghi prati 2’55” , and exemplifies the “sweetness and acrostic. 16 Nascoso el viso (Rossi 215) 3’36” intricacy” of their melodies. 17 Nascoso el viso (Panciatichi 26) 2’57” Apart from this internal evidence and the 18 Agnel son bianco 3’00” Nothing is known of Italian secular passage in Villani, the most important 19 O tu cara scienza 5’51” polyphony before this time. The earliest source which helps us establish the context 20 Fra mille corvi 2’24” manuscript source of this repertoire, the Rossi of this music is a cycle of sonnets by Simone 21 La bella stella 5’35” codex, now divided between the Vatican Prudenzani called Il Saporetto. The poet gives 22 De’ come dolcemente 2’29” library and Ostiglia, contains music for the us an idealized portrait of a Renaissance court of Mastino’s elder brother Alberto. Most gentleman (Il Solazzo) with truly remarkable of the works in this collection are anonymous. musical talents: he can sing and play the Giovanni’s Nascoso el viso and La bella stella with great virtuosity, as well as dance TWO GENTLEMEN OF VERONA appear in this early collection. The next and fence. These skills are displayed during manuscript in which the music survives is the evening entertainments before a cultivated When Filippo Villani wrote his account of the Codex Panciatichiano. This is a Florentine audience in Orvieto. In Sonnet 25, set in the origins of the city of Florence and its famous collection, written in the last decades of the Christmas season, Il Saporetto entertains his citizens (Liber de origini civitatis Florentiae et fourteenth century. The manuscript was audience by performing on a harp. On this eiusdem famosis civibus) amongst the musicians designed as a collection of the works of occasion, two of the works on this recording mentioned were (also the famous Florentine composer Francesco are mentioned: Aquila altera and Agnel son known as Giovanni da Firenze) and Jacopo da Landini; works of other composers who bianco. The currency of these works over fifty years after their original composition is some principles they suggest are not always clear (Florence: 1847); and S. Debenedetti (ed.), Il measure of the esteem in which Jacopo da in practice: there are often many possible ‘Sollazzo’. Contributi alla Storia della Novella, Bologna and Giovanni da Firenze continued ways of interpreting a particular passage. The della Poesia Musicale e del Costume del to be held long after their original patrons had performances on this recording often differ (Turin: Bocca, 1922). died. from the suggestions in the available modern editions. The readings presented make no THE MUSIC The selection of the works of the two pretence at being definitive, but do reflect composers has been based on two principles: decisions made from a range of possible valid Jacopo da Bologna and Giovanni da Firenze the works chosen should be representative options. are the most prolific representatives of the of the composers’ total output, and the first known generation of Italian polyphonic selection as a whole should complement SOURCES AND EDITIONS composition. Rather than merely reflecting existing recordings and avoid unnecessary a tradition in its infancy, the elegance and duplication. It has been policy to perform the The principal source used in the preparation sophistication of their music exudes the works as they appear in one single manuscript of this recording has been the manuscript confidence of already accomplished maturity. source, and to include any idiosyncrasies of Panciatichi 26 from the Biblioteca Nazionale The starting point for the appreciation of their that manuscript when these are musically in Florence (facsimile reprint ed. F. Alberto music is the poetry they set. Not only are the significant. Scribal errors have been corrected. Gallo, Florence: Leo S. Olschki Editore, 1981.) musical structures determined by poetic form, Where the manuscript is clear about the Readings are based from this source unless but the individuality of each work is directly relation of text to music, then the manuscript otherwise indicated in the commentary. related to the poetic imagery and content. has been followed in preference to modern Other sources used are: Rome, Vatican To ignore the texts is to deny an essential editions; where the manuscript is unclear, then Library, Rossi 215 (facs. reprint ed. Giuseppe part of the music; the senses are dulled by clarity of musical declamation and phrasing Vecchi, Monumenta Lyrica Medii Aevi Italica listening without participating in the literary has determined the placing of syllables. For III: Mensurabilia, Bologna: Università degli dimension. the most part the works are performed as Studi,1966) and London, British Museum, the manuscript suggests: i.e., when a part is Add. 29987 (facs. reprint ed. Gilbert Reaney, For this first generation, the madrigale was the texted, it has been sung. When a part has Musicological Studies and Documents 13, [n.p.]: most preferred poetic form set to music. It no text and this has been considered to be of American Institute of Musicology, 1965.) served as a vehicle for diverse literary themes. musical significance, the untexted part has Transcriptions of the works recorded are Twenty-nine of Jacopo’s thirty-four surviving been played on an instrument chosen from found in Italian Secular Music by Magister Piero, works are madrigals, as are sixteen of the documented instrumentarium of the day Giovanni da Firenze and Jacopo daBologna, ed. Giovanni’s nineteen. Two-, sometimes three- -- usually vielle, or lute. W. Thomas Marrocco, Polyphonic Music of tercet stanzas and a concluding couplet, or the Fourteenth Century, Vol. VI (Monaco: ritornello, constitute its form. Musical settings Musica ficta, the unwritten code of pitch Editions de L’Oiseau-, 1967), and The consisted of two corresponding sections, inflection so familiar to trained mediaeval Music of Fourteenth Century Italy, ed. Nino each repeated according to the number of singers and so elusive to the modern Pirrotta, Corpus Mensurabilis Musicae 8, tercets and the form of the ritornello. The most performer and editor, has been added ([n.p.]: American Institute of Musicology, common musical setting of the madrigal was according to written theory contemporary 1964). Text editions used are: G. Corsi for two voices, a florid cantus and supporting with the repertoire. The two authorities (ed.), Poesie Musicali del Trecento, ( Bologna: tenor. A small number of works add a second most relevant to the music of fourteenth- Commissione per i testi di lingua, 1970); G. C. cantus or contratenor. Texts were usually set century Italy are Galletti (ed.), Philippi Villani Liber de Origine to allow simultaneous declamation by both and Prosdocimus de Beldamandis. The Civitatis Florentiae et Eiusdem Famosis Civibus voices. Stylistic features of madrigal settings include the melismatic extension of the first TEXTS, TRANSLATIONS AND with two cantus parts and a tenor, as the work and penultimate syllables of each verse, and COMMENTARY appears in the Panciatichiano manuscript. a change in metre to mark the transition from The second version is without the contratenor. the tercets to the ritornello. The tonal centre of JACOPO DA BOLOGNA The anonymous Panciatichiano scribe has the works appears to be the note upon which added after the contratenor part the words the stanza concludes. In many cases, this is 1 & 2. Si chome al canto musica mia, suggesting that, despite the perfect also the concluding pitch of the ritornello, but Madrigal stylistic integration, the third part may not be in numerous cases, the strongly reinforced of Jacopo’s invention. A two-voiced version centre of the first section is playfully avoided 1. (3-part version): Ian McDonald, Hartley of the piece is also found in the London at the end. The increased explicitness of the Newnham (countertenors); Lloyd Fleming manuscript. ritornello text is subtly humoured, or made (tenor) seemingly more nonchalant by the tonal 2. (2-part version): Hartley Newnham The text is developed from the legend of digression of its musical setting. (countertenor); Lloyd Fleming (tenor) Odysseus, the Greek whose return home was delayed by the blandishments of the With the exception of Jacopo’s Lux Sì come al canto de la bella Iguana sourceress Circe. She is translated into purpurata, and his lauda, Nel mio parlar, the Obliò suo cammin più tempo el greco, contemporary terms as an Eguana (or Iguana), remaining pieces by both composers are caccie. Prendendo suo piacer con forma umana, a name given to water nymphs in many The caccia, literally ‘hunt’, is set as a canon for northern Italian poems, and whose etymology two voices, normally with an accompanying Così per esser, donna, sempre teco is probably connected with the northern word tenor line, presumably intended for an Faresti la mia voglia esser lontana aigua, ‘water’. The reference to the legend instrument. The texts are graphic with Da ogn’ altro piacer, sendo ‘l tuo meco; becomes increasingly explicit as the poem frequent exclamations, and usually are set as unfolds until the poet’s own Circe is revealed hunting scenes, although the hunt is usually Però che se’ d’ogni virtute unita, by clever word play. Margherita, ‘pearl’, is a metaphor for a hunt of love. Some caccie Tu se’ perfetta gemma Margherita. used simultaneously as a senhal, possibly take the form of the madrigal, while others are a reference to an illegitimate daughter of composed more freely with irregular verses of As, enthralled by the beautiful Circe’s song, Mastino II della Scala, or to Margherita varying length. The Greek forgot his journey for a long time, Pusterla, a lover of Luchino Visconti, lord of Taking his pleasure with the nymph in her Milan. Another setting of the text by Maestro In the melismatic extensions of the various human form, Piero may indicate some form of musical or text lines, the stylistic individuality of the other rivalry between the two composers. two composers is more clearly perceived than In your case also, o woman. To be with you Jacopo uses the same senhal in another elsewhere. Jacopo’s melismas are, in general always, my desire madrigal, Lucida petra, Margherita cara. terms, shorter than those by Giovanni. His Would be turned away from every other texts therefore appear to achieve greater pleasure, 3. Fenice fu’ coherence in their musical setting, while If your pleasure were simply to be with me. Madrigal Giovanni’s tend to abstract the textual message. Giovanni also uses these sections Being endowed with every virtue, Margo Adelson (soprano); Hartley Newnham to indulge in feats of technical virtuosity: You are a perfect gemstone Pearl. (countertenor) he frequently includes hockets, triplets in otherwise duple passages and sequential Two versions have been recorded for this Fenice fu’ e vissi pura e morbida, repetition of motives. collection. The first is a three part setting E or sun trasmutata in una tortora John Stinson and John Griffiths Che volo con amor per le bele ortora. voices. In place of the usual decorative cantus. The text belongs to the pastorella genre cantus with supporting tenor, Jacopo of Provençal origin. The best known Italian Arbore secho [mai nè] aqua torbida enhances the texture through the use of example is In un boschetto trova’ pasturella by No me deleta; mai per questo dubito: imitation, giving the tenor part a more equal Guido Cavalcanti (1255? - 1300). The overt Vane la state, ‘l verno ven de subito. role in performance. It is one of the earliest eroticism of the text is not uncommon in occurrences of this musical device. the Italian song repertory, in contrast to the Tal vissi et tal me vivo e posso scrivere unrequited passion that predominates in Ch’a dona non è piu che onesta vivere. 4. In su bei fiori contemporary French style. Madrigal Once, when a phoenix, my life was pure and 5. Giunge ‘l bel tempo de la primavera tender, Hartley Newnham (countertenor); Lloyd Caccia This hour transmuted to a turtledove Fleming (tenor) Who flies lovelorn through the beautiful Margo Adelson, Cathy Cameron (sopranos). orchards. In su’ be’ fiori, in su la verde fronda, Sotto novi arboretti spessi e lunghi Giunge ‘l bel tempo de la primavera, I can never be pleased by a withered tree Pasturella trovai, che cogliea funghi. Che nov’erbette dà, fior e viole; Or muddied water. On account of these Cresce beato amor dov’esser vuole. qualms: In panni bigi alzati a la ritonda Summer goes, and winter comes at once. Per un boschetto se ne giva sola: A’ dolci versi d’uselletti fuora Chiama’ la a me per dirle una parola. Van donne pe’ ghirland’in compagnia, Thus I lived and thus I live, and I can write Seguendo lor amor drei tuttavia. That nothing is better for a woman than an Del grembo un fior che ell’avea le tolsi: honest life. Sì fu zentil, che ma’ più bel non colsi. Ed ogni frutto del piacer germoglia, Chè sol consiglio fan d’amar di voglia. The two bird images with which this beatuiful Among fair flowers and green foliage, work begins are derived from heraldic Under young saplings, thick and long, The lovely springtime has arrived, devices associated with the della Scala and I found a shepherdess plucking mushrooms. Sprouting fresh grass, flowers and violets; Visconti families. The text probably refers Love burgeons to prosper wherever it wishes. to the wedding of Gian Galeazzo Visconti to Her grey homespun tucked up around her Isabelle of France in 1360. This marriage of the waist, Outdoors, amid sweet birdsong, ambitious lords of Milan into the royal house She walked through a thicket all alone: A company of women sallies forth for of France seems to have been the occasion I called her to me to have a word with her. garlands, for Gian Galeazzo’s aunt, Regina della Scala, Pursuing their loves just the same. whose emblem was the Phoenix, to adopt I stole a flower she had in her bosom: the dove, one of the emblems of her husband So delicate, I never plucked its equal in And every fruit of pleasure bursts in bud, Bernabò Visconti. Thus the text is advice from beauty. Because their sole counsel is to love willingly. an elder relative of the family to the young French bride. The attractive setting is typical of Italian There are strong affinities between this musical style of the period: simultaneous madrigal and a sonnet by Matteo Frescobaldi Particularly interesting in this piece is the declamation with florid extensions of the first (1297? - 1348) Io veggio il tempo de la primavera; sophisticated inter-relationship of the two and penultimate syllable of each verse in the also with some stanzas from Il Dittamondo (III, xvii, 1-12) by Fazio degli Uberti (1300 - 1367?). Gentle creature, noble animal, 7. O in Italia felice Liguria The madrigal text is set here as a caccia, a Singlemindedly your nature wants Madrigal canon for two unaccompanied voices without To rise high and to contemplate the sun. the normal supporting tenor. In the ritornello, There is the image and the perfection. Hartley Newnham (countertenor); Lloyd the voices return to the normal manner of Fleming (tenor). simultaneous declamation with some melodic The madrigal brings together the eagle as an cross-referencing, particularly in the melisma imperial emblem (possibly on the occasion O in Italia felice Liguria, of the closing bars. of the visit of Charles IV to the Visconti in E proprio tu, Milan, Dio lauda e gloria 1355) with the complex allegory of the “bird De’ dui nati segnor, che’l ciel t’aguria. 6. Aquila altera - Uccel di Dio - Creatura of God” found in Dante’s Divine Comedy. The gentil Madrigal notion that the eagle could look directly at Segno fo ben che fo di gran vittoria, the sun is found in medieval commentaries Ch’ un’ aquila li trasse a cristianesmo Ian McDonald, Hartley Newnham on Chapters 9 and 26 of the Book of Job by E a lor donò da po’el batesmo. (countertenors); Lloyd Fleming (tenor). Gregorius Magnus and Rupert von Deutz. It is explained as a symbol of the soul’s Un venere tra sesta [e] terza nacquero Aquila altera, ferma in su la vetta aspiration towards salvation. Once more Luca e Zuane a chi lor nome piaquero. De l’alta mente l’ochio valoroso, cast in the form of the madrigal, this work Dove tuo vita prende suo riposo. shows considerable individuality. Each of Quaranta sei un emme cum tri ci Là è ‘l parer e là l’esser beato. the three stanzas (tercet plus ritornello) is Corea e fo d’agosto al quarto di. assigned in the manuscript to one voice. The Uccel di Dio, insegna di giustizia, resultant motet-like polytextuality is unique O in Italy, happy Liguria! Tu hai principalmente chiara gloria, among the madrigals of this generation. The And especially you, Milan, praise and glory Perchè nelle grand’opre è tua vittoria. two upper parts commence with six bars be to God Là vidi l’ombra e là la vera essenza. of canon reminiscent of the technique of For your two new-born lords whom Heaven the caccia. In terms of narrative logic, the presages. Creatura gentil, animal degno, three simultaneously declaimed stanzas Salire in alto e rimirare ‘l sole. are presented above in the order of the text It was a sign of great victory Singularmente tuo natura vole. sung by the cantus, tenor and contratenor That an eagle should lead them to Christianity Là è l’imagine e la perfezione. respectively. This interpretation is based on And afterwards Parma gave them the the contrast in the first two of the qualities baptism. Haughty eagle, turn your heroic eye of appearance and substance. These come To the summit of the lofty mind [God] together only when the soul is capable of Born on a Friday between mid-morning and Where your life takes its repose. rising directly to God. The opposition of noon, There the state of bliss both seems and is. ombra, ‘shadow’, and vera essenza, ‘true Their well-found names were Luke and John. substance’, is found also in Se premio di Bird of God, symbol of justice, virtù, set to music by , It was 1346 (forty-six, an M with three C’s) Your glory is prized above all, expressing the concept that great deeds At the time and the fourth day of August. Because your great deeds are crowned by without virtue are but a shadow, and that the victory. mind which attends only to appearances is The birth of Luchino Visconti and Isabella There you see the shadow, and there the true turned away from its true essence. Fieschi’s twin sons Luchino and Giovanni in essence. 1346 is celebrated in this madrigal. Isabella’s family came from Genoa in Liguria and is a requires mastery. Triplum: probable explanation of why Liguria is joined Lux purpurata radiis to Milan in the poem. One year earlier, the Few possess it, yet they all claim to be Venti fugare tenebras, Visconti had ended a victorious campaign masters, Clementi vigens principe. against Pisa, which was obliged to pay 800,000 Composing ballads, madrigals and , florins in tribute. Earlier in 1346, Parma had They are all Florians, Filippottos and Honoris namque claritas been ceded to them by the Este of . Marchettos. Ipsius toti seculo The music is the quintessence of Jacopo’s Numen acquirit celebre style; a madrigal joyous in conveying its The land is so filled with little masters Virtutis atque gratie. message. That there is no room for disciples. Servator rei publicae, 8 & 9. Oselletto selvagio Two quite different settings of this madrigal Virtutum cultor optimus, survive among Jacopo’s works. The first Verus amator efficax, 8. Caccia: Margo Adelson, Cathy Cameron setting presented takes the form of a caccia Constans in omnis studio, (sopranos); John Griffiths (lute) whose canonic voices are accompanied by Et nil permittens irritum, 9. Madrigal: Margo Adelson (soprano); an untexted tenor. The second is in Jacopo’s Clemens et iustus dominus, Hartley Newnham (countertenor) usual two-part madrigal style. The nature of Onustus arrogantibus, the text suggests that it could be of his own Misericors egentibus Oselletto selvagio per stagione authorship, and if not, it certainly must have Emittit lumen omnibus Dolci versetti canta con bel modo: been found attracive by him to have set it Salutis atque premii. Tal e tal grida forte, ch’i’ non l’odo. twice in such different guises. Particularly in the caccia version, the depiction of the text Motetus: Per gridar forte non si canta bene, content is indeed graphic. A sentiment similar Diligite iustitiam Ma con soave’e dolce melodia to that expressed in Jacopo’s madrigal is Qui iudicatis machinam. Si fa bel canto, e ciò vuol maestria. found in Franco Sacchetti’s poem Ben s’affatica Prodesse cunctis discite, invan chi fa or versi: “Some write ballads who Obesse nulli querite. Pochi l’hanno e tutti si fan maestri, cannot spell at all and want them to be set to Hoc proprium est principis, Fan ballate madrigal’e mottetti music at once. The same is true of singing: I Ut sit exutum viciis. Tutt’en Fioran, Filippotti e Marchetti. see a thousand untalented Marchettos all over Solicitudo presuli the place.” Like Sacchetti, Jacopo also chooses Sit comes, ut pacifice Si è piena la terra di magistroli, the theorist Marchettus of as his point Quiescant ejus populi. Che loco più non trovano discepoli. of comparison. The further references to other musicians, Florian and Filippotto, are Triplum: A woodbird in season less identifiable, but among candidates are Light, flourishing under the rule Sings sweet verses in elegant style: Floriano da Rimini and . Of the clement prince, comes adorned But such and such squawk so loud I cannot With rays to chase away darkness. praise them. 10. Lux purpurata - Diligite iusticiam - tenor Motet His honour and brilliance By squawking loudly one cannot sing well, Acquire throughout the whole age But with sweet and charming melody Margaret Arnold (alto), Hartley Newnham Renowned authority One can make a beautiful song, and this (countertenor), Lloyd Fleming (tenor). Of virtue and grace. Saviour of the state, isorhythm are evident. The superb passage of He is a fool who turns toward you, The greatest cultivator of virtue, hocket that brings the music to its conclusion Thereupon losing, for less than nothing, that Effective and true lover, is, however, an obviously French gesture, good Constant in all study, and evidence of Italian awareness of Gallic Which shines above every other love and Enemy of all vanity, practice. remains green. Clement and just lord, Hard on the arrogant, The initial words of the motet are an Thus whoever wishes to taste the fruit of Compassionate to the poor, adaptation of the beginning of the Book of sweet flowers Who irradiates for all a light Wisdom (1:1) Diligite justitiam qui judicatis Ought never to care about you. Of salvation and reward. terram. In Canto 18 of Paradise, Dante imagines this phrase to be spelled out, letter Conforming to Jacopo’s most typical manner Motetus: by letter, by the blessed souls of just princes of madrigal setting, the most noteworthy Choose justice who then proceed to arrange themselves in musical feature of this piece of unbridled You who judge the machine [of the state]. the shape of the imperial eagle. The work pessimism is the high level of motivic Learn to help all men, counsels Luchino that greatness is achieved integration of the cantus line, due to some Seek to harm no one. through the pursuit of truth and the exercise twenty-seven reiterations of a simple This is worthy of a prince, of prudent justice. four-note cell over the course of the work. That he may be without vice. Fourteen of these begin on the same pitch. May solicitude be 11. 11. O cieco mondo This device also aids the reinforcement of the The companion of the protector, Madrigal D tonality of the stanza, sustained through So that his people may rest peacefully. the ritornello before making a sudden turn to Margo Adelson (soprano); Hartley Newnham make a final cadence on C, perhaps in keeping An event of some social significance must (countertenor). with the contrasting image of the dolci fiori and have motivated Jacopo to compose his a sudden rush of optimism. only known motet, in accordance with the O cieco mondo, di lusinghe pieno, contemporary French custom of reserving Mortal veleno in ciascun tuo diletto The poem has been wrongly attributed to this genre for commentary on political Fallace, pien d’inganni e con sospetto. Guido Cavalcanti. However, it shows strong events. A connection with Luchino Visconti affinities to various poems by Sacchetti, for (d.1349) is confirmed by the appearance of the Folle è colui ch’a te diriza’l freno, example, Sonnet 27: “O cieca età, d’ogni mal Latin form of his name LUCHINUS VUCE Quando per men che nulla quel ben perde, fatta erede”; Sonnet 43: “O mondo più che mai [=vice] COMES as an acrostic in the triplum Che sopra ogn’ altro amor luce e sta verde. pien d’animali/ sanza ragion, sanza sensibil text. Pirrotta has speculated that either the mente”; and Frottola 249, “O mondo immondo”. suspension of the papal inderdict against Però già mai di te colui non curi, the Visconti in 1341, or the visit of a papal Che’l frutto vuol gustar di dolci fiori. 12. Sotto l’imperio del possente prince legate in 1343 may have been the occasions Madrigal that prompted its composition. Texturally, the motet resembles works of French origin, O blind world full of blandishments, Margo Adelson (soprano); Hartley Newnham although its sonorities and cadential patterns With deadly poison in every pleasure you (countertenor). are decidedly Italian, and the freely composed offer, tenor is more in keeping with a writer adept False, full of deceit and suspicion; Sotto l’imperio del possente prinze in the art of the caccia. No traces of French che nel suo nom ha le dorate ale regna la biscia il cui morso mi vinze alleged poisoning of Luchino Visconti by his One should no more trust in Love than in a sì che da lei fuggir nulla mi vale. wife Isabella Fieschi, disguised by developing monk. La me persegue e ‘l cor mio signoreza it into a general reference to the fickleness Believe me, my mind is engrossed with it all poi come donna istessa si vagheza. of women’s love and their treachery. The day. rhythmic density and rapid declamation of Come che io la miro più s’acorge, the musical setting in a three-voice context is The stylistic difference between Giovanni gli occhi donneschi chiud’ e via s’en fuge; reminiscent of the caccia. Jacopo also departs and Jacopo is immediately distinguished poi come serpe tossicosa porge from his customary technique of synchronous in this work, otherwise of a very similar di fuoco fiamma che m’uccid’ e struge. text setting. tradition the amatory madrigals of Jacopo. L’anim’ ha crudo e sí aspra la scorza These differences appear to be a product ch’amor in lei per me non ha più forza. of Giovanni’s concern with melodic and rhythmic technique. Sequence is used to Costei mi fe’ già lume più che ‘l sole; GIOVANNI DA FIRENZE extend melismas, and distinct rhythmic com più ciò mi ricordo più mi dole. patterns distinguish each new line of text 13. Più non mi curo from the preceding one. The use of three Under the dominion of the powerful prince Madrigal repetitions of a tenor figure [A-G-F-G-A] to Whose very name has wings of gold underline the final melisma of the ritornello is The she-snake rules whose bite defeats me Margo Adelson (soprano); Hartley Newnham another unusual feature. So that it is useless to flee from her. (countertenor). She pursues me and lords it over my heart Within the general theme of Then, woman-like, makes herself beautiful. Più non mi curo della tua rampogna untrustworthiness, the association of love Amor che lungamente m’hai beffato, and monks in the ritornello is less odd than As she realizes I look at her, E’l bianco per lo perso dimostrato. it may appear at first sight. That clergy are Her womanly eyes close and away she flees; often lecherous and deceitful is a common Then as a poisonous snake she offers Onde ben mi contenta el non servire, theme of medieval anticlericalism. A trigger A fiery flame to blind and melt me. Poi che per te non si teme vergogna for the association may be line 6, which is So cruel her soul and so thick her skin Falso, crudel e pien d’ogni menzogna. similar to line 144 from Canto 23 of Dante’s That her love for me loses its strength over Inferno: “ch’elli `e bugiardo e padre di menzogna”. her. Così ti fida in Amor come in monico. There, the biblical description of the devil as Credilo a me che tutto ‘l dì ne romico. “father of all lies” (John 8:44) is associated At one time she gave me more light than the with hypocrytes condemned to wear leaden sun; No longer do I care about your rebukes, monks’ habits. So the more I remember, the more I am sad. O Love, since for so long you have ridiculed me 14. O perlaro gentil This virtuosic madrigal in three voices is one And proved that black is white. Madrigal of a series of texts comparing the woman object of the poet’s love to a snake. Similar Therefore I am well satisfied to serve you no Ian McDonald (countertenor); Lloyd Fleming pieces by Jacopo are Posando sopra un’aqua and longer, (tenor). Nel bel zardino che l’Atice cinge as well as Donna Who taught me to be shameless, being già fu by Giovanni. It is possible that the text yourself O perlaro gentil, se dispogliato of Sotto l’imperio is a veiled reference to the False, cruel and full of every deceit. Se’ per l’inverno ch’ogni fior nasconde, Nel tempo novo dolc’ e ‘nnamorato 15. Per larghi prati 16 & 17 Nascoso el viso Caccia Madrigal Ritorneranno li fiori e le fronde, Ma io dolente quanto più vo innanzo Hartley Newnham, Ian McDonald 16. Rossi version: Ian McDonald Nell’ amor di costei più disavanzo. (countertenors); Ruth Wilkinson (vielle). (countertenor); Geoffrey Cox (tenor). 17. Panciatichiano version: Margaret Arnold Ahi, lasso a me, non vol più ANNAmorarmi Per larghi prati e per gran boschi folti, (alto); Lloyd Fleming (tenor). La bianca man che pur solea toccarmi. Leggiadre donne e vaghe donzellette, Vestite strette e coi capelli sciolti, Nascoso el viso stava fra le fronde O gentle Persian lilac, though stripped bare Con archi, con turcassi e con saette, D’un bel zardino: appresso a mi guardava Because winter has hidden all your flowers, E con levrieri a man correan cacciando Sopra una fonte dove se pescava. Yet in the new sweet season of Love Uccidendo e pigliando, Cervi, caprioli, cinghiali e lupi, E vedea donne vermigliete e bionde, Your flowers and your leaves will return, Entrando sole ne’ luoghi più cupi Lizadre al modo che solea le Euguane But I am grieving because the more I go on Per riposarsi all’ombra. Trovarse al bosco, e quando a le fontane. The more, in this woman’s love, I lose ground. Through broad meadows and through great Qual era scalza e qual com’ ela nacque. Alas! the white hand which used to touch me thick woods Più non vol dir quanto quel di me piacque. Is no longer willing to ANNimate me. Graceful women and pretty girls, Dresses tight and hair loose, I stood in a beautiful garden, This is one of a number of madrigals With bows, with quivers and with arrows The foliage hid my face, looking mentioning the perlaro, an ornamental tree And with greyhounds in hand ran hunting Across a nearby spring where folk used to [celtis australis] growing in the Po valley and Slaughtering and capturing fish. the Veneto region, as an emblem of ever- Deer, roebucks, boars and wolves, renewing love. The other related songs are Entering alone into the darkest hollows And saw blonde and rosycheeked women Sovra un fiume regale and All’ombra d’un perlaro To rest in the shade. Lissom as were Euguane the nymphs by , Jacopo’s O dolce appress’un Once found in woods or sometimes in bel perlaro fiume, and Appress’un fiume chiaro Only two caccie by Giovanni have been streams. by Giovanni. The senhal ANNA is a common preserved. Unlike most other caccie, Per feature of all the poems in the “perlaro” cycle, larghi prati is not in the form of a madrigal. It Some were barefoot, and some as they were and is concealed in both Giovanni’s settings is through-composed, with the hunt canon born. through modification of the verb innamorare ceasing for the final two lines where the text I am unwilling to say more of how that day “to fall in love” to ANNAmorare. The pungent declamation becomes virtually synchronous, delighted me. exclamation that begins the ritornello shows a and where games of hocket predominate in consciousness of affective text setting, and the the melismas. The text abounds with typical Manuscripts preserve three different readings stuttering “Anna, Anna, Annamorarme” of the hunting imagery, and is set with passages of of Nascoso el viso, a two-part madrigal that same line makes the senhal patently obvious. patter-like rapidity, but it is obvious that the displays many of the customary devices of The reading presented here is based upon the motif of the hunt serves as a metaphor for the Giovanni’s style. All versions differ at least London manuscript. love pursuit. in matters of detail of ornamentation and rhythm. Two versions are presented here; the version from the Rossi manuscript that is marginally the least decorated, and the wool, Però ritorno a te, musica cara, interesting version in the Panciatichiano If the goat so disturbs things that he may not Ch’ogni atto bel d’amor da te s’appara. manuscript that gives the entire ritornello a have me shorn. whole tone lower than the other sources. The O Music, dear science of mine, differences of decoration support the theory Now I cannot well say what will happen, O sweet melody which, through lovely songs, that the music of this generation is elaborated But surely a just lord will want less Makes lovers renew again their love. upon a much simpler contrapuntal framework wickedness. than is immediately obvious. Given the And I who, as a string in your consonance, reliability of the Panciatichiano manuscript, In the section of the lavishly decorated Used to recreate your beautiful inventiveness: there is a case for taking the apparently Squarcialupi codex dedicated to the works Am now your proxy and your advocate. deviant version of the ritornello seriously, as of Giovanni, Agnel son bianco takes pride of a realistic alternative for performance, rather place as the first work to be presented. In the That’s why I return to you, dear Music, than dismissing it as a product of scribal case of several other composers represented Because every fine deed of love is learned misinterpretation. The voyeuristic text is of in that compilation, the opening work of from you. the same tradition as Jacopo’s In su bei fiori, each composer group appears to be selected and makes reference to the same Euguane as Si because of some some direct reference in Given the highly personal nature of the come al canto. the work to its author. Landini’s Musica son reverence and affection for music expressed is such a work. The madrigal may refer to in the text, it is reasonable to suppose that O 18. Agnel son bianco a situation in Giovanni’s own employment, tu, cara scienza was written by the composer Madrigal where the composer, an undernourished himself, as is the case with Landini’s Musica but potentially high-yielding lamb is in the son. Longer melismas at the beginning Hartley Newnham (countertenor); Lloyd service of an unappreciative goat. There is an and end of each line of text, and the use of Fleming (tenor). effective and conscious attempt to disguise virtually all available rhythmic permutations the provocative intent beneath the humorous in the construction of the cantus melody Agnel son bianco, e vo’ belando, bè, depiction of the lamb’s bleating, achieved by a translate the textual imagery into musical E per ingiuria di capra superba witty use of hocket. language. The work is thus significantly Belar convegno, e perdo un boccon d’erba. longer in performance time than any other 19. O tu cara scienza of Giovanni’s madrigals of the same poetic Il danno è di colui, i’ dico in fè, Madrigal structure. The healing powers of music are Che grasso mi de’ aver con lana bionda, also mentioned in contemporary medical Se capra turba che non m’abbi tonda. Ian McDonald (countertenor); Lloyd Fleming texts. The study of music was included in (tenor). the medical curriculum of the university of Or non so bene che di me serà, Padua, a city under Scaligeri rule. Ma pur giusto signor men mal vorrà. O tu, cara scienza mia musica, O dolce melodia, con vaghi canti, 20. Fra mille corvi I am a white lamb and go bleating, baa! Che fa rinnovellar tuttor gli amanti; Madrigal Obliged by the insults of an overbearing goat To bleat and lose a mouthful of grass. E io son corda di tua consonanzia, Cathy Cameron (soprano); Margaret Arnold Che ‘mmaginar solea tuo bel trovato: (alto). His is the loss, I say in truth, Or son procuratore et avvocato. Who should have me fattened and with fair Fra mille corvi una cornachia bianca Fa che ciascun si tiene un pappagallo, ultimately succeeds in deceiving the parrots. Then it seemed to me an impure dream Ben che le verdi penne e’l becco manca. Two other works, Io mi son un and Vestise occurred ...... la cornacchia d’altrui pen[n]e by Jacopo da For a great lord in a beautiful garden, ornate ...... Bologna, both refer to Aesop’s fable of the With lilies entwined all around; ...... crow’s deception, while Oselletto selvagio, together with the aforementioned works, One of which, arisen and grown whiter, Vivesi ad arte e cosí el mondo regna. are described by Pirrotta as pieces “in which I attentively watched develop into a rosebud, Jacopo assumes an attitude of boisterous White and scarlet, above everything else, A white crow among a thousand ravens and scornful superiority towards his fellow Makes everyone feel like a parrot, musicians”. If in fact these other ‘bird pieces’ Amply amazing me, but the great lord Though the green feathers and the beak are relate to the theme of the artist’s superiority Said: “Our potency makes such water spurt.” lacking. among his peers, then as Von Fischer has ...... argued, Fra mille corvi may well represent an The version recorded here differs in the detail ...... aspect of the Veronese competition between of the cantus line in the two standard editions ...... Giovanni and Jacopo that Villani alludes to. of La bella stella as it is here based entirely on the version from the Panciatichiano One lives by cunning and thus the world is 21. La bella stella manuscript. As the cantus line alone survives governed. Madrigal in the older Rossi manuscript, it has been conflated in the published editions with the After commencing with decoration of a Lloyd Fleming (tenor); John Griffiths (lute). tenor from the Paniciatichiano manuscript. prolonged unison between the two voices, The untexted tenor line is performed on the Fra mille corvi unfolds using a more highly La bella stella che sua fiamma tene lute in this recording. integrated texture than is usual in Giovanni’s Accesa sempre nel la mente mia music, a product of the tenor line’s more rapid Lucida chiara zà del monte uscia. The text describes a mysterious erotic dream and agile movement, and greater rhythmic whose phallic images are explicitly stated. interaction. Unless seen as an attempt to Quando me parv’ en sonno esser condutto The Panciatichiano version, however, uses mirror the tumult of a flock of crows, there Per un gran sire in bel zardino adorno the word condutto in line 4 rather than poluto is no apparent extra-musical reason for this Di bianchi zigli de sotto e d’entorno. found in other sources, out of keeping with stylistic variant. the phallic metaphors of the third tercet and E per uno che di sopra biancheggiava, the ritornello. The significance of the incomplete text (one Fiso mirai: mutossi in una rosa tercet is missing) can perhaps be clarified Bianca e vermiglia sopr’ ogni altra cosa. 22. De’ come dolcemente by consideration of other related madrigal Madrigal settings. Its bird imagery, with the crow Maraviglia’mi assai, ma ‘l signor grande representing deceit and the parrots the Disse: “Nostra vertù tal acqua spande”. Margo Adelson (soprano); Hartley Newnham common herd, seems to relate it to Nel (countertenor). mezo a sei pa[g]on, also by Giovanni, where The beautiful star whose flame lasts the whiteness of feather is an emblem of Always alight in my mind Deh, come dolcemente m’abracciava, distinction. The poem’s conclusion may Came out, shiny and brilliant, from behind a Stando nel letto con la donna mia, suggest that the crow’s apparent whiteness mountain. Quando la madre mi disse: Va’ via! is not genuine distinction, but a hoax that Quando la figlia intese tal novella, Recording location: Volsesi a lei con gran malinconia; Trinity College Chapel, Disse: Fuor, vecchia, di camera mia! University of Melbourne.

- Or taci, figlia; non ci far più motto. Sound engineer: Ch’i’ me ne vado e staròmi di sotto. Martin Wright

I was being tenderly embraced Production: While in bed with my woman Martin Wright, John Griffiths When her mother said to me: “Go away!” Cover illustration: When the daughter took in this news Portrait of Giovanni da Firenze from the She turned to her, most melancholy, THIS IS THE FIRST Squarcialupi Codex, Biblioteca Laurenziana, And said: “Out, old woman, out of my room!” OF FOUR VOLUMES Florence.

“Now be quiet, daughter; not another word Text translations: from you. Giovanni Carsaniga I am going and will remain downstairs.” Textual commentary: The music of De’ come dolcemente is one of John Stinson, John Griffiths, Giovanni The Music of the Fourteenth Giovanni’s most direct settings. He appears Carsaniga Century is an anthology to be less concerned with devices of melodic of music by the principal extension and rhythm, so as not to impede the P 1987 Move Records composers and from the central pace of delivery of the humorous poem. It is C 1987 The University of Melbourne, collections of the era. Most of the one of a number of poems on the theme of the La Trobe University works recorded here have never old chaperon or duenna, usually the mother, previously been available. interfering with a young girl’s loves. See, move.com.au for example, Ellera non s’avvitola by Alessio Donati, the madrigal Un cane, un’ oca ed una Vol. 2 Every Delight and Fair vecchia pazza of , and Una Pleasure: smaniosa e insensata vecchia, once attributed to The Music of Northern Italy Donato. Vol. 3 : John Stinson John Griffiths and Giovanni Carsaniga I am Music

Vol. 4 A Florentine Annunciation