Tradition and Innovation in the Style:

A Brief Overview of the Ars Subtilior Style and the

Christian Purdy

Anne Lake

During the late fourteenth century, directly following the period and the height of such great as Vitry and Machaut, many musicians and music theorists became increasingly concerned with exploring the boundaries of both in the aesthetic and rhythmic qualities of music.1 This interest in a heightened level of visual aesthetic and notational complexity, referred to as subtilitas, was closely related to the developments during the aforementioned ars nova period of the middle fourteenth century. However, musicians composing in the newer, ars subtilior style, including Jacopo de Senleches, , Philippus de Caserta2 and dozens of others, were much more concerned with, as Philip Schreur explained, “vigorous exploration of rhythmic and harmonic possibilities based on reasoned extensions of traditional mathematical and musical principles” than their predecessors.3 This interest in extending traditions through innovative rhythmic and visual representations of music can be clearly seen in the Codex Chantilly, a monumental work published in the late 14th century that is considered to be the finest singular collection of ars subtilior works in existence.4

1 Philip E. Schreur, Treatise on Noteshapes, ed. Thomas J. Mathiesen (Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1989), XI.

2 Recorded as many names, including Philipoctus da Caserta.

3 Michael Scott Cuthbert, Ars Nova: French and Italian Music in the Fourteenth Century, ed. John L. Nadas (Burlington: Ashgate Publishing Company, 2009), 74. ; Schreur, Treatise on Noteshapes, 3.

4 Gordon Greene, Polyphonic Music of the Fourteenth Century, Vol. XVIII, ed. Kurt von Fischer (Margarita M. Hanson, 1981), IX.

2

When discussing the ars subtilior style is is worth noting that composers of the late fourteenth century did not make explicit mention of an “ars subtilior period” or “ars subtilior style” of composition. Many treatises and theoretical writings from the late fourteenth century name this period as one of a more “subtle” style, but none provide a definite name for the period.5 Many later musicologists attempted to provide categories of classification for this time period, each basing classifications on different criterion. Some musicologists were concerned with classifying by strict time periods;6 others were more concerned with the compositional techniques employed by the composers within a looser period of time.7 It is ultimately Ursula Günther, a prominent twentieth century musicologist, who is credited with coining the phrase ars subtilior, the accepted terminology for the time period. Gordon Greene explains that “Gunther’s term ars subtilior more adequately describes the… style [when compared to other terms] since it characterizes not only the practice but the attitude, the social milieu in which the very complex works were created.”8 Günther’s phrase essentially communicates that this period of musical composition was incredibly complex, defined by a wide variety of extra-musical factors.

While the exact dates of the ars subtilior style are unclear, and perhaps do not exist, “… it is clear that the height of the Ars Subtilior style occurred during the ten-year period from about 1385-

1395.”9 The social attitude of the late 14th century was one of extravagant sophistry, with much value placed on intellectualism and aesthetic beauty. Günther describes ars subtilior as a time of rhythmic

5 Philip E. Schreur, Treatise on Noteshapes, XI.

6 Willi Apel, French Secular Compositions of the Fourteenth Century, Vol. 1, ed. Armen Carapetyan (American Institure of Musicology, 1970), XXIV.

7 Gordon Greene, Polyphonic Music of the Fourteenth Century, XI.

8 Ibid.

9 Gordon Greene, Polyphonic Music of the Fourteenth Century, XII.

3 complexity, drawing on some key basic principles of the ars nova tradition. 10 As Schreur asserts in

Treatise on Noteshapes, “the development of differentiated noteshapes for different temporal divisions… culminated in the ars subtilior”.11 However, the ars subtilior style is not merely an extension of the ars nova style; Willi Apel notes that “the result of all these rhythmic complexities is a most peculiar texture, such as is without parallel in the entire . It is a texture of utmost subtleness and refinement….”12 This subtleness and refinement extends far beyond the music qualities of these compositions, and can also be detected visually in some ars subtilior style works.

Many of the surviving ars subtilior works are compiled in incredibly ornate volumes that could be considered works of visual art; from the composers of the late fourteenth century who were rather interested in presenting their music in a grand manner to the publishers/copiers of these volumes who bound the books skillfully and luxuriously, it is clear that visual representation of sophistry was just as important as rhythmic complexity in ars subtilior compositions.

Uri Smilansky explains that it is possible to separate ars subtilior usage “into two parallel approaches: the practical and the creative.”13 The first approach, the ‘practical’ approach, can be traced through treatises and other academic writings of the time. During the late 14th century many music theorists were publishing literature regarding the rhythmic and mensural qualities of musical composition, leading modern scholars to believe that the ars subtilior style was not an arbitrary and

10 Michael Scott Cuthbert, Ars Nova: French and Italian Music in the Fourteenth Century, 73.

11 Philip Schreur, Treatise on Noteshapes, 2.

12 Willi Apel, French of the Late Fourteenth Century, 11.

13 Uri Smilansky, “Rethinking Ars Subtilior: Context, Language, Study and Performance” (PhD diss., University of Exeter, 2010), 161.

4 isolated development, but rather the culmination of much contemplated and widespread thought.14

In the book Treatise on Noteshapes, Philip Schreur notes that many principles elucidated by mathematicians such as were developed by innovative composers of the fourteenth century, effectively leading to the ars subtilior style.15 Analyses of ars subtilior style music clearly show that many music theorists of the late fourteenth century were basing their writings and treatises upon mathematical developments, including Philippus Caserta who is widely known as both a and music theorist of the late fourteenth century. In the late fourteenth century Caserta published a treatise entitled Tractatus Figurarum, a treatise that enumerated some of the many ways to use to accomplish the new ‘subtilitas’ or ars subtilior style. One of Caserta’s pieces, En remirant vo douce pourtraiture, embodies the ars subtilior style almost perfectly; the rhythms are complex, multiple mensurations can be heard simultaneously through the different voices, and mensuration signs change rather frequently; this eclectic mixture of multiple compositional and theoretical traditions reflects the ars subtilior values of musical intellectualism and elite sophistry. Gordon

Greene reminds us “The use of conflicting rhythmic groupings in different voice-parts, which

Philippot de Caserta… called traynour [in Tractatus Figurarum]… contributed an independence to the polyphonic lines that was not surpassed even at the height of the Renaissance… there is no doubt that composers were exploring the limits of the notation available to them.”16

An essential question when considering the music of the ars subtilior style is a question of performance during the late fourteenth century: Who appreciated this level of complexity, and was

14 C. Matthew Balensuela, “ Mensurata per Modos Iuris (Coussemaker’s Scriptores 3, Anonymous V): An Introduction, Critical Text, and English Translation with Commentary” (PhD diss., Indiana University Bloomington, 1993), 80.

15 Ibid.

16 Gordon Greene, Polyphonic Music of the Fourteenth Century, XI.

5 this music simply meant to be enjoyed as a type of unperformed musical prose? In Anne Stone’s

1996 article “Glimpses of the Unwritten Tradition in Some Ars Subtilior Works” she mentions that

“many scholars have questioned whether at least some of the music was ever meant to be performed at all, or they have assumed that if it was performed it was for a small circle of musical intellectuals, who prized the music solely for its rhythmic complexity.”17 However, she continues to say that many ars subtilior pieces are ascribed to composers also known to be performers, “…and their livelihood as performers necessitated that they be occupied in the production of sounding music, not just music- writing experiments.”18 While the ars subtilior is sometimes referred to as a time of theoretical excess in which composers wrote music meant only for the sake of composition, this is rather hyperbolic;

“the impetus for the ars subtilior came not from theorists and composers alone but also from a highly polished group of performers who were rapidly expanding their rhythmic technique.”19 The ars subtilior compositions tended to be popular and widely distributed, “…incorporated into a wide array of other cultural contexts… and presented side by side with a wealth of other musical and artistic phenomena.”20

One way the ars subtilior works were presented side by side with other artistic phenomena was in the collection of many works into large volumes of music. This brings us to the second approach described by Smilansky, the ‘creative’ approach, which can be traced through the different volumes of ars subtilior works published during the late fourteenth and early fifteenth century. The

‘creative’ approach to ars subtilior works consisted of the planning and executing of documents and

17 Anne Stone, “Glimpses of the Unwritten Tradition in Some Ars Subtilior Works,” Musica Disciplina 50 (1996): 59-93.

18 Ibid.

19 Philip E. Schreur, Treatise on Noteshapes, 13.

20 Uri Smilansky, “Rethinking Ars Subtilior: Context, Language, Study and Performance”, 82.

6 manuscripts beautiful enough to contain the music; the Chantilly Codex (abbreviated as Ch.) is one such volume, and is widely considered to be one of the greatest existing collections of ars subtilior music. The current written history of Ch. is incomplete and unreliable, with many opposing theories existing regarding the provenance and dating of the document. 21 We know that it is from the last decades of the fourteenth century, but no exact date of publication exists, nor does a reliable place of authorship or history of ownership. The texts contained within the Ch. are mostly French, and the almost one hundred musical selections are French secular songs almost exclusively of the French in “very sophisticated polyphonic setting.”22 It is widely believed that the document has connections to and Italy, but musicologists still discuss whether the surviving document is an

Italian copy of a French document or an Italian original.23

Historical lineage aside, the Ch. provides us with many insights into the values of composers and audiences during the late fourteenth century. The document is beautifully written, and uses a combination of different ink colors to impress readers by the sheer visual richness of the pages before readers even attempt to perform the scores. 24 There are also numerous marginal drawings that connect the visual art tradition of the time to the musical tradition we have been discussing.25

The marginal drawings aid in dating and placing the document, but tell us nothing definite about the document’s history; as Francisca Manzari explains, “much of the drawing style is generally remnant

21 Anne Stone, Yolanda Plumley, ed., Codex Chantilly: Bibliotheque du Chateau de Chantilly, Ms. 564, Introduction (Turnhout: Brepols Publishers, 2008), 102-103.

22 Ibid.

23 Ibid, 103-104.

24 Anne Stone, “Glimpses of the Unwritten Tradition in Some Ars Subtilior Works,” Musica Disciplina 50 (1996): 59-93.

25 Anne Stone, Yolanda Plumley, ed., Codex Chantilly: Bibliotheque du Chateau de Chantilly, 127.

7 of Italian handiwork.”26 Since we know so little about the document’s origins, and in some cases the pieces contained within the document, it is difficult to make any definitive statements about how this document affected music and musicians that experienced it. However, it is a useful tool to help current scholars determine the values of the ars subtilior period.

From the marginal drawings to the artful notation methods employed by composers represented in the Ch., it is clear that composers during this time period placed a value on pushing boundaries and exploring visual aesthetics. One of the most striking, and most obvious, elements of the Ch. is the way the first two songs are represented visually. Below is a picture of these first two

songs, showing the ornate artistry with which

composers paired their music. These pieces are

ascribed to Baude Cordier, a prominent court

musician associated with Avignon in the late

fourteenth century.27 Although these

manuscripts were added to the Ch. after the

original document was compiled, musicologists still widely discuss these works as some of the most essential ars subtilior works. The heart and circle shapes visually represent the meaning of the text; the heart shape represents the first song, a love song, and the circle shapes represent the second piece, a canon. While these shapes are certainly distinct and unique from most compositions before the early fourteenth century, “…the heart and circle shapes are certainly not inconsistent with the quixotically conceived mottos, emblematic

26 Francesca Manzari, “The International Context of Boniface IX’s Court and the Marginal Drawings in the Chantilly Codex,” Recercare 22 (2010): 11-33.

27 Anne Stone, Yolanda Plumley, ed., Codex Chantilly: Bibliotheque du Chateau de Chantilly, Ms. 564, Introduction (Turnhout: Brepols Publishers, 2008), 102-103.

8 devices, anagrams and contrived forms of fourteenth century French secular courts where the nobility were trying to recapture the archaic code of chivalry through such means.”28

It is also worth noting “…that more composers are named in [Ch.] than in any previous or contemporary French manuscript, a fact which… sheds light on the emancipated social position of musicians represented here.” 29 Thirty-three total composers are named in the Ch., who are responsible for seventy-six of the one hundred secular compositions, “…a remarkable number of ascriptions for the time.”30 This number of ascriptions suggests a shift in the craft of musical composition; many composers were becoming increasingly interested in permanently identifying themselves with their works, and these composers and the subsequent scribes were equally concerned with the visual aesthetics of the pieces being composed. While some musicologists disagree, it seems as if the visual component of musical works composed during the ars subtilior period began to take as much precedence as the strictly musical components of the work.31

While the recent research regarding the Chantilly Codex and the ars subtilior style has been vastly informative and much needed, there is certainly more room for research on this topic. The vague and sometimes unreliable primary sources undoubtedly do little to clarify the complicated history of these documents, and from the identification of composers and places of origin to ascription of treatises and philosophy, modern researchers are left with much to extrapolate about the progressions and principles of this time period. Many modern scholars vehemently contest the

28 Gordon Greene, Polyphonic Music of the Fourteenth Century, Vol. XVIII, ed. Kurt von Fischer (Margarita M. Hanson, 1981), X. 29 Ibid.

30 Ibid.

31 Ursula Günther and Willi Apel have published much conflicting thought about the music of the ars subtilior period, even calling the period by two different names. However, each person’s research has fueled the others and neither musicologist’s findings would be as complete without the other’s research. 9 findings of other scholars based on what seems like personal preference, so multiple theories exist regarding most every aspect of study for the ars subtilior period.32 Despite the somewhat murky background of the Ch. and the ars subtilior style as a whole, it remains clear that this style is one defined by an assimilation of many traditions into a new, innovative and sophisticated style, full to the brim with rhythmic complexity and impressive visual beauty.

32 Willi Apel, French Secular Compositions of the Fourteenth Century, Vol. 3, ed. Armen Carapetyan (American Institure of Musicology, 1972), XIII-XIV

10

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