Pietro Aaron on Musica Plana: a Translation and Commentary on Book I of the Libri Tres De Institutione Harmonica (1516)

Pietro Aaron on musica plana: A Translation and Commentary on Book I of the Libri tres de institutione harmonica (1516) Dissertation Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of The Ohio State University By Matthew Joseph Bester, B.A., M.A. Graduate Program in Music The Ohio State University 2013 Dissertation Committee: Graeme M. Boone, Advisor Charles Atkinson Burdette Green Copyright by Matthew Joseph Bester 2013 Abstract Historians of music theory long have recognized the importance of the sixteenth- century Florentine theorist Pietro Aaron for his influential vernacular treatises on practical matters concerning polyphony, most notably his Toscanello in musica (Venice, 1523) and his Trattato della natura et cognitione de tutti gli tuoni di canto figurato (Venice, 1525). Less often discussed is Aaron’s treatment of plainsong, the most complete statement of which occurs in the opening book of his first published treatise, the Libri tres de institutione harmonica (Bologna, 1516). The present dissertation aims to assess and contextualize Aaron’s perspective on the subject with a translation and commentary on the first book of the De institutione harmonica. The extensive commentary endeavors to situate Aaron’s treatment of plainsong more concretely within the history of music theory, with particular focus on some of the most prominent treatises that were circulating in the decades prior to the publication of the De institutione harmonica. This includes works by such well-known theorists as Marchetto da Padova, Johannes Tinctoris, and Franchinus Gaffurius, but equally significant are certain lesser-known practical works on the topic of plainsong from around the turn of the century, some of which are in the vernacular Italian, including Bonaventura da Brescia’s Breviloquium musicale (1497), the anonymous Compendium musices (1499), and the anonymous Quaestiones et solutiones (c.1500). ii The topic of plainsong remained fertile ground for discussion and controversy among theorists in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, as arguments over solmization, tuning, and mode attest. Aaron, because of his overriding concern with practical matters, offers unique insight into many of these issues in the De institutione harmonica, the only one of his publications to appear in Latin. The treatise frequently has been overshadowed in part because of its uneven quality and numerous errors, characteristics that have prompted some scholars to question the rigor of Aaron’s early training in theoretical matters. Despite these deficiencies, Aaron’s first treatise deserves a fresh look, for it has much to tell us about an important period in the history of music history as well as about Aaron himself, an earnest musician who was striving to reconcile theory and practice, insofar as he understood both at the time. iii Dedication Dedicated to Stefanie, my wife, my companion, and my best friend iv Acknowledgments I would not have been able to complete this project without the generous support and assistance of a great number of people. First and foremost I want to extend my deepest gratitude to my advisor, Graeme Boone, for his guidance and support throughout my graduate career. Over the years I have benefitted greatly from our many wide-ranging discussions, over many cups of coffee, and I look forward to many more stimulating conversations in the years to come. I am also very grateful to the other members of my dissertation committee, Charles Atkinson and Burdette Green. I feel incredibly fortunate to have had the opportunity to learn from both of them, both formally in many enjoyable seminars and informally in the course of many casual conversations. I have been profoundly influenced by the example that all three of my committee members have set, both in the high level of their scholarship and in the spirit of collegiality with which they interact with their colleagues and students. I also offer my sincerest gratitude to Lois Rosow, chair of the Musicology Department. I am humbled by the level of confidence that she routinely showed in me throughout my graduate career, granting me innumerable professional and teaching opportunities. It was also from her that I first learned the basics of textual criticism. I also thank the other faculty members from the musicology department under whom I was v fortunate to study, including Arved Ashby, Margarita Mazo, and Udo Will. It has been a pleasure to be part of such an esteemed and supportive department. I also wish to thank Professors Frank Coulson and Will Batstone in the Classics Department at Ohio State, to whom I owe my training in reading and translating Latin as well as the basics of paleography. Whatever is accurate in my Latin translations can be traced to their instruction; any mistakes are mine alone. In addition, I am very grateful to the wonderful staff of the Music and Dance Library at Ohio State, especially Alan Green, Gretchen Atkinson, Sean Ferguson, and Michael Murray. I have benefitted greatly from their assistance throughout my graduate career, both as a student and as an educator, and I very much appreciate their kindness, support, and expertise. Through the years I also have been fortunate to learn from and enjoy the friendship of many fine graduate school colleagues, many of whom have gone on to become outstanding scholars. In particular I wish to acknowledge my dear friends Nick Johnson, Alejandro Madrid, Andrew Martin, Libby McDaniel, Billee Mitchell, Nick Poss, Debbie Ruhl, Erica and Tadd Russo, Beth Szczepanski, Joan Titus, and Josh Veltman. I also thank my colleagues at Saint Mark’s Episcopal Church, especially Paul St. Germain, Stephanie Arps, and Jessica Ellis, for allowing me the flexibility to pursue the completion of this project while continuing to work full time as Director of Music. I am very grateful for their support, encouragement, and understanding. I also am thankful to vi the many members of the church who have expressed their support, particularly in the end stages of this project. I am also exceedingly grateful to Roberta Morton, Mary Mae Riego, and Dianne Silliman for volunteering their time in recent years to provide childcare, allowing me the opportunity to get away periodically in order to make progress on this dissertation. I could not have sustained the momentum necessary to complete this project without their assistance. I am particularly thankful to the many friends who have expressed interest in this project and have offered their support over the years. I am especially grateful to Dennis Bassett, Matt Croy, Gary Garber, Bevan Keating, Ted Meyers, Michael Murray, and Jim Vaigl, whose friendship has been a source of strength and encouragement. Lastly, I thank my family for their tireless and unwavering support. In particular, I thank my mother and stepfather, whose constant encouragement has always been a source of strength. Most importantly, I am forever grateful to my wife, Stefanie, whose unconditional love, support, and encouragement has meant more to me than I can say. Finally, although they were latecomers to this project, I also thank my two young daughters, Elisa and Maria, for their love, their patience, and their support, particularly in the busy final months of this project. vii Vita April 20, 1975 Born – Minneapolis, MN 1997 B.A. cum laude Music, Harvard University 2000–2001 University Fellow, The Ohio State University 2001–2005 Graduate Teaching Associate, Department of Music, The Ohio State University 2006 M.A. Music, The Ohio State University 2006–2009, 2011–12 Lecturer, Department of Music, The Ohio State University Publications 1. D.W. Latham, B. Nordström, J. Andersen, G. Torres, R.P. Stefanik, M. Thaller, and M.J. Bester, “Accurate Mass Determination for Double-lined Spectroscopic Binaries by Digital Cross-correlation Spectroscopy: DM Virginis Revisited,” Astronomy and Astrophysics 314 (1996): 864–70. Fields of Study Major Field: Music viii Table of Contents Abstract ii Dedication iv Acknowledgments v Vita viii List of Tables x List of Figures xi Introduction 1 Chapter 1: Biography and Works 8 Chapter 2: Aaron’s Introduction to Plainsong 31 Chapter 3: The Gamut 61 Chapter 4: Solmization and Mutation in Plainsong 128 Chapter 5: Intervals and Modes 187 Chapter 6: Conclusion 238 Text and Translation 245 Bibliography 336 Appendix A: Extant Copies of Pietro Aaron’s Libri tres de institutione harmonica 351 ix List of Tables Table 1: Sources for the laudes musices section of the Translator’s Preface of Pietro Aaron’s Libri tres de institutione harmonica.................................................................... 29 Table 2: Comparison of certain theorists’ catalogue of intervals, listed in chronological order. ............................................................................................................................... 190 Table 3: Comparison of the sizes of Marchetto’s semitones to Pythagorean semitones according to an equal five-part division of the whole tone. ............................................ 200 Table 4: Comparison of the sizes of Marchetto’s semitones to Pythagorean semitones according to an unequal five-part division of the whole tone, based on ninth parts. ...... 202 x List of Figures Figure 1: Hexachords and pitch names according to Anonymous, Tractatulus. .............. 41 Figure 2: Gamut according to Pseudo-Odo of Cluny, Dialogus de musica, Chapter 2. ... 68 Figure 3: Gamut according to Guido of Arezzo, Micrologus, Chapter 2.

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