“I Believe”: The Credo in Music, 1300 to 1500 by Harrison Basil Russin Department of Music Duke University Date:_______________________ Approved: ___________________________ Thomas Brothers, Advisor ___________________________ Julie Cumming ___________________________ Philip Rupprecht ___________________________ Roseen Giles Dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Department of Music in the Graduate School of Duke University 2021 i v ABSTRACT “I Believe”: The Credo in Music, 1300 to 1500 by Harrison Basil Russin Department of Music Duke University Date:_______________________ Approved: ___________________________ Thomas Brothers, Advisor ___________________________ Julie Cumming ___________________________ Philip Rupprecht ___________________________ Roseen Giles An abstract of a dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Department of Music in the Graduate School of Duke University 2021 Copyright by Harrison Basil Russin 2021 Abstract The Credo is a liturgical and musical outlier among the movements of the mass ordinary. It is the longest text of the ordinary, was the latest addition to the mass, and is the locus of several odd musical phenomena, such as the proliferation of dozens of new monophonic settings of the creed between the years 1300 and 1500. These musical and liturgical phenomena have been noted but little studied; furthermore, the reasons underlying these changes have not been explained or studied. This dissertation analyzes the musical features of the Credo in monophony and polyphony, and sets the music within a broader late medieval cultural background. The research herein is multidisciplinary, using the primary sources of the music—much of which remains unedited in manuscripts—as well as the works of medieval writers, theologians, liturgists, clergy, canon lawyers, and laypeople. The overarching goal is to contextualize the musical Credo by examining the Credo’s place in late medieval religious and devotional culture. The argument and conclusion of this dissertation is that the odd musical phenomena surrounding the late medieval Credo can be illuminated and explained by placing it within its context. Specifically, the Credo is a major aspect of catechism, devotion, and liturgy, and musical, literary, and theological treatments of the Credo text within each of those categories help to explain its musical status. iv Dedication To Gabrielle Credo, Domine; adjuva incredulitatem meam. Mark 9:23 v Contents Abstract .......................................................................................................................................... iv List of Tables ................................................................................................................................. xi List of Figures .............................................................................................................................. xii Acknowledgements .................................................................................................................... xv 1. Introduction ............................................................................................................................... 1 1.1 The Credo as Part of the Mass Ordinary ....................................................................... 3 1.2 Musical phenomenon of the Credo: late medieval monophony ............................... 8 1.3 An Outline of This Dissertation .................................................................................... 13 1.3.1 Chapter Two: The History of the Creed Within Christian Worship .................. 13 1.3.2 Chapter Three: The Monophonic Melodies of the Credo .................................... 16 1.3.3 Chapter Four: The Credo and Catechism .............................................................. 18 1.3.4 Chapter Five: The Credo and Devotion ................................................................. 21 1.3.5 Chapter Six: The Credo and the Liturgy ................................................................ 22 1.4 Notes on Terminology ................................................................................................... 24 2. The History of the Creed Within Christian Worship ......................................................... 27 2.1 The Creed in the Liturgy ............................................................................................... 29 2.1.1 The Creed in Liturgies of Baptism .......................................................................... 29 2.1.1.1 From the New Testament to Nicaea ................................................................ 29 2.1.1.2 From Nicaea to the Sixth Century ................................................................... 35 2.1.1.3 The Recitation of the Creed at Baptism after the 6th Century in the Latin West .................................................................................................................................. 44 vi 2.1.2 The Creed in the Eucharistic Liturgy ...................................................................... 49 2.1.2.1 The Eucharistic Liturgy in the Greek East ...................................................... 49 2.1.2.2 The Creed in the Latin Mass ............................................................................. 54 2.2 The Text of the Creed ..................................................................................................... 62 2.3 Charlemagne and the Creed ......................................................................................... 69 3. The Monophonic Melodies of the Credo ............................................................................. 77 3.1 Period I: The Origins of the Plainchant Credo, ca. 800–1300 ................................... 79 3.1.1 The earliest sources for the Credo in Plainchant .................................................. 79 3.1.2 The Possible Eastern Origin of the Western Credo Melodies ............................. 87 Aside: Was the Creed sung in the Greek liturgy? ..................................................... 94 3.1.3 Analysis of the Structure of Credo I ....................................................................... 96 3.1.4 Arguments for a borrowed Greek melody .......................................................... 107 3.2 Period II: Canto fratto and late medieval melodies, 1300–1500 ............................. 111 3.2.1 The origin of canto fratto Credos ............................................................................ 112 3.2.2 14th-century evidence for the beginnings of Canto Fratto ................................... 114 3.2.3 Early mass polyphony and its relationship to the Credo .................................. 116 3.2.4 Descriptions of the Canto Fratto melodies ............................................................ 125 3.2.4.1 Rhythmic versions of Credo I ......................................................................... 125 3.2.4.2 Credo Cardinalis (M279) .................................................................................. 126 3.2.4.3 Credo Apostolorum (M319) .............................................................................. 127 3.2.4.4 Other canto fratto Credo melodies .................................................................. 129 3.3 Conclusion ..................................................................................................................... 132 vii 4. The Credo and Catechism .................................................................................................... 133 4.1 The Teaching of the Creed up to the Twelfth Century ........................................... 134 4.2 The Twelfth Century .................................................................................................... 139 4.2.1 The Twelfth-century “Renaissance” ..................................................................... 139 4.2.2 Faith and reason in the 12th century ...................................................................... 141 4.2.3 Lateran IV: A Watershed for the Teaching of the Creed ................................... 145 4.2.3 Teaching the Creed in England ............................................................................. 149 4.2.3.1 Oculus Sacerdotis ............................................................................................... 150 4.2.4 Teaching the Creed in France ................................................................................ 152 4.2.5 Teaching the Creed in Italy .................................................................................... 153 4.3 The success of the project of teaching the Creed ..................................................... 156 4.3.1 Chaucer and Dante .................................................................................................. 157 4.3.2 Piers Plowman ........................................................................................................... 160 4.3.3 The Pearl Poem ........................................................................................................ 166 4.3.4 Literary evidence from later centuries ................................................................. 167 4.4 The Credo Cardinalis ................................................................................................... 168 4.5 Conclusion ....................................................................................................................