The Fourteenth Century Musical leadership in the fourteenth century was shared by France, where the period is commonly called the Ars Nova, and by Italy, where it is called the Trecento. Important characteristics were held in common. (1) Far more secular than sacred music was composed. (2) Tempus imperfectum (diiple division of notes) was used more often than tempus perfectum. (3) The rhythmic modes were abandoned in favor of more complex and diversified rhythms. (4) Cantus firmus was used less often; more music was freshly composed without any borrowed material. (5) Melodic and rhythmic interest tended to center in the top voice. (6) Harmonic thirds and sixths appeared more frequently. (7) A melodic formula, commonly known as the Landini cadence, was often used. It consists of the scale-degree pattern 7-6-1 (and is sometimes called a 7-6-I cadence). It appears in several different forms in fourteenth- and early fifteenth-century music. Examiple 8.1. Forms of the Landini Cadence THE ARS NOVA The Ars Nova in France was an evolutionary extension of the Ars ‘Antiqua, unlike the Trecento in Italy. Stil, forms and techniques were newly developed that characterized the Ars Nova.38 History of Western Music pec at hy Forms The polyphonic motet continued to be written in France, but y, important changes. Equally important were new polyphonic secular forms, ballade, rondeau, and virelai. These were collectively referred to ary formes fixes, Continuing the traditions of the trouvéres, monophonic Songs were also composed. Isorhythmic Motet | The most important fourteenth_century form still based on the cantys | firmus was the isorhythmic (“same thythm”) moter, which evolved froma — melding of the thirteenth—cen niques imported from the Ind motet, (1) a chant (or part of a tury motet and certain compositional tech. lian subcontinent. In a typical isorhythmic | chant) is selected for the tenor; (2) the chant melody constitutes the color: (3) the color is repeated until the ena of the Piece; (4) the rhythmic pattern, called ralea, is composed: (5) it is of much more extended length than the old rhythmic modes and of a length differen from the color; (5) it, too, is repeated, but since its ending does not coincide with the ending of the color, a new relationship of talea and Color results; (6) the upper parts are free to use th ¢ isorhythmic principle (but based on anewly composed cantus firmus), or not; (7) the isorhythmic motet continues the Tae galtade Practice of using different texts in the upper parts and Passages of hocket The ballade consisted of several four—line Stanzas, each with the same music. The first two lines were Sung to the same music, the third to anew melody, and the fourth, the refrain, to yet another. The sectional formula is thus aabC, in which the uppercase letter refers to the music of the text refrain. Ballades were mostly three-part compositions with melodic and rhythmic interest in the top voice. 2” Rondeau The polyphonic rondeau, not to-be confused with the rondellus, derived from the monophonic trouvere form and followed the same formula (ABaAabAB). It could bein two, in three parts, with a solo voc: slower—moving thythms, 2 / Virelai , three, or four parts, but Was most commonly al line and two lower instrumental parts in lai, also called chanson balladée in the fourteenth century, was, The vire, like the Tondeau, derived from were monophonic, but many Polyphonic compositions were also written in this form, , inThe Fourteenth Century 39 include all the French forms of the tite, and, typically, he wrote more secular than sacred-tmusic. However, his longest and most celebrated composition is the Jésse de Notre Dame, one of the first complete polyphonic settings of the Ordinary. In four-part texture, it employs the isorhythmic principle in all but the Gloria and Credo. Philippe de Vitry (1291-1361), also a poet-composer, is known primar- ily for his treatise on notation, entitled Ars Nova (ca. 1325), from which the entire fourteenth-century musical practice in France took its name, Compositions Forms In addition to the Machaut Mass, other important works of the period are (1) the Roman de Fauvel, a satirical. poem that contains 130 interpolated compositions of various types including some isorhythmic motets; (2) the Mass of Tournai (ca, 1300), containing a complete setting of the Ordinary, but whose sections were probably composed at different times by different composers; (3) Ars Novae Musicae, a treatise by Jehan des Murs (ca. 1300-ca. 1350); and (4) another treatise, Speculiom Musicae (Mirror of Music), by Jacques de Liege (ca. 1260-ca. 1330), which argued in favor of the “old art,” against the Ars Nova. THE TRECENTO Italian polyphonic music came prominently into the picture for the first time. The principal distinguishing features were that (1) it did not usually employ cantus firmus technique; (2) it was rhythmically less complex than French music; (3) it employed simpler textures; and (4) it introduced a characteristic florid vocal style. 4 { Three secular forms dominated the Italian Trecento: madrigal, caccia, and ballata. Madrigal ‘The earliest Italian polyphonic form was the madrigal, usually in two vocal parts. Each stanza, in duple time, concluded with a ritornelio section in triple meter, The texts were idyllic, pastoral, amatory, or satirical. Caccia The caccia (“chase” or “hunt”), which flourished from about 1345 10 1370, was the first musical form to exploit the principle of canon Based on continuous imitatidn between two or more parts, Two upper parts were sung40° History of Western Music Composers Documents and Manuscripts Scores and Recordings in strict imitation at the unison and with a long, time-interval between th first and second parts, The third and lowest part was freely composed jn slow-moving notes and was probably played on an instrument. Caccias usually had a canonic ritornello section at the end. Texts typically describeq a hunt or some other outdoor activity. Ballata. i ‘The ballata (not to be confused with the French ballade) originated asa dance song, and it developed somewhat later than the madrigal and caccia, Its sectional structure resembled the French virelai, with a refrain called ripresa sung at the beginning and end of each stanza (AbbaA). The principal composer of the Trecento was Francesco Landini (or Landino, ca, 1325-1397), He was a blind organist in Florence who com posed over 140 two- and three-part ballate, some ten madrigals, and one caccia, Other composets' were Jacopo da Bologna (fl. 1340-1360), Gherardello da Firenze (ca, 1320-ca. 1362), and Giovanni da Cascia (also known as Johannes de Florentia; f1. 1340-1350). Johannes Ciconia (ca 1335-1411) was French but settled in Italy, where he wrote some of the liveliest music of the period, combining features of both national styles. The Pomerian by Marchetto of Padua is an early fourteenth-century treatise that first established the acceptance of tempus imperfectum. The most important manuscript collection is the Squarcialupi Codex, which contains some 350 compositions, mostly two~ and three-part pieces repre- senting twelve fourteenth— and fifteenth-century composers. ‘Ars Nova Isorhythmic motet (de Vitry), NAWM 21 Isorhythmic motet (Machaut): NSIS Ballade (Machaut): NAWM 24 ‘Machaut Mass (Agnus Dei): NAWM 25 Rondeau: NAWM 26 Virelai: HAM 46 Trecento Ballata (Landini): NAWM 23 Madrigal (Jacopo da Bologna): (NAWM 22 Caccia: HAM 52