14. David Merlin: Cantus fractus in a Hussitic Graduale from Kutná Hora (A-Wn 15501)
Channel: SMNF cz
Date: 2020-12-23

Cantus Fractus 2020 conference
http://www.smnf.cz/en/news/Virtual-conference-Rhythm-in-Music-and-the-Arts-in-the-Late-Middle-Ages/

Cantus fractus in a Hussitic Graduale from Kutná Hora (A-Wn 15501)

David Merlin, University of Vienna




The manuscript A-Wn 15501 was written for the Church of St. Jacob in Kutná Hora at the end of the 15th century, or between 1509 and 1516. While the splendid miniatures have been intensively investigated, the musical content of this book deserves further attention (e.g. it is usually called a «Cantionale», even though it does not contain a single cantio). This manuscript follows the Hussitic (Utraquist) rite and is divided into three parts: a Kyriale, a Graduale and a 100-folio strong Sequentiary. It also contains a considerable number of tropes. The entire book is in Latin and notated with Bohemian gothic notation.
A-Wn 15501 contains about 20 pieces in cantus fractus, the majority being for the Ordinary of the Mass. Some of them were composed in this style, but other pieces were rhythmicized later by adding caudae (strokes). Frequently, a Kyrie or Sanctus (broad dissemination, plainchant) is coupled with a trope in cantus fractus (local usage, rhythmic).
I will focus on the five Patrem and six Sanctus settings in cantus fractus found in this manuscript. Of particular interest are two Patrem settings for two voices and a strophic Sanctus trope. In some places, rests must be inserted into the notation of the Patrem setting to avoid dissonances. For the Sanctus trope, the notation leaves open whether the rhythm is dotted or ternary. This shows that the vocal practice of this repertoire was handed down orally. Remarkably, some cantus fractus pieces are typical of Bohemia, but others are part of a long and international tradition: the archaic style of the two-part Patrem is concordant with some older manuscripts from the German speaking region (now in Vienna and Trier).