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AN ANONYMOUS ENGLISH MASS-SETTING FROM c 1440

The Spirits of England and France - 5


Missa Veterem hominem
and other fifteenth-century English music

GOTHIC VOICES

directed by CHRISTOPHER PAGE

ISSA VETEREM HOMINEM can justly be regarded as the sister Mass to the Missa Caput which was recorded on Volume 4 of The Spirits of England and France (CDH55284). Volume 5 is a further development to the repertoire of Gothic Voices in the exploration of polyphonic English Masses of the fifteenth century and also includes some of the most outstanding lyrics from the wealth of Sarum chant. Like the Missa Caput, the Missa Veterem hominem was part of a flood of English music which engulfed Continental Europe in the early to mid-fifteenth century. Both Masses turn up in the so-called Trent Codices, a series of seven manuscripts which, with some eighteen hundred pieces, is by far the largest repository of music to have survived from the first three-quarters of the century. As testimony to the remarkable breadth of interest in English music, Veterem hominem even travelled as far as eastern Silesia, or Bohemia, where it was copied into the so-called Strahov manuscript; and if the quotation from the Mass in Morleys Plaine and Easie Introduction to Practicall Musicke of 1597 is anything to go by its breadth of transmission was matched by its longevity, as a didactic curiosity if nothing else. Sadly this late fragment is the only source for the Mass to have survived on its native soil: the insular copies which must once have existed clearly fell prey to the changes of fashion which, as for most English music of the period, in time rendered them obsolete for performance purposes. But for a tiny handful of manuscripts, the glorious richness which was clearly English music in the early fifteenth century is represented in England now only by pitiful fragments drawn from sixteenth-century bookbindings. Missa Veterem hominem is fact shares a great deal more with the Caput Mass than just English origin: indeed, so similar in construction are the pieces that they can even be called sister Masses. Both were presumably composed around the late 1440s, and both were part of the first maturity of the cantus firmus Mass, the procedure devised in England and enthusiastically emulated on the Continent, in which each

movement is built on the same borrowed melody. Both are also written for four voices with a low contratenor, a texture rare at the time but which was soon widely adopted on the Continent, and both present the cantus firmus twice in each movement in so-called double cursus format, once each in triple and duple metre. In fact the structure and layout of Caput and Veterem hominem became the blueprint for a spate of fourvoice Continental Masses in the 1450s, some of which clone their models so comprehensively that it is difficult or even impossible to determine whether their composers were English or Continental. Even the borrowed melodies of the two Masses have features in common: both derive from antiphons and both are in mode 7 on G. As in many early English Masses, the melodies are deployed in identical rhythmic successions in each movement, though differences in the lengths of rests and duos mean that some movements are longer than others. One of the longest movements in both cases is the Kyrie, for which both Masses set the long troped Kyrie text Deus creator omnium as prescribed for performance on all principal and major double feasts in the Sarum and other English rites. Across the rigid armature imposed by the cantus firmus the anonymous composers lay glittering musical lines with now one voice, now another emerging above the surface of the texture and carrying forwards a succession of rhythms and sonorities. As John Caldwell has remarked, the plainsong of Veterem hominem is clothed in a bold and resourceful web of melody in the three accompanying voices, closely knit without any sacrifice of clarity.1 Like the Missa Caput the sheer confidence displayed by the master who wrote the Missa Veterem hominem forbids the kind of tranquil performance which fifteenth-century English music is often given today. Such a style seems to work well for some of the shorter, contemplative Marian antiphons such as Sancta Maria virgo or Mater ora filium and is almost universally used now for the music of Dunstable, but in many places the Veterem hominem master creates a contratenor
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The Veterem hominem melody (from the Antiphonale Sarisburiense)

line (the second voice down in the modern score) with animated and syncopated passages which recall motets of the previous century such as Degentis vita (recorded on The Medieval Romantics, Helios CDH55293) and it seems essential for such music to be presented with velocity and drive. As we rehearsed Veterem hominem and the Missa Caput we became increasingly convinced that we wished to render the music as a festive clamour, fast and loud, capturing what might have been done by four soloists, proud of their artful contribution to a major liturgical feast and, during the plainchant passages, itching to get up and make it. As with the Missa Caput we decided against a liturgical reconstruction, but to preserve the alternation of polyphony and plainsong surely essential to a balanced experience of the polyphonic movementswe have interposed some of the most beautiful and contemplative hymns of the Use of Sarum by way of contrast. The first thirteen tracks of this recording are therefore planned as a whole. Beginning with a characteristically taut setting from the repertoire of fifteenth-century English carols, Jesu, fili virginis, the programme continues with three monophonic pieces to
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accustom the listener to monody. This, it is to be hoped, will restore to the Veterem hominem polyphony some of the opulence it would have represented to its original audience. The antiphon Doleo super te, Davids lament for Jonathan, reminds us just how many fine plainchant lyrics there are in the Sarum books, lyrics which should be viewed as so much more than historical curiosities (the chants on which later and better known polyphonic works are based) and which deserve to be performed and judged as free-standing songs of great beauty. Doleo super te was much admired, and is praised by one medieval theorist for its expressive and low-lying melody. The responsory Gaude Maria virgo figures in a large number of medieval miracle stories, many of which were circulating in England during the lifetime of the Veterem hominem master.2 It was especially admired for its high tessitura, and one miracle story relates how it was often sung by a young man with a fine voice to the canons of a certain cathedral church in Italy as a virtuoso solo song. We follow this with a Sarum plainsong setting of the Kyrie trope Deus creator omnium, the words of which are again employed in the Kyrie of the Missa Veterem hominem. This long troped text or prosula,

also used as the Kyrie of the Missa Caput, represents the strongest proof that these masterworks are of English, rather than Continental, origin. A note on the edition The performance recorded here is based upon the edition of Missa Veterem hominem by Margaret Bent, Fifteenth-Century Liturgical Music, 11, Four Anonymous Masses, Early English

Church Music, 22 (London, 1979). I am grateful to Dr Bent for discussing some points with me. The recording departs from the edition only in these respects: all the voices are texted throughout; and there are occasional changes to the editorial ficta, none of them principled save that they reflect what the musicians involved in the recording found most gracious to voice and ear.
ANDREW KIRKMAN and CHRISTOPHER PAGE 1997

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John Caldwell, The Oxford History of English Music, i, The Beginnings to c1715 (Oxford, 1991), p 155 As we know from Cambridge, Sidney Sussex MS95. See Christopher Page, Marian Themes and Images in a Fifteenth-Century English Manuscript: A Miscellany in Two Parts, Plainsong and Medieval Music, 5 (1996), pp 2344

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Recorded on 1317 July 1996 Recording Engineer TONY FAULKNER Recording Producer MARTIN COMPTON Executive Producers JOANNA GAMBLE, NICK FLOWER P Hyperion Records Limited, London, 1997 C Hyperion Records Limited, London, 2011 (Originally issued on Hyperion CDA66919) Front illustration: Simeon, from a fifteenth-century Book of Hours

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1 Jesu, fili virginis


Jesu, fili virginis, miserere nobis. Jesu, of a maide thou woldest be born, To save mankind that was forlorn, And all for oure miss; Miserere nobis. Jesu, fili virginis
[forlorn: lost; miss: sin]

Jesus, son of a virgin, have pity on us. Born thou were of Mary free, And thou diedest upon the rode tree, And all for oure miss. Miserere nobis. Jesu, fili virginis

2 Doleo super te
Doleo super te, frater mi Jonatha, amabilis valde, super amorem mulierum; sicut mater unicum amat filium, ita te diligebam. Sagitta Jonathe nunquam abiit retrorsum, nec declinavit clipeus eius de bello, et hasta eius non est aversa. I weep over you, Jonathan my brother, greatly loved, surpassing the love of woman; as a mother loves her only son, so I loved you. The arrow of Jonathan never fell back, nor did his shield retire from war, and his spear never turned in flight. Rejoice, virgin Mary, you, alone, banished all heresies, who believed the words of the archangel Gabriel. While still a virgin you bore God and man and after the birth remained an inviolate virgin. We know that the archangel Gabriel addressed you with divine prophecy; and we believe that your womb was impregnated by the Holy Spirit; let the wretched Jew blush who says that Christ was born of the seed of Joseph. While still a virgin you bore God and man and after the birth remained an inviolate virgin. O God creator of all things, thou our merciful God eleyson, we pray to thee, O Christ, king of kings, singing praises together to thee eleyson, to whom be praise, power, peace and dominion for ever without end eleyson,
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3 Gaude Maria virgo


Gaude Maria virgo cunctas hereses sola interemisti que Gabrielis archangeli dictis credidisti. Dum virgo Deum et hominem genuisti et post partum virgo inviolata permansisti. Gabrielem archangelum scimus divinitus te esse affatum; uterum tuum de Spiritu Sancto credimus inpregnatum; erubescat judeus infelix qui dicit Christum ex Joseph semine esse natum. Dum virgo Deum et hominem genuisti et post partum virgo inviolata permansisti.

4 Deus creator omnium


Deus creator omnium, tu theos ymon nostri pie eleyson, tibi laudes conjubilantes regum rex Christe oramus te eleyson, laus, virtus, pax et imperium cui est semper sine fine eleyson,

Christe, rex unice, patris almi nate coeterne eleyson, qui perditum hominem salvasti, de morte reddens vite eleyson ne pereant pascue oves tue Jesu, pastor bone eleyson. Consolator spiritus supplices ymas te exoramus eleyson. Virtus nostra domine atque salus nostra in eternum eleyson, summe Deus et une vite dona nobis tribue misertus nostrique tu digneris eleyson.

O Christ, sole king, O son coeternal with the kind father eleyson who saved mankind, being lost, giving life for death eleyson lest your pastured sheep should perish, O Jesus, good shepherd eleyson. Consoler of suppliant spirits below, we beseech thee eleyson. O lord, our strength and our salvation for eternity eleyson, O highest and only God, grant to us the gifts of life and have mercy upon us eleyson.

5 Kyrie: Deus creator omnium Missa Veterem hominem


[For text see above]

6 Gloria Missa Veterem hominem


Gloria in excelsis Deo. Et in terra pax hominibus bone voluntatis. Laudamus te. Benedicimus te. Adoramus te. Glorificamus te. Gratias agimus tibi propter magnam gloriam tuam. Domine Deus, rex celestis, Deus pater omnipotens. Domine fili unigenite Jesu Christe. Domine Deus, agnus Dei, filius patris. Qui tollis peccata mundi, miserere nobis. Qui tollis peccata mundi, suscipe deprecationem nostram. Qui sedes ad dexteram patris, miserere nobis. Quoniam tu solus sanctus. Tu solus dominus. Tu solus altissimus, Jesu Christe, cum Sancto Spiritu, in gloria Dei patris. Amen. Glory be to God on high, and in earth peace, good will towards men. We praise thee. We bless thee. We worship thee. We glorify thee. We give thanks to thee for thy great glory, O lord God, heavenly king, God the father almighty. O lord the only-begotten son Jesu Christ. O lord God, lamb of God, son of the father. Thou that takest away the sins of the world, have mercy upon us. Thou that takest away the sins of the world, receive our prayer. Thou that sittest at the right hand of God the father, have mercy upon us. For thou only art holy. Thou only art the lord. Thou only, O Christ, with the Holy Ghost, art most high in the glory of God the father. Amen. O Jesus, saviour of the world, word of the father on high, light of the invisible light, be a guard to protect your own.
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7 Jesu salvator
Jesu salvator seculi, Verbum patris altissimi, Lux lucis invisibilis, Custos tuorum pervigil.

Tu fabricator omnium, Discretor atque temporum, Fessa labore corpora Nobis quiete recrea Ut dum gravi in corpore Brevi manemus tempore Sic caro nostra dormiat Ut mens in Christo vigilet. Te deprecamur supplices Ut nos ab hoste liberes; Ne valeat seducere Tuo redemptos sanguine. Gloria tibi domine, Qui surrexisti a mortuis, Cum patre et Sancto Spiritu, In sempiterna secula. Amen.

You, the maker of all things and divider of the seasons, give rest to our bodies which are exhausted with labour so that while we wait a little while in lowly body our flesh may sleep so that our mind may keep watch in Christ. We beseech you to free us from the enemy lest he be able to seduce those redeemed by your blood. Glory be to you, lord, who rose from the dead, with the father and the Holy Spirit, world without end. Amen. I believe in one God, the father almighty, maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible. And in one lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten son of God, begotten of his father before all worlds. God of God, light of light, very God of very God, begotten not made, being of one substance with the father, by whom all things were made; and was incarnate by the Holy Ghost of the virgin Mary, and was made man. He rose again according to the scriptures, and ascended into heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of the father. And he shall come again with glory to judge both the quick and the dead: whose kingdom shall have no end. Amen.

8 Credo Missa Veterem hominem


Credo in unum Deum, patrem omnipotentem, factorem celi et terre, visibilium omnium et invisibilium. Et in unum dominum Jesum Christum, filium Dei unigenitum. Et ex patre natum ante omnia secula. Deum de Deo, lumen de lumine, Deum verum de Deo vero. Genitum, non factum, consubstantialem patri: per quem omnia facta sunt. Et incarnatus est de Spiritu Sancto ex Maria virgine: et homo factus est. Et resurrexit tertia die, secundum scripturas. Et ascendit in celum: sedet ad dexteram patris. Et iterum venturus est cum gloria judicare vivos et mortuos: cuius regni non erit finis. Amen.

9 A solis ortus
A solis ortus cardine Ad usque terre limitem, Christum canamus principem, Natum Maria virgine. Beatus auctor seculi Servile corpus induit Ut carne carnem liberans, Ne perderet quos condidit. Caste parentis viscera Celestis intrat gratia; Venter puelle baiulat Secreta quae non noverat. Foeno jacere pertulit; Presepe non abhorruit Parvoque lacte pastus est Per quem nec ales esurit. Gaudet chorus celestium Et angeli canunt Deo: Palamque fit pastoribus Pastor, creator omnium. Gloria tibi, Domine, Qui natus es de virgine, Cum patre et Sancto Spiritu, In sempiterna secula. Amen. From the rising of the sun to the ends of the earth, let us hymn Christ the king, born of the virgin Mary. The blessed creator of the world took on the body of a slave so that, freeing the flesh by becoming flesh, he might not lose the ones he founded. Heavenly grace enters the womb of his virgin mother; the womb of the girl bears secrets which she did not understand. He was laid in straw; he did not scorn the stable and he through whom not even the bird of the air goes hungry is nourished with a little milk. The choir of heaven rejoices and the angels sing to God: the shepherd, the creator of all things, is made manifest to the shepherds. Glory be to you, Lord, who was born of a virgin, with the father and the Holy Spirit, world without end. Amen. Holy, holy, holy, lord God of hosts, heaven and earth are full of thy glory. Hosanna in the highest. Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the lord. Hosanna in the highest. O lord, saviour of the world, who saved us on this day, protect us during this night and save us through all time.

bl Sanctus and Benedictus Missa Veterem hominem


Sanctus, sanctus, sanctus dominus Deus sabaoth. Pleni sunt celi et terra gloria tua. Hosanna in excelsis. Benedictus qui venit in nomine domini. Hosanna in excelsis.

bm Salvator mundi
Salvator mundi domine, Qui nos salvasti hodie, In hac nocte nos protege Et salva omni tempore.

Adesto nunc propicius Et parce supplicantibus; Tu dele nostra crimina, Tu tenebras illumina Ne mentem somnus opprimat, Nec hostis nos surripiat, Nec ullis caro petimus Conmaculetur sordibus. Te reformator sensuum Votis precamur cordium, Ut puri castis mentibus Surgamus a cubilibus. Deo patri sit gloria Eiusque soli filio Cum Spiritu paraclito Et nunc et in perpetuum. Amen.

Come now, graciously, and spare those who beseech you; abolish our sins and illuminate the darkness lest dreams oppress the mind and the enemy carry us away, nor, we pray, that our bodies be stained by him with pollution. We beseech you, reformer of the senses, with the deepest wishes of our hearts that we may rise from our beds pure with chaste minds. Let there be glory to God the father and his only son with the Holy Spirit now and for ever. Amen. O lamb of God, that takest away the sins of the world, have mercy upon us. O lamb of God, that takest away the sins of the world, have mercy upon us. O lamb of God, that takest away the sins of the world, grant us thy peace. Christ, you who are the light and the day, take away the darkness of the night and grant us the light of light foretelling the blessed radiance. We beseech you, blessed lord, defend us this night; let us have rest in you; give us peace this night lest a heavy dream assail us or the enemy snatch us away or flesh, consenting in his wiles, make us stand accused in your sight.

bn Agnus Dei Missa Veterem hominem


Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi: miserere nobis. Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi: miserere nobis. Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi: dona nobis pacem.

bo Christe, qui lux es


Christe, qui lux es et dies Noctis tenebras detegis Lucisque lumen crederis Lumen beatum predicans. Precamur, sancte domine, Defende nos in hac nocte; Sit nobis in te requies; Quietam noctem tribue Ne gravis somnus irruat Nec hostis nos surripiat Nec caro illi consentiens Nos tibi reos statuat.

Oculis somnum capiat; Cor ad te semper vigilet; Dextera tua protegat Famulos qui te diligunt. Deo patri sit gloria Eiusque soli filio, Cum Spiritu paraclito Et nunc et in perpetuum. Amen.

Let sleep come upon our eyes; let the heart always be wakeful to you; may your right hand protect those who love you. Let there be glory to God the father and to his only son, with the Holy Spirit now and for ever. Amen.

bp To many a well
To many a well have y go To find water to wash me fro wo. I have ysought in many a side To fynde water to wash me fro wo; Yet could y nought walk so wyde To find water to wash me so. To many a well I have herde speken of a well That well is mercy, I have heard say, Thereof springeth streames fele; And shall be without end; A man that thereof had his fill, Almighty God, to thee we pray, Of his woe should come his weal. Give us grace that well to find. To many a well To many a well
[ysought: sought; fele: many; weal: happiness]

bq Sancta Maria virgo


Sancta Maria virgo intercede pro toto mundo, Quia genuisti regem orbis. Blessed virgin Mary intercede for the whole world, because you bore the king of the world. Mother, beseech your son that, after this exile, he may give us joy without end. Hail, star of the sea, merciful mother of God, ever a virgin, happy door of heaven.
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br Mater ora filium


Mater ora filium ut, post hoc exilium, nobis donet gaudium Sine fine.

bs Ave maris stella


Ave maris stella, Dei mater alma, Atque semper virgo, Felix celi porta.

Sumens illud Ave Gabrielis ore, Funda nos in pace, Mutans nomen Hevae. Solve vincla reis, Profer lumen caecis, Mala nostra pelle, Bona cuncta posce. Monstra te esse matrem: Sumat per te precem, Qui pro nobis natus, Tulit esse tuus. Virgo singularis, Inter omnes mitis, Nos culpis solutos, Mites fac et castos. Vitam praesta puram, Iter para tutum, Ut videntes Jesum, Semper collaetemur. Sit laus Deo patri, Summo Christo decus, Spiritui Sancto, Trinus honor unus.

Receiving this Ave from the mouth of Gabriel, bring us to peace, reversing the name Eva. Unbind the shackles of the accused, bring light to the blind, take away our misfortunes and bring us every good. Show yourself as mother; may he who was yours, born for us, receive our prayer through you. Unique virgin, gentler than all, make us gentle and chaste, free from the bonds of sin. Bring us a pure life, prepare the true way, so that, seeing Jesus, we may rejoice for ever. Let there be praise to God the father, honour to Christ on high, to the Holy Spirit, to all three one honour. Blessed mother, and unwed virgin, glorious queen of the world, intercede for us with the lord. Tongue, proclaim the mystery of the glorious body, and of the precious blood which the king of all shed, the fruit of a noble womb, to redeem the world.

bt Beata mater JOHN DUNSTABLE


Beata mater, et innupta virgo, gloriosa regina mundi, intercede pro nobis ad dominum.

bu Pange lingua
Pange lingua gloriosi Corporis mysterium, Sanguinisque pretiosi, Quem in mundi pretium Fructus ventris generosi Rex effudit gentium.

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Nobis datus, nobis natus Ex intacta virgine, Et in mundo conversatus, Sparso verbi semine, Sui moras incolatus Miro clausit ordine. In supremae nocte coenae Recumbens cum fratribus, Observata lege plene Cibis in legalibus, Cibum turbae duodenae Se dat suis manibus. Verbum caro, panem verum Verbo carnem efficit, Fitque sanguis Christi merum, Et si sensus deficit, Ad firmandum cor sincerum Sola fides sufficit. Tantum ergo sacramentum Veneremur cernui: Et antiquum documentum Novo cedat ritui: Praestet fides supplementum Sensuum defectui. Genitori genitoque Laus et jubilatio, Salus, honor, virtus quoque Sit et benedictio: Procedenti ab utroque Compar sit laudatio. Amen.

He is given to us, born for us from a pure virgin, and going wide in the world to spread the seed of the word he closed his time here in a wondrous fashion. On the night of the last supper, reclining with his brethren, having fulfilled the law entirely in the meal, he gave food to the twelve with his own hands. By the word he makes his flesh to be the true flesh, the true bread, and the blood of Christ was made of the wine, and if sense fails to grasp this only faith can suffice to consolidate the true heart. There, bending, we venerate this great sacrament: and the old law gives way to the new: faith makes good the defect of sense. Let there be praise and rejoicing to the father and the son, let there be all hail, honour, might and blessing also: let there be equal praise to him who proceeds from the two. Amen.

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LME DE LANGLETERRE ET DE LA FRANCE 5


A MISSA VETEREM HOMINEM peut tre, juste titre, considre comme la messe sur de la Missa Caput, enregistre sur le prcdent volume de cette mme srie. Le prsent volume, le cinquime, marque une progression du rpertoire des Gothic Voices dans lexploration des messes polyphoniques anglaises du XVe sicle, et inclut galement quelques-uns des plus remarquables chants du riche rite de Sarum. Comme la Missa Caput, la Missa Veterem hominem fit partie dun des flots de musique anglaise qui engloutirent lEurope continentale pendant la premire moiti du XVe sicle. Ces deux messes figurent dans les Codex de Trente , une srie de sept manuscrits, dont les quelque mille huit cents pices constituent de loin le plus grand recueil de musique avoir survcu depuis les trois premiers quarts du XVe sicle. Preuve du remarquable intrt pour la musique anglaise, la Veterem hominem voyagea jusquen Silsie orientale, ou Bohme, o elle fut copie dans le manuscrit Strahov ; et le fait quelle soit en partie cite dans la Plaine and Easie Introduction to Practicall Musicke de Morley (1597) atteste que sa longvit gala lampleur de sa transmission, au moins comme curiosit didactique. Malheureusement, seul ce dernier fragment permit la messe de survivre sur son sol natal : les copies insulaires qui durent exister jadis furent, de toute vidence, la proie des changements de mode et finirent par devenir obsoltes, linstar de lessentiel de la musique anglaise de lpoque. Except une minuscule poigne de manuscrits, la glorieuse richesse qutait manifestement la musique anglaise au dbut du XVe sicle nest plus reprsente en Angleterre que par de pitoyables fragments issus de livres relis du XVIe sicle. Les similitudes entre la Missa Veterem hominem et la messe Caput vont bien au-del de leur seule origine anglaise. En fait, ces deux pices sont de construction si identique quelles peuvent tre qualifies de messes surs . Probablement composes vers la fin des annes

1440, toutes deux firent partie de la premire maturit de la messe sur cantus firmus, procd conu en Angleterre, mais imit avec enthousiasme en Europe continentale, dans lequel chaque mouvement est construit sur la mme mlodie emprunte. Toutes deux sont, aussi, crites pour quatre voix, avec un contratenor grave (une texture rare lpoque, mais bientt largement adopte en Europe continentale), et prsentent le cantus firmus deux fois par mouvement, dans un format de double cursus une fois dans une mesure ternaire, une fois dans une mesure binaire. En fait, la structure et lagencement de ces deux messes devinrent le prototype de toute une srie de messes quatre voix dans lEurope continentale des annes 1450 ; certaines sont de si parfaites imitations quil est difficile, voire impossible, de dterminer si leurs compositeurs taient dAngleterre ou dEurope continentale. Mme les mlodies empruntes de la Veterem hominem et de la Caput possdent des caractristiques communes, chacune drivant dantiennes et tant en mode 7, sur sol. Comme dans nombre de messes anglaises anciennes, ces mlodies se dploient dans des successions rythmiques identiques dans chaque mouvement, bien que des diffrences dans les dures des pauses et des duos impliquent que certains mouvements sont plus longs que dautres. Dans les deux cas, lun des mouvements les plus longs est le Kyrie, pour lequel les messes mettent en musique le long texte trop Deus creator omnium , conformment aux prescriptions dinterprtation pour les ftes doubles de premire classe et les ftes doubles majeures, dans les rites de Sarum et les autres rites anglais. Sur larmature rigide impose par le cantus firmus, les compositeurs anonymes ont dispos des lignes musicales tincelantes, avec tantt une voix, tantt une autre mergeant au-dessus de la surface de la texture et vhiculant une succession de rythmes et de sonorits. Comme le remarqua John Caldwell, le plain-chant de la Veterem hominem est drap dans un tissu mlodique hardi et ingnieux dans les
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La mlodie Veterem hominem (extrait de lAntiphonale Sarisburiense)

trois voix daccompagnement, tricot de faon serr, sans aucun sacrifice de clart . A linstar de la Missa Caput, la Missa Veterem hominem bnficia dune criture lassurance aigu, qui exclut le type dinterprtation tranquille actuellement appliqu la musique anglaise du XVe sicle. Un tel style semble par contre tout fait convenir certaines des antiennes mariales plus brves et contemplativesainsi Sancta Maria virgo ou Mater ora filium , et est dsormais presque toujours utilis pour la musique de Dunstable ; mais, le matre de la Veterem hominem cre, en maints endroits, une ligne de contratenor (la deuxime voix des partitions modernes), avec des passages anims et syncops, qui rappellent les motets du sicle prcdent, tels Degentis vita (enregistr sur le disque The Medieval Romantics , Helios CDH55293), et il semble essentiel que pareille musique soit prsente avec vlocit et dynamisme. Au cours de nos rptitions de la Veterem hominem et de la Missa Caput, nous fmes de plus en plus convaincus que notre dsir tait de rendre la musique comme une clameur festive, rapide et puissante, capturant ce qui aurait pu tre accompli par quatre solistes fiers de leur contribution experte
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une fte liturgique majeure, et dmangs, pendant les passages de plain-chant, par lenvie de se lever et de le faire. Comme pour la Missa Caput, nous nous sommes prononcs contre une reconstruction liturgique mais avons intercal, par souci de contraste, certaines des plus magnifiques et des plus contemplatives hymnes du Sarum Use, mme de prserver lalternance de polyphonie et de plain-chantassurment cruciale pour lquilibre des mouvements polyphoniques. Les treize premires pistes du prsent enregistrement sont, par consquent, conues comme un tout. Le programme dbute avec Jesu, fili virginis, une mise en musique, la tension caractristique, extraite du rpertoire des carols anglais du XVe sicle, puis se poursuit avec trois pices monophoniques, pour accoutumer lauditeur la monodie. Ainsi esprons-nous rendre la polyphonie de la Veterem hominem un peu de lopulence offerte son auditoire originel. Lantienne Doleo super te, la lamentation de David sur Jonathan, ne fait que nous rappeler combien les livres de Sarum renferment de beaux plains-chants, des chants qui devraient tre considrs comme bien plus que de simples curiosits historiques (sur lesquelles se fondent les uvres

polyphoniques ultrieures, mieux connues), des chants qui mritent dtre interprts et jugs comme des uvres indpendantes, dune grande splendeur. Doleo super te fut normment admir, et un thoricien mdival loue sa mlodie grave, expressive. Le rpons Gaude Maria virgo figure dans un grand nombre de miracles mdivaux, dont beaucoup circulaient en Angleterre, du vivant du matre de la Veterem hominem. Cette pice fut particulirement apprcie pour sa tessiture leve, et un miracle relate quun jeune homme la belle voix linterprtait souvent, conformment aux canons dune certaine glise cathdrale dItalie , comme un chant soliste virtuose. Nous le faisons suivre dune mise en musique, selon le plain-chant de Sarum, du trope de Kyrie Deus creator omnium, dont les paroles sont reprises dans le Kyrie de la Missa Veterem hominem. Ce long texte trop, ou prosula galement utilis comme Kyrie de la Missa

Caput , apporte la preuve la plus convaincante de lorigine anglaise, et non continentale, de ces chefs-duvre. Note sur ldition La prsente interprtation repose sur ldition de la Missa Veterem hominem tablie par Margaret Bent, FifteenthCentury Liturgical Music, 11, Four Anonymous Masses, in Early Church Music, no 22 (Londres, 1979). Je suis reconnaissant au Dr Bent davoir discut certains points avec moi. Lenregistrement ne se dpartit de son dition quaux gards suivants : toutes les voix comportent un texte de bout en bout, et certains changements occasionnels affectent les ficta ditoriales, qui ne font que reflter ce que les musiciens impliqus dans le prsent enregistrement trouvrent de plus gracieux, tant pour la voix que pour loreille.
ANDREW KIRKMAN et CHRISTOPHER PAGE 1997
Traduction HYPERION

Si vous souhaitez de plus amples dtails sur ces enregistrements, et sur les nombreuses autres publications du label Hyperion, veuillez nous crire Hyperion Records Ltd, PO Box 25, London SE9 1AX, England, ou nous contacter par courrier lectronique info@hyperion-records.co.uk, et nous serons ravis de vous faire parvenir notre catalogue gratuitement. Le catalogue Hyprion est galement accessible sur Internet : www.hyperion-records.co.uk 15

DER GEIST ENGLANDS UND FRANKREICHS 5


ISSA VETEREM HOMINEM kann zu Recht als die Schwester der Missa Caput bezeichnet werden, die in der vorherigen Ausgabe von The Spirits of England and France zu hren war. Im Zusammenhang mit der Erforschung der polyphonen englischen Messen des 15. Jahrhunderts ist Band 5 ein weiterer Beitrag zum Repertoire der gotischen Stimmen und umfat einige der auerordentlichsten Texte aus dem Schatz der Gesnge von Salisbury. Ebenso wie die Missa Caput war auch die Missa Veterem hominem ein Teil der Flut an englischer Musik, die das kontinentale Europa in der ersten Hlfte des 15. Jahrhunderts berschwemmte. Beide Messen tauchen in den sogenannten Trienter Kodexen auf, einer Gruppe von sieben Manuskripten, die mit etwa achtzehntausend Stcken das bei weitem grte erhalten gebliebene Musikrepertoire aus den ersten 75 Jahren des Jahrhunderts darstellen. Da das Veterem hominem sogar bis nach Ostschlesien und Bhmen gelangte, wo es als das sogenannte Strahov-Manuskript kopiert wurde, bezeugt das seinerzeit erstaunlich weitreichende Interesse an englischer Musik. Wenn man dem Zitat aus der Messe in Morleys Plaine and Easie Introduction to Practicall Musicke (Klare und einfache Einfhrung in die praktische Musik) aus dem Jahre 1597 glauben darf, so entspricht ihr Verbreitungsradius ihrer Langlebigkeit, wenn auch nur als didaktische Kuriositt. Bedauerlicherweise ist dieses letzte Fragment der einzige Anhaltspunkt fr diese Messe, der die Zeiten in seinem Ursprungsland berdauerte: Die englischen Kopien, die einst existiert haben mssen, fielen ganz eindeutig den Mode- und Stilvernderungen zum Opfer. Wie der Groteil der damaligen englischen Musik wurden sie allmhlich als berholt und fr Auffhrungszwecke ungeeignet erklrt. Abgesehen von einer kleinen Handvoll Manuskripte, spiegelt sich der Glanz und Reichtum der englischen Musik des frhen 15. Jahrhunderts im heutigen England nur noch in ein paar armseligen Fragmenten aus erhalten gebliebenen Buchbestnden des 16. Jahrhunderts wider.

Die Missa Veterem hominem hat jedoch noch wesentlich mehr mit der Caput-Messe gemeinsam als nur ihren englischen Ursprung: Diese beiden Werke hneln sich so stark in ihrem Aufbau, da man sie regelrecht als Geschwister bezeichnen kann. Beide wurden vermutlich zwischen 1445 und 1450 geschrieben und waren Bestandteil der ersten ausgereiften Form der Cantus firmus-Messe, einer Form, die in England entwickelt und mit Begeisterung auf dem Kontinent kopiert wurde, und in der alle Stze auf der gleichen geliehenen Melodie aufgebaut sind. Zudem sind beide Stcke fr vier Stimmen mit einem tiefen Contratenor geschrieben eine zu jener Zeit selten gebrauchte Struktur, die jedoch bald groen Anklang auf dem Kontinent fand. Beide Messen prsentieren den Cantus firmus zweimal pro Satz im sogenannten doppelten Cursus, jeweils einmal im Zweier- beziehungsweise Dreiertakt. In der Tat dienten die Struktur und der Aufbau von Caput und Veterem hominem in den 1450er Jahren als Modell fr eine Flut von vierstimmigen kontinentalen Messen. Einige dieser Messen sind so exakte Kopien ihrer Vorlagen, da es schwierig, ja fast unmglich ist, die Herkunft ihrer Komponisten zu bestimmen, d. h. festzustellen, ob sie englischen oder kontinental-europischen Ursprungs sind. Selbst die entlehnten Melodien der beiden Messen weisen Gemeinsamkeiten auf: Beide stammen von Antiphonen und stehen im 7. Modus auf G. Wie bei vielen frhen englischen Messen werden die Melodien auch hier in jedem Satz in identischen rhythmischen Aufeinanderfolgen dargelegt, wobei die Unterschiede in der Pausen- und Duolnge auf unterschiedliche Satzdauer hinweisen. In beiden Fllen ist das Kyrie einer der lngsten Stze, fr den in beiden Messen der lange tropierte Kyrietext Deus creator omnium verwendet wird, so wie es fr Vortrge bei allen wichtigen und bedeutenden Doppelfesten im Ritus von Salisbury und anderen englischen Riten vorgeschrieben ist. ber die strenge, vom Cantus firmus diktierte Vorzeichnung legt der unbekannte Komponist glnzende
16

Die Melodie von Veterem hominem (aus dem Antiphonale Sarisburiense)

musikalische Linien; anfangs nur mit einer Stimme, doch dann taucht eine zweite an der Strukturoberflche auf und trgt eine Folge von Rhythmen und Klngen vor. Wie John Caldwell bemerkte, ist der Choral von Veterem hominem in ein gewagtes und phantasievolles melodisches Gewand der drei Begleitstimmen gekleidet, das zwar sehr fein gewebt ist, jedoch nichts von seiner Transparenz einbt. Das starke Selbstvertrauen, das der meisterhafte Komponist von Missa Veterem hominem an den Tag legt (und das auch in der Missa Caput sprbar ist), untersagt jene ruhiggelassene Vortragsweise, die heutzutage hufig auf englische Musik aus dem 15. Jahrhundert angewandt wird. Ein solcher Stil scheint fr einige krzere, beschaulichere Antiphone wie Sancta Maria virgo oder Mater ora filium passender und wird heutzutage fast berall fr die Musik von Dunstable verwendet. An vielen Stellen entwickelt der Komponist von Veterem hominem jedoch eine ContratenorLinie (die zweittiefste Stimme der modernen Partitur) mit belebten und synkopierten Passagen, die an Motetten aus dem vorhergehenden Jahrhundert, wie zum Beispiel Degentis vita, erinnern (das auf der Helios CDH55293 Die Romantiker des
17

Mittelalters zu hren ist). Solche Musik erfordert unbedingt eine schnelle und schwungvolle Vortragsweise. Whrend unserer Proben von Veterem hominem und der Missa Caput wurde der Wunsch in uns immer strker, die Musik in einen festlichen Klamauk umzuwandeln, schnell und laut, und jene Aufgaben auf uns zu vereinen, die eigentlich von vier Solisten htten getragen werden knnenvier Solisten, die stolz auf ihren knstlerischen Beitrag zu einem bedeutenden liturgischen Fest sind und whrend der Choralpassagen darauf brennen, aufzuspringen und eben diesen Beitrag zu leisten. Wie bei der Missa Caput entschieden wir uns auch in diesem Falle gegen eine liturgische Rekonstruktion, doch um den Wechsel von Polyphonie und Choral zu wahrender zweifelsohne unbedingt notwendig fr die Ausgewogenheit der polyphonen Stze ist, haben wir einige der schnsten und beschaulichsten Hymnen aus dem Salisbury-Repertoire als Kontraste eingefgt. Die ersten dreizehn Nummern dieser Aufnahme sind daher als ein zusammengehriges Ganzes gedacht. Das Programm wird mit einer Vertonung von typischer Knappheit aus dem Repertoire englischer Weihnachtslieder

des 15. Jahrhunderts, nmlich Jesu, fili virginis, fortgesetzt, gefolgt von drei monophonen Stcken, um den Zuhrer auf Monodie einzustimmen. Dies wird der Veterem hominemPolyphonie, so wollen wir hoffen, etwas von dem Reichtum und der Flle zurckgeben, in deren Genu ihr ursprngliches, zeitgenssisches Publikum gekommen wre. Die Antiphon Doleo super te, Davids Klagelied fr Jonathan, erinnert uns wieder daran, wie viele hervorragende Choraltexte die Salisbury-Bcher in sich bergenTexte, die als viel mehr als nur historische Kuriositten (die Chorle, auf die sich sptere und bekanntere polyphone Werke aufbauen) gewertet werden sollten, und die es zudem verdienen, als unabhngige Lieder von groer Schnheit gewrdigt und aufgefhrt zu werden. Doleo super te wurde einst groe Bewunderung zuteil, und von Theoretikern des Mittelalters wird sie aufgrund ihrer expressiven und einfachen Melodie gepriesen. Das Responsorium Gaude Maria virgo findet in zahlreichen mittelalterlichen Wundergeschichten Erwhnung, von denen viele zu den Lebzeiten des Veterem hominem-Komponisten in England erzhlt wurden. Das Responsorium wurde besonders wegen der hohen Lage seiner Vokalstimme bewundert, und eine der Wundergeschichten erzhlt, da es oft von einem jungen Mann mit einer herrlichen Stimme zu den Kanons einer

gewissen Kathedrale in Italien als virtuoses Sololied gesungen wurde. Es schliet sich nun eine Salisbury-Choralvertonung des Kyrie-Tropus Deus creator omnium an, dessen Worte erneut im Kyrie von Missa Veterem hominem verwendet werden. Dieser lange tropierte Text oder Prosa, der auch als das Kyrie von Missa Caput eingesetzt wird, stellt den durchschlagendsten Beweis dafr dar, da diese Meisterwerke englischer, und nicht kontinental-europischer Herkunft sind. Ein Kommentar zu dieser Ausgabe Die hier aufgenommene Auffhrung sttzt sich auf die Missa Veterem hominem-Edition von Margaret Bent, aus FifteenthCentury Liturgical Music, 11, Four Anonymous Masses (Liturgische Musik des 15. Jahrhunderts, 11, Vier unbekannte Messen), Frhe englische Kirchenmusik, 22 (London, 1979). Ich mchte Dr. Bent meinen Dank fr die Errterung einiger Aspekte aussprechen. Die Aufnahme weicht nur in folgender Hinsicht von der Edition ab: Alle Stimmen sind durchgehend mit Text belegt, und es wurden gelegentliche Vernderungen der Editionen vorgenommen, von denen keine grundstzlich ist, auer da sie ein Spiegelbild dessen sind, was nach Ansicht der an dieser Aufnahme beteiligten Musiker der Stimme und dem Ohr am meisten schmeichelt.
ANDREW KIRKMAN und CHRISTOPHER PAGE 1997
bersetzung MANUELA HBNER

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The Spirits of England and France GOTHIC VOICES CHRISTOPHER PAGE director
Also available Volume 1 Music of the later Middle Ages for Court and Church Compact Disc CDH55281 Unalloyed pleasure Once again a superb recording that stimulates, that charms (Gramophone) Entente cordiale at its best. Glorious music (BBC Music Magazine) Unqualified rapture (American Record Guide) Beautiful performances of gorgeous, accessible music. Marvellous all the way. All should rush and buy (Classic CD) Volume 2 Songs of the trouvres Compact Disc CDH55282 I found myself extraordinarily moved this is a CD that grabs you and hangs on to the end (Early Music Review) Radiantly beautiful music the whole CD is one of unalloyed delight (Classic CD) This is quite simply the best recording ever of the trouvere literature (American Record Guide) Outstanding (BBC Music Magazine) Volume 3 Binchois and his contemporaries Compact Disc CDH55283 Deeply moving and magical (Gramophone) Another compelling release in this seriesup to Gothic Voices usual standard (BBC Music Magazine) Volume 4 Missa Caput and the story of the Salve regina Compact Disc CDH55284 A very special achievement Music of the very highest order, seldom recorded. Essential listening! (Gramophone) A fascinating disc with superbly informative and enticing notes by Christopher Page (BBC Music Magazine)

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CDH55285

The Spirits of England and France 5


Missa Veterem hominem
and other fifteenth-century English music
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 bl bm bn bo bp bq br bs bt bu
Jesu, fili virginis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . a b c Doleo super te . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . e Gaude Maria virgo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . b Deus creator omnium . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . d Kyrie Deus creator omnium Missa Veterem hominem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . a b c e Gloria Missa Veterem hominem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . a b c e Jesu salvator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . d Credo Missa Veterem hominem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . a b c e A solis ortus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . d Sanctus and Benedictus Missa Veterem hominem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . a b c e Salvator mundi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . d Agnus Dei Missa Veterem hominem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . a b c e Christe, qui lux es . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . d To many a well . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . c d e Sancta Maria virgo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . b c d Mater ora filium . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . a c f Ave maris stella . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . f JOHN DUNSTABLE (c13901453) Beata mater . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . a c f Pange lingua . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . d
[244] [136] [304] [255] [533] [450] [218] [449] [330] [528] [238] [455] [207] [522] [133] [123] [228] [249] [354]

GOTHIC VOICES

CATHERINE KING (a) alto STEVEN HARROLD (b) JULIAN PODGER (c) LEIGH NIXON (d) tenor STEPHEN CHARLESWORTH (e) DONALD GREIG (f) baritone

CHRISTOPHER PAGE director

NOTES EN FRANAIS + MIT DEUTSCHEM KOMMENTAR

HELIOS CDH55285

A surpassingly lovely collection of music to be heard and marveled at. The singing is incredibly moving. Buy it (Fanfare, USA)

CDH55285
Duration 65'23

THE SPIRITS OF ENGLAND AND FRANCE 5 GOTHIC VOICES . CHRISTOPHER PAGE

The Spirits of England and France 5


Missa Veterem hominem
An anonymous English Mass-setting from c1440 and other fifteenth-century English music
1 3 5 6 8 bl bm bn bo
Jesu, fili virginis [244] 2 Doleo super te [136] Gaude Maria virgo [304] 4 Deus creator omnium [255] Kyrie Deus creator omnium Missa Veterem hominem [533] Gloria Missa Veterem hominem [450] 7 Jesu salvator [218] Credo Missa Veterem hominem [449] 9 A solis ortus [330] Sanctus and Benedictus Missa Veterem hominem [528] Salvator mundi [238] Agnus Dei Missa Veterem hominem [455] Christe, qui lux es [207]

THE SPIRITS OF ENGLAND AND FRANCE 5 GOTHIC VOICES . CHRISTOPHER PAGE

A HYPERION RECORDING

bp To many a well [522] bq Sancta Maria virgo [133] br Mater ora filium [123] bs Ave maris stella [228] bt JOHN DUNSTABLE Beata mater [249] bu Pange lingua

DDD

[354]

MADE IN FRANCE

GOTHIC VOICES CHRISTOPHER PAGE director

Recorded on 1317 July 1996 Recording Engineer TONY FAULKNER Recording Producer MARTIN COMPTON Executive Producers JOANNA GAMBLE, NICK FLOWER P Hyperion Records Limited, London, 1996 C Hyperion Records Limited, London, 2011 (Originally issued on Hyperion CDA66919) Front illustration: Simeon, from a fifteenth-century Book of Hours

HELIOS CDH55285

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