PRoMs - The Production and Reading of Music Sources

Mise-en-page in manuscripts and printed books containing polyphonic music, 1480—1530

Manuscript: London, Great Britain, British Library, MS Additional 5465

Manuscript type: choirbook

RISM siglum: GB-Lbl Add. 5465

DIAMM Source Key: 1237

Image repositories: DIAMM

Folio(s): All folios

Date: c. 1500

C. 1500 (Stevens 1961), perhaps the early months of 1502 (Bowers 1995); organ piece is later addition (c. 1540?).

Location of origin: London, Great Britain ; Windsor, Great Britain

Provenance

Probably copied in London or Windsor; repertory apparently intended for use at court of King Henry VII (MB). Coat of arms and inscriptions on f. 1 suggest manuscript may be connected with Robert Fayrfax, but the composer's precise role in its preparation has not yet been determined. In 1618, manuscript was in the possession of Charles Fairfax (relationship to Robert Fayrfax unknown). Owned in 18th century by Ralph Thoresby, of Leeds; later owned by John White, of Newgate Street, London, Purchased by British Museum at a J. Jackson sale in 1794.

Artists/Scribes

Person: Anonymous, Anonymous
Person type: scribe

Bibliography

Fehr 1901; MGG1, VIII, 1176, XIII, 939; Stevens 1952, I, 219-21, 482-3, II, 37-230, 466-96; Stevens 1961, 3ff, 351-385; Bent/Bent/Trowell 1970, xii, xiii, xviii, xv, xvii, 110, xxvi; Fallows 1976; Norton-Smith 1979; Bowers 1995.

Basis for description: original

London, Great Britain, British Library, MS Additional 5465, All folios

Physical description

Material: parchment and paper (mixed)

Number of leaves: vi + 124 + xi

Format: upright

Page dimensions: 297 x 215

Quire structure: Text version

Index / Table of Contents: No index, except for note on f. 1r listing (with one error) piece numbers of Fayrfax works in manuscript.

Colophon: f. 1r: 'E libris Rad. Thoresby Leodiensis'; 'Robertus Fayrfax Doctor in Musicus iacet sepultus in ecclesia monasteriali Sancti Albani' (with Fayrfax's crest)

Other devices: 1. Original numbering of pieces in red ink, i-li (organ piece not numbered; #vii and #xvii now missing).
2. Two systems of modern pencil foliation: first system, 1-145 (crossed out by hand which added second system), includes some modern flyleaves and all inserted paper folios; second system, 1-124, includes only original folios.

Page details (zoom):

Preparation and Copying

All folios

Preparation

Disposition of Voice Parts Key

Pricking normally,
often visible in the upper and lower margins for the justification lines
Ruled grid always,
singe line to left and right; top line of top stave all across the page as frame-line; normally corresponding line across the bottom of the page (below stave and text) as well
Ruling pattern highly irregular
Staves omitted from grid often
Incomplete staves never,
any incomplete staves are added during the copying of the music (i.e. 'partial additional staves')
Medium and colour of grid Frequency Folios Note
brown ink always same ink as used for stave-ruling
Colour of staves Frequency Folios Note
brown always
Ruling medium Frequency Folios Note
straightedge always
Indentation for initials Frequency Folios Note
single often first stave of each voice part, for the first opening of each song
none often No indentation after the first opening of each song.
Extra space between voice parts Frequency Folios Note
empty ruled staves on grid occasionally
variable space, not on grid normally
Space provided for separate text Frequency Folios Note
no separate text always
Adhoc adaptation Frequency Folios Note
partial additional staves rarely 34r, 36r, 59v, 66r, 76r, 82v, 96r, 105r, 109v
made for complete additional staves rarely 110r, 111r, 112r, 113r, 114r, 115r
notation extended into margin often
notation and staves extended into margin sometimes
staveline added sometimes Often the extra stave line spans the full stave, making it a six-line stave, e.g. 5r, 6r-v, 23v, 32v-33r, etc.

Copying of text and music

Language(s) English
Order of Copying mixed
always
Presence/absence of text Voice part Frequency Folios Note
fully texted with one text all voice parts always
Music
Colour(s) of notation black red
Type(s) of notation full mensural
Type of notation note round noteheads
Monophonic notation absent
Level of calligraphy fair
Non verbal performance instructions Folios Note
signes-de-renvoi 109v pair of matching symbols
signa congruentiae present
end symbol double or triple barline, combined with decorative long
Later changes Folios
extra stave with notation added, seemingly unrelated to song 5v
organ piece added on f. 1r (c. 1540?) 2r
Text
Types of script cursive (Anglicana)
Level of calligraphy fair
Colour(s) of text black red
red used for some liminary text (e.g. composer attributions, 'verte', 'ut supra')
Multiple texts no
Text repetitions fairly many
Abbreviations few
Non underlaid vocal text none
Liminary text Composer attributions in lower margin (two-voice songs) or between voices (songs with three or more voices) on the verso or recto. 'verte (folium)', 'ut supra', 'secunda pars', 'bassus ad placitum'

Decoration

Level of Decoration fair
Decoration initial type Frequency Folios Initial type(s) Size position Description Discrepancies
penned initials rarely 118v-119r plain initials start of Discantus and Bassus, one stave high, staves and notation indented very simple initials drawn in black ink
initials planned rarely 118v, 122v one stave high 118v: notation indented on stave 122v: no indentation cue letter visible, first letter missing
painted initials normally flourished, plain initials at the start of each voice at the start of each song, one stave high, stave and notation indented simple blue initials slightly decorative in form, with red flourishing crest of Fayrfax found in M initial (26v) drawn in dark brown ink over the red flourishing (crest also drawn on f. 1r)
Other decoration frequency Folios Other decoration type(s) Size position Description Discrepancies
normally decorative final long In each voice at the end of each song 'checkerboard' long - expanded vertically and horizontally; touched with red