PRoMs - The Production and Reading of Music Sources

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

Manuscript: Perugia, Italy, Biblioteca Comunale Augusta, MS 431 (G.20)

Manuscript type: choirbook

RISM siglum: I-PEc 431

DIAMM Source Key: 1455

Image repositories: Internet Culturale

Folio(s): All folios

Date: 1480-90

1480-90, probably c. 1485 (Atlas 1981c), with additions during mid 16th century.

Location of origin: Naples, Italy

Provenance

1480-90, probably c. 1485 (Atlas 1981c), with additions during mid 16th century. Main corpus copied in Naples or vicinity, possibly at Benedictine monastery of Sts. Severino and Sossio. Owned in 1556 by the merchant, politician, and amateur musician Raffaele Sozi (1529-89), of Perugia (inscription on new f. 31: "YHS MARIA. A° DI M.D.LVI. … RAPHAEL SOCIUS"); Sozi added several short pieces and rudimentary notes on music theory and notation.

Artists/Scribes

Person: Sozi, Raffaele
Person type: scribe
Note: Main corpus copied by six or seven scribes; two other scribes (including Raffaele Sozi) made additions during 16th century.

Basis for description: high-quality image

Perugia, Italy, Biblioteca Comunale Augusta, MS 431 (G.20), All folios

Physical description

Material: paper

Number of leaves: i + 164 + i

Format: upright

Page dimensions: 213 x 143

Quire structure: Text version

Non-musical texts: Inscription on new f. 31: "YHS MARIA. A° DI M.D.LVI. … RAPHAEL SOCIUS".

Other devices: 1. Original red ink foliation verso top centre, 6-7 and 13-164 (= ff. 1-5 and 8-12 now missing; last 9 folios and one folio between ff. 35/36 unnumbered).
2. Modern pencil foliation recto top right, 1-26, 26bis-164 (including rear endpaper)

Page details (zoom):

Preparation and Copying

All folios

Preparation

Disposition of Voice Parts Key

Pricking none visible
Ruled grid always,
Vertical bounding lines only, no text lines visible
Ruling pattern highly regular
often drawn with little care
Staves omitted from grid never
Incomplete staves never
Medium and colour of grid Frequency Folios Note
hard point or lead point always
Colour of staves Frequency Folios Note
black often
brown often
Ruling medium Frequency Folios Note
single rastrum always sometimes lines traced freehand over ruled staves.
Indentation for initials Frequency Folios Note
none always music and text indented over ruled staves to accommodate initials
Extra space between voice parts Frequency Folios Note
empty ruled staves on grid often
Space provided for separate text Frequency Folios Note
not in dedicated space often on empty staves between or below music
Adhoc adaptation Frequency Folios Note
made for complete additional staves rarely
notation extended into margin often
notation and staves extended into margin sometimes
partial additional staves occasionally
staveline added occasionally

Copying of text and music

Language(s) French, Italian, Latin, Spanish
Order of Copying music first
always
Music
Colour(s) of notation black brown
Type(s) of notation void mensural
Type of notation note rhomboid-shaped or teardrop-shaped notation, variable depending on scribe
Monophonic notation present
chant intonations, rarely
Level of calligraphy fair
Level of calligraphy note variable according to scribe
Non verbal performance instructions Folios Note
signes-de-renvoi as simple lines, pointing hands, or repetition of voice designation
end symbol 60v-83r elaborated and decorated final barline
Later changes Folios
canonic or mensural exercises, remarks on mensural/notational theory 27r, 31r, 36r, 136v-137r, 145v-146r, 154v-156r, 160v-161r, 163v
Added short pieces or voices added to existing pieces, by later hand (R. Sozi) 79r, 110v-11r, 115r, 116r, 133v-134r
Text
Types of script cursive
Types of script note depending on scribe, with textura elements
Level of calligraphy fair,
variable according to scribe
Colour(s) of text black brown
Multiple texts yes
multiple strophes, rarely
Abbreviations fairly few
Non underlaid vocal text additional
additional strophes between or below notated music on empty staves
Liminary text Voice-names, with initials (except D); composer ascriptions, sometimes (often only initials)

Decoration

Level of Decoration fair
Decoration initial type Frequency Folios Initial type(s) Size position Description Discrepancies
penned initials normally calligraphic , calligraphic with decoration, calligraphic with grotesque heads, flourished, littera notabilior for every voice-part, in D relating to sung text, in other voices to voice-name. Varying levels of calligraphy. In lower voices sometimes only voice designation with embellished first letter
Other decoration frequency Folios Other decoration type(s) Size position Description Discrepancies
sometimes 60v-83r embellished final barline