PRoMs - The Production and Reading of Music Sources

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

Manuscript: Florence, Italy, Conservatorio di Musica Luigi Cherubini, MS Basevi 2439

Manuscript type: chansonnier

RISM siglum: I-Fc 2439

DIAMM Source Key: 243

Image repositories: Internet Culturale

Folio(s): All folios

Date: c. 1505-10

Location of origin: Flanders

Provenance

1) An unknown member of the Agostini Ciardi family of Siena (heraldic arms, ff. 1v, 51v). 2) Abramo Basevi (d. 1885). 3) Conservatorio di Musica di Luigi Cherubini, Florence.

Artists/Scribes

Person: Anonymous, Anonymous
Person type: artist

Person: Scribe B, (member of Habsburg-Burgundian 'Alamire' workshop (Mechelen, Belgium))
Person type: scribe
Location of origin: Flanders

Bibliography

Kellman 1958, 18; Staehelin 1967; Kellman 1976, 209, 211; Census-Catalogue, I, 234, IV, 376; Meconi 1990/1, 1990/2, 1991; Kellman 1999, no. 7.

Basis for description: original

Florence, Italy, Conservatorio di Musica Luigi Cherubini, MS Basevi 2439, All folios

Physical description

Material: parchment

Number of leaves: iv + 102 + i

Format: oblong

Page dimensions: 168 x 240

Quire structure: Text version

Index / Table of Contents: 1. Alphabetical index, original or near-contemporary, IVr-v.
2. Summary of contents, modern, Iir-IIIr

Other devices: 1. original ink foliation, recto top right, I-CI

Page details (zoom):

Preparation and Copying

All folios

Preparation

Disposition of Voice Parts Key

Pricking always,
top and bottom of vertical bounding lines, none visible for staves (which are ruled at irregular intervals)
Ruled grid always,
single vertical bounding lines; no text lines
Ruling pattern fairly regular
Staves omitted from grid rarely
Incomplete staves never
Medium and colour of grid Frequency Folios Note
lead point always
Colour of staves Frequency Folios Note
black always
Ruling medium Frequency Folios Note
single rastrum always
Indentation for initials Frequency Folios Note
quadruple rarely 1v
triple rarely 50v
double normally staves 1-2 and 4-5, usually only about 1 cm for upright voice designations or D initial which is mostly in the margin. c. 30 mm for painted initials, sometimes more. Carefully planned with knowledge of repertoire
Extra space between voice parts Frequency Folios Note
empty ruled staves on grid occasionally
Space provided for separate text Frequency Folios Note
no separate text never
Adhoc adaptation Frequency Folios Note
made for complete additional staves rarely 47v, 48r
notation and staves extended into margin rarely 48r

Copying of text and music

Language(s) Dutch, French, Latin
Higlighting none
Order of Copying music first
always
Presence/absence of text Voice part Frequency Folios Note
fully texted with one text all voice parts occasionally
fully texted with two or more texts discantus rarely 1v
provided with single incipit all except discantus often
provided with single incipit all voice parts often
untexted tenor rarely 9v
Music
Colour(s) of notation black
Type(s) of notation void mensural
Type of notation note teardrop shaped
Monophonic notation absent
Level of calligraphy high
Non verbal performance instructions Folios Note
repeat signs double bar flanked by two dots to each side
signes-de-renvoi sketchy symbols: simple stars (e.g. 19v-20r), two arrows (e.g. 61v-62r), simple cross (e.g. 64v-65r), mainly in black ink; pictorial symbols: four diamond shapes with a vertical line (e.g. 71v-72r), in black ink.
Text 1
Types of script cursive (bastarda)
Level of calligraphy high
Colour(s) of text black red
Multiple texts yes
Text repetitions few
Abbreviations few
Non underlaid vocal text none
Liminary text composers' names
Text 2
Types of script display script
Types of script size position voice names and 'residuum' rubrics
Level of calligraphy high
Colour(s) of text black red

Decoration

Level of Decoration very high
Decoration miniature frequency Folios Size position Description Discrepancies
rarely 1v one miniature, four staves high, at the beginning of the discantus and the tenor, at the beginning of the manuscript with mainly four part music (f. 1v) heraldic arms, crested with a helmet and a she-wolf suckling Romulus and Remus
rarely 49v one miniature, three staves high, at the beginning of the discantus, at the beginning of three part music (f. 49v) field with a woman looking at an object in the sky identified as a comet surrounded by four stars (Burbure 1882, 7), with a she-wolf suckling Romulus and Remus in the foreground
Decoration initial type Frequency Folios Initial type(s) Size position Description Discrepancies
initials planned sometimes
painted initials occasionally 1v, 2r decorated at the beginning of major openings (ff. 1v-2r) acanthus initials on coloured grounds or set against parchment, partly decorated with a monkey playing bagpipe, a bird and a butterfly (f. 1v), flowers and strawberries (f. 2r)
painted initials rarely 51v zoomorphic initial beginning of discantus one zoomorphic initial built of a dragon (f. 51v)
penned initials occasionally calligraphic , plain initials at the beginning of discantus plain in red ink; calligraphic (ff. 44v, 46v, 47r)
painted initials rarely 50v decorated at the beginning of major opening (ff. 50r-51r) acanthus initials on coloured grounds or set against parchment, partly decorated with monkeys, heraldic arms (f. 50v)
painted initials rarely 72v decorated beginning of discantus acanthus initials on coloured grounds or set against parchment, partly decorated with a putto (f. 72v)
painted initials occasionally 1v, 2r, 3v, 4v, 5v, 7v, 8v, 50r, 50v, 51r, 51v, 66v, 67v, 68v, 70v, 71v, 72v, 73v, 82v, 83v, 84v, 85v, 87v decorated at the beginning of the discantus acanthus initials on coloured grounds or set against parchment