Texture in Secular Medieval Music
After reading and listening, please make sure to look at the discussion questions at the end and post your responses to them as comments (at least one sentence per question) on this discussion post. Remember that your recitation grade is partly determined by your participation in these discussion posts as well as class attendance.
While polyphony may have originated in the elaboration of plainchant in a sacred context, by the late Medieval period, it had migrated into the realm of secular music as well. One of the main genres of secular polyphony in the Medieval period was the French chanson, which literally means “song.” While the term has been used in a general sense to refer to many types of songs in French, including troubadour and trouvère songs, in our case, we will examine the types of polyphonic chansons in the late Medieval period which used a particular set of poetic forms. These poetic types were known as the formes fixes which were common in the 14th and 15th centuries in France. The “fixed” part of these forms indicates that the poetic structure was always the same, although the ways in which composers set these poems to music varied. The types of formes fixes include the rondeau, the ballade, and the virelai. We will listen to some examples of these in this class. You do not need to know the difference between these three. However, for each example, I will indicate in the text what the form of the poem is, since that does affect how the music works.
Ballade
Our first example is a ballade. Ballade poetry typically included three stanzas each ending with the same refrain, usually a single poetic line. As with the example of a troubadour song by Comtessa de Dia (“A chantar”), the music for a ballade is often strophic, with the same music for each stanza, and within each stanza a bar form is used. In the text below for our example, you will see eight lines per stanza. The music will have an AAB form for each stanza where A sets lines 1–2 and 3–4, while B sets lines 5–8 (including the one line refrain in line 8). Because of this, the historical connection to the troubadour songs is clear.
A prolific composer of chansons, Machaut added some notable innovations to the genre. These include the use of elaborate melismas and extending the B section to give more prominence to the refrain. In addition, many of his chansons could be performed with one singer on the top line with instruments playing the rest of the parts. Much instrumental music of this period was actually based on vocal music.
Our example is Machaut’s chanson “Dame, de qui toute ma joie vient.” It forms a part of a longer narrative poem called Le remède de Fortune (“The Cure of Ill Fortune”) written sometime in the 1340s. Some parts of this long poem were set to music as individual chansons. The basic story of the longer poem is that the speaker of the poem is asked by his lady if the poem she has found was written by him. He flees, presumably in embarrassment; later, in a garden, the personification of Hope teaches him to be a good lover. Finally, he returns to his lady.
See this image of the ballade from a manuscript copy of Le remède de Fortune. As with Machaut’s motet last class, notice how there are indications of specific rhythms with the use of different shapes of noteheads and the use of stems on some notes. This manuscript page contains only two of the four parts: the superius (top part) starts on the first staff, while the tenor begins in the middle of the fifth staff.
Because of the four vocal parts and the proliferation of melismas in each voice, the words can be difficult to understand. Furthermore, it is unclear whether the emotion of the poem is clearly reflected in the music or if that was even Machaut’s intention at all. But nonetheless, I encourage you to read the translation carefully and listen to the piece a few times to decide for yourselves whether the music reflects the meaning of the text.
Guillaume de Machaut, “Dame, de qui toute ma joie vient,” chanson ballade, (c. 1340s)
Recording performed by Liber unUsualis. [Listen on YouTube]
Translation (source unknown):
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Dame, de qui toute ma joie vient, Je ne vous puis trop amer, ne chierir, N’assés loër, si com il apartient, Servir, doubter, honnourer, n’obeïr; Car le gracieus espoir, Douce dame, que j’ay de vous vëoir, Me fait cent fois plus de bien et de joie, Qu’en cent mille ans desservir ne porroie. |
Lady, source of all my joy, I can never love or cherish you too much, Or praise you as much as you deserve, Or serve, respect, honor, and obey you. For the gracious hope, Sweet lady, I have of seeing you, Gives me a hundred times more joy and boon Than I could deserve in a hundred thousand years. |
A
A
B
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Cils dous espoirs en vie me soustient Et me norrist en amoureus desir, Et dedens moy met tout ce qui couvient Pour conforter mon cuer et resjoïr; N’il ne s’en part main ne soir, Einsois me fait doucement recevoir Plus des dous biens qu’Amours aus siens ottroie, Qu’en cent mille ans desservir ne porroie. |
These sweet hopes sustain me in my life And feed me with love’s desire, And place within me all that helps To comfort my heart and make it joyful; Nor does it leave me morning or night, And so makes me sweetly receive More of the sweet benefits which Love gives her own, Than I could deserve in a hundred thousand years. |
A
A
B
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Et quant Espoir que en mon cuer se tient Fait dedens moy si grant joie venir, Lonteins de vous, ma dame, s’il avient Que vo biauté voie que moult desir, Ma joie, si com j’espoir, Ymaginer, penser, ne concevoir Ne porroit nuls, car trop plus en aroie, Qu’en cent mille and desservir ne porroie. |
And since Hope which maintains itself in my heart Makes such great joy arrive within me When far from you, my lady, if it should happen That I should see your beauty which I much desire, My joy, as I hope, no man could Imagine, understand or conceive For I would have far more Than I could deserve in a hundred thousand years. |
A
A
B
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Virelai
Another of the formes fixes, the virelai is also descended from troubadour songs. Where the ballade typically follows the bar form within each stanza, the virelai has a different form: ABBA. However, like most chansons, it is strophic in terms of the relationships of the individual stanzas. In addition, there is a refrain, like the ballade, but in this case it is more substantial and generally comprises the first A of the ABBA form for each stanza.
Machaut also composed in the virelai type as well as the ballade. Our example is his chanson “Douce Dame Jolie.” Notably, this chanson is not polyphony but is actually monophonic. Since the origins of the chanson lie in monophonic troubadour song, there were still in the 14th century some chansons which were monophonic. It is important to recognize that polyphony did not completely replace monophony as an available texture for composers. Rather, it added more possibilities. As we saw with organum, parts of the plainchant would be sung monophonically after the polyphonic organum section. Similarly, in Machaut’s mass setting, the first line of the Gloria text is sung monophonically. The two textures continued to coexist for centuries.
“Douce Dame Jolie” is a typical virelai in poetic structure. It begins with a refrain, set to the A melody. Then the next section is sung to the B melody twice, and finally, the A melody returns but with different words than the refrain. Hence, ABBA. In the text below, the refrain is in italics, while each ABBA structure is separated into boxes. The column on the right indicates which part of the form applies to which text. Like the ballade, there are three stanzas and then the refrain is repeated one last time at the end.
In the recording we will listen to, you will hear an interesting interpretation of this performance. The refrain (A) is sung by a group of singers, while a soloist sings the other parts (BBA) of each stanza. Throughout, they are accompanied by instruments including string instruments, flutes, and percussion. As with the troubadour songs and the other chanson example, there is evidence that instruments were sometimes used in the performance of these songs, especially the monophonic ones, although those indications were never written down. See below a partial image of a manuscript copy of this chanson. Note that it only gives the monophonic melody and the text. All other sounds such as instruments would not be indicated in written copies but would be understood by convention to be used.
Guillaume de Machaut, “Douce Dame Jolie,” chanson virelai, 14th century
Recording performed by the Early Music Consort of London, directed by David Munrow. [Listen on YouTube]
As you read the poem and listen to the music, think once again about whether the music reflects the emotion and meaning of the poem. Note that the refrain is given in italics while the rest of each verse is in regular print. The right hand column indicates which part of the melody (A or B) is sung for which lines of text.
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Douce dame jolie, Pour dieu ne pensés mie Que nulle ait signorie Seur moy fors vous seulement. Qu’adès sans tricherie Chierie Vous ay et humblement Tous les jours de ma vie Servie Sans villain pensement. Helas! et je mendie D’esperance et d’aïe; Dont ma joie est fenie, Se pité ne vous en prent. |
Sweet, lovely lady, For God’s sake, do not think That anyone has sovereignty Over my heart, but you alone. For always, without treachery, Cherished Have I you, and humbly All the days of my life, Served, Without base thoughts. Alas, I am left begging For hope and relief; For my joy is at its end Without your compassion. |
A (Refrain)
B
B
A
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Douce dame jolie, Pour dieu ne pensés mie Que nulle ait signorie Seur moy fors vous seulement. Mais vo douce maistrie Maistrie Mon cuer si durement Qu’elle le contralie Et lie En amour tellement, Qu’il n’a de rien envie Fors d’estre en vo baillie; Et se ne li ottrie Vos cuers nul aligement. |
Sweet, lovely lady, For God’s sake, do not think That anyone has sovereignty Over my heart, but you alone. But your sweet mastery Masters My heart so harshly, Tormenting it And binding In unbearable love, So that it desires nothing But to be in your power. And still, your own heart Renders it no relief. |
A (Refrain)
B
B
A
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Douce dame jolie, Pour dieu ne pensés mie Que nulle ait signorie Seur moy fors vous seulement. Et quant ma maladie Garie Ne sera nullement Sans vous, douce anemie, Qui lie Estes de mon tourment. A jointes mains deprie Vo cuer, puis qu’il m’oublie, Que temprement m’ocie, Car trop langui longuement. |
Sweet, lovely lady, For God’s sake, do not think That anyone has sovereignty Over my heart, but you alone. And since my malady Healed Will never be Without you, Sweet Enemy, Who takes Delight in my torment, With clasped hands I beseech Your heart, that forgets me, That it mercifully kill me For too long have I languished. |
A (Refrain)
B
B
A
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Douce dame jolie, Pour dieu ne pensés mie Que nulle ait signorie Seur moy fors vous seulement. |
Sweet, lovely lady, For God’s sake, do not think That anyone has sovereignty Over my heart, but you alone. |
A (Refrain)
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Final Thoughts
These two examples are only a glimpse at secular songs in the late Medieval period. Besides the virelai and ballade, there was also the rondeau type of chanson which was popular. Furthermore, secular songs were played in other places besides France. For instance, in Italy, the ballata was popular (more closely related to the virelai than the ballade, despite the name). The 14th century in Italy also saw the beginnings of the madrigal genre, to which we will return in the coming weeks. There were many secular songs in Germany that also used bar form, while in Spain, the cantiga, the canción, and the villancico were all different musico-poetic types. While music history surveys tend to focus on the French formes fixes, keep in mind that the rest of Europe also engaged in other genres while applying polyphony to secular music.
Discussion Questions
- How do these chanson examples compare to the sacred polyphony from lecture 2 and section 2a? Think about similarities and differences both musically and in terms of emotion/mood or overall sound.
- Do you find that these examples reflect the meaning/emotion of the text in the music? Why or why not?
- These examples disprove the common notion of musical progression or evolution from simple to more complex textures, since here monophony and polyphony coexist. Does this change your perception or expectation of Medieval music? Why or why not?
