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Work

Antoine Busnois Composer

Gaude celestis domina (a4)   

Performances: 1
Tracks: 1
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Musicology:
  • Gaude celestis domina (a4)
    Genre: Motet
    Pr. Instrument: Voice
The theorist and composer Johannes Tinctoris praised the literate "Latinity" of Antoine Busnois, but professed amazement that such a fine composer could commit certain errors of notational practice. His pedantic bit of criticism, from a treatise written in 1472 - 73, also contained a musical example of the superfluous notation. In the twentieth century, this criticism of the famous composer precipitated a musicological detective search for the lost motet cited in the example. A misreading of Tinctoris' text led to the belief that the lost piece was called "Animadvertere," but musicologist Rob Wegman discovered that the chided motet is actually Gaude coelestis Domina, which had been preserved anonymously in a manuscript for the Sistine Chapel in Rome, but which may now be reattributed to Busnois.

The motet is in four parts; the tenor displays an obvious cantus firmus, which also migrates to other voices, especially when the tenor is silent. The strophic text jubilantly calls to the Blessed Virgin; though unidentified, a Marian liturgical context for the hymn—perhaps even the feast of the Seven Joys of the Virgin, as seven full strophes begin with the word "Rejoice"—seems clearly intended. The cantus firmus supports the four-line text stanzas with four simple hymnic lines, in the ABB'A pattern. The tenor voice sings this melody three times through: once in the first section of five text stanzas, once with faster note-values in the second section of two and a half, and once in the motet's peroration, a final stanza in triple meter asking the Virgin to pray to her Son. However, this structure proves less important to the composition's success than Busnois' control over textural change, and the drive from musical phrase to musical phrase. The opening stanza, for instance, is set to a series of four duets, each containing a cantus firmus paraphrase. This is followed by a dramatic section of full four-voiced texture with parallel motion in the outer voices and long-note cantus firmus in the tenor. Another duet section, this one highly imitative, also leads to a full texture. Despite his criticism, Tinctoris should have found much in Gaude coelestis Domina to delight him.

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