Music, Liturgy, and Confraternity Devotions in Paris and Tournai, 1300-1550 (Hardcover) (ISBN-13: 9781580469968)

The first study focusing on the composition of new plainchant in northern-French confraternities for masses and offices in honor of saints thought to have healing powers

Starting in the fourteenth century, northern France saw the rise of confraternities and other lay communities of men and women, organized around trades and religious devotions dedicated to specific patron saints. The composition of new plainchant for masses and offices in honor of saints thought to have healing powers occupied an important place in the devotional landscape of the region.

Sarah Ann Long's deeply researched new book highlights the decentralized nature of religious and spiritual authority from 1300-1550, which allowed confraternities to cultivate liturgical practices heavily influenced by popular devotional literature. It challenges pre-conceived notions of the power of the Catholic Church at that time, and the extent to which religious devotions were regulated and standardized. The resulting conclusion is that confraternity devotions occupied a liminal space that provided a certain amount of musical freedom. Examining musical culture at the intersection of the medieval and early modern eras, this work explores such subjects as manuscript production and early music printing; and it investigates not only plainchant, but a broad range of musical styles from the fourteenth through the sixteenth centuries. These include polyphonic embellishments of chant written by some of the most famous composers of the era, which were performed at the French, Burgundian, and Papal Courts.

Author: Sarah Ann Long
ISBN-10: 1580469965
ISBN-13: 9781580469968
Publisher: University of Rochester Press
Language: English
Published: 01/15/2021
Pages: 376
Format: Hardcover
Weight: 1.48lbs
Size: 9.00h x 6.00w x 0.88d