Leuven
Leuven, Alamire Foundation, ms. 1 (formerly Manuscript without shelf number).
Facsimile – in David J. Burn, Leuven Chansonnier. Facsimile & Study/Studie (Leuven Library of Music in Facsimile, vol. 1), Leuven 2017, and online at https://idemdatabase.org/item/b-af-ms-1.
Modern editions – online at the present site; a different online edition by Clemens Goldberg is found at the Goldberg Stiftung.
Scholarly literature (selection) – Burn 2017; Fitch 2020; Gilbert 2020; Kolb 2020; Schmidt 2020; Fallows 2021; Harris 2021; Meconi 2021; Alden 2024; Christoffersen 2024.
Description
Small parchment chansonnier, c. 12 x 8,5 cm, 95 folios (of original 96) and 2 flyleaves glued to the binding, original binding of brocade fabric on cardboard, coats-of-arms have later been painted on the edges of the leaves, 13 fascicles, original foliation in Roman minuscule numbers entered by Hands A and B starting at the second fascicle’s first opening (ff. 2-80, number 68 was skipped), pages ruled in black ink with six staves per page, music and texts in black ink, decorated initials.
The original contents are 49 chansons, all copied without any composer ascriptions, nos. 1-43 by the main scribe, nos. 44-49 by the second scribe, no. 50 was later added by Hand C (late 15th century).
Fascicle structure (see also the extended List of contents) – 13 fascicles (gatherings), most consist of four bifolios (quaternions) and two of two bifolios; one folio has been cut out between f. 90 and f. 91:
Fasc. 1, ff. 0a-0dv – two bifolios; index; Hand A and Hand B
Fasc. 2, ff. 1-8v – Hand A
Fasc. 3, ff. 9-16v
Fasc. 4, ff. 17-24v
Fasc. 5, ff. 25-28v – two bifolios
Fasc. 6, ff. 29-36v
Fasc. 7, ff. 37-44v
Fasc. 8, ff. 45-52v
Fasc. 9, ff. 53-60v
Fasc. 10, ff. 61-69v
Fasc. 11, ff. 70-77v – Hand B takes over on f. 72v
Fasc. 12, ff. 78-85v – the work of Hand B ends f. 80; Hand C adds one song on ff. 80v-81; ff. 81v-92v contain empty staves
Fasc. 13, ff. 86-92v – one folio cut out between f. 90 and f. 91
Decoration
All pages with music copied by Hands A an B have illuminated initials. The initials are formed as letters and decorations painted in alternating gold and silver on backgrounds coloured red, purple, blue and green (cf. fig. 1). They were painted after Hands A and B had finished their work. On the verso side of the front flyleaf, a coat-of-arms has been added. According to Burn 2017 it may have belonged to a member of the noble Savoy family.
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Figure 1, Leuven f. 4
Genesis
The very small chansonnier was made by the main scribe for a customer. He started with twelve quaternions of good quality parchment. Two bifolios were set aside for the index pages, while the remainder was ruled with music staves in one operation; this resulted in the 13 fascicles. The main scribe started by copying one or more exemplars containing some of the best-known songs from the years around 1470 mixed with songs of a more modest nature. In fascicle eight he switched to copying a collection of music of a different type, distinctly local in character, with several unique songs by the same, probably young, musician. In the last ones he wrote, he mixed the sources. During the work, the songs were entered in the index at the beginning of the manuscript.
The main scribe stopped his work with f. 72, and another scribe took over. It is most likely that this scribe took over the exemplar with the particular local repertory and from it entered the last six songs. The manuscript was then given illuminated initials, was bound and delivered to the customer.
The MS does not disclose any information concerning its original owner, and there are very few traces of use. The song that Hand C added can be stylistically placed in the 1480s. The flyleaves have a few pen-trials. “Le diziesme” on front flyleaf may be a later library marking. For detailed information on the copying, decoration, further inscriptions and later provenance, see Burn 2017.
Dating and relative dating
1474-75. The local repertory seems to have been created in the years around 1470.
Datings in the musicological literature: Burn 2017, 1470-1475.
See also Peter Woetmann Christoffersen, The unica of the Leuven chansonnier – a portfolio of songs by an ambitious young musician. With an edition of the twelve unique songs. PDF 2024.