Laudario di Cortona

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Folio 46v of the Laudario di Cortona, with the song "Plangiamo quel crudel basciar[e]" Laudario Di Cortona.jpg
Folio 46v of the Laudario di Cortona, with the song "Plangiamo quel crudel basciar[e]"

The Laudario di Cortona (Cortona, Biblioteca del Comune e dell'Accademia Etrusca, Ms. 91) is a musical codex from the second half of the 13th century containing a collection of laude. [1] It is the oldest known source of music in the Italian language, and the only such source from the thirteenth century. It is one of only two sources of Italian laude to contain musical notation. [2]

Contents

The manuscript

The manuscript contains 66 laude of which only the first 44 have notated music. In a section inserted subsequently there are a further two laude with their music, making 46 in total. The first sixteen are in praise of Mary, while the remainder roughly follow the feast days of the liturgical year.

The precise date of the manuscript is uncertain, but it appears to have been copied between 1270 and 1297. The manuscript belonged to the fraternity of Santa Maria delle Laude at the church of San Francesco in Cortona, Italy. It was found in 1876, discarded and in poor condition, by Girolamo Mancini, who was the librarian of the Biblioteca del Comune e dell'Accademia Etrusca di Cortona, who donated it to the Cortona library in which it is now kept. [3]

It is notated in square black plainchant notation, entirely without accidentals which would presumably been inserted automatically in performance. However, this lack of accidentals poses significant problems for modern reconstruction of the melodies. [4]

The most significant problem, however, is the manuscript itself. It is "chock full of errors" in the words of one scholar. [5]

Modern editions

The first modern edition was published by Fernando Liuzzi in 1935. This edition has been criticised for many editorial interventions. Liuzzi added key signatures and a great number of accidentals to a repertoire in which none were notated. He even added performance directions such as Mosso con fierezza, which, as one commentator has pointed out, seem more appropriate to the nineteenth century than the thirteenth. [4] Since then there have been several further editions : Pellegrino M. Ernetti and Laura Rossi Leidi (1980), Luigi Lucchi (1987), Clemente Terni (1988), Martin Dürrer (1996), and Hans Tischler (2002).

Works

FolioLaudaAlso found in
11–3vVenite a laudareARE, MIL
23v–5vLauda novella sia cantataARE
35v–8vAve, donna santissimaARE, M18, M19, MIL
48v–10Madonna santa MariaARE, MIL
512v–14vAve, regina gloriosa
614v–17Da ciel venne messo novelloARE, M18, M19
717–19vAltissima luce col grande splendoreARE, M18, M19, MIL
819v–22Fami cantar l'amor di la beataARE, M19
922–24O Maria, d'omeliaARE
1024–25vRegina sovrana de gram pietadeARE, M18, M19
1125v–27Ave, Dei genitrix
1227–29O Maria, Dei cella
1329–32vAve, vergene gaudenteMIL
1432v–34vO divina virgo, flore
1534v–36vSalve, salve, virgo piaMIL
1636v–38Vergene donçella da Dio amataARE, M18, M19, MIL
1738v–39vPeccatrice, nominataARE, M19
1839v–43vCristo è nato et humanatoM18 (Incomplete), W15
1943v–44vGloria 'n cielo e pace 'n terraARE, MIL
2045–46Stella nuova 'n fra la genteARE, M19, MIL
2146v–47vPlangiamo quel crudel basciar[e]
2247v–51Ben è crudele e spietosoM18 (Text only)
2351–53De la crudel morte de CristoARE, MIL
2453–55Dami conforto, Dio, et alegrançaARE, MIL
2555–57vOnne homo ad alta voceARE, M18, CBC, MIL
2657v–60Jesù Cristo gloriosoM18
2760–63Laudamo la resurrectioneARE, MIL, NY
2863–64vSpiritu sancto, dolçe amoreM19, MIL
2964v–68Spirito Sancto gloriosoANT, M19, MIL
3068–69vSpirito sancto, dà servireARE, MIL
3170–72 Alta Trinità beata M19, MIL
3272–82vTroppo perde 'l tempo ki ben non t'amaARE, MIL
3382v–85Stomme allegro et latiosoMIL
3485v–88vOimè lasso e freddo lo mio core
3588v–90Chi vol(e) lo mondo desprecçareARE, M19, MIL
3690v–93Laudar vollio per amoreMIL
3793–96Sia laudato san FrancescoARE, M18, M19, MIL
3896–100vCiascun ke fede senteARE, M18, M19, MIL
39100v–110vMagdalena degna da laudareARE, MIL
40110v–112vL'alto prençe archangelo lucenteMIL
41112v–114vFaciamo laude a tutt'i sanctiARE, M18, M19, MIL, W22
42114v–116San Jovanni al mond'è nato
43116–117vOgn'om canti novel cantoM19
44117v–120Amor dolçe sença pareARE, MIL
45123–131vBenedicti et llaudatiMIL
46131v–132vSalutiam divotamenteARE, MIL
47136Alleluya. Alleluya, alto re di gloria
(Senza musica. Solo testo)
ARE, M18, M19
48137Salutiam divotamente
(Senza musica. Solo testo)
ARE, MIL
49143A voi gente facciam prego
(Senza musica. Solo testo)
ARE, M18, M19

Works found in other manuscripts

References

  1. Medieval Italy: An Encyclopedia 1135948801 Christopher Kleinhenz 2004 "The most famous collection is the Laudario di Cortona (1260-1270), which, typically, contains texts dedicated to the Virgin, the Trinity, and Saint John, as well as meditations on death and judgment."
  2. Zangari, Mattia (2019). "Saint Margaret of Cortona (1247–1297) and the Laudario of the Confraternity of Santa Maria delle Laude in Cortona" (PDF). Confraternitas. 30 (1–2): 44–56. doi:10.33137/confrat.v30i1-2.33689.
  3. Mancini, Girolamo (1884). I manoscritti della Libreria del Comune e dell'Accademia Etrusca di Cortona descritti da Girolamo Mancini. Cortona, Italy: Stamperia Bimbi. p. 51.
  4. 1 2 Herlinger, Jan (2006). "Musica Ficta in the Cortona Laudario". Philomusica on-line. 9/3.
  5. Gozzi, Marco (2011). "Sulla necessità di una nuova edizione del laudario di Cortona". Philomusica on-line (in Italian). 9 (2): 114–174. doi:10.6092/1826-9001.9.790.