Misplaced Pages

#101898

60-494: Little is known about Gigault's life. François-Joseph Fétis , a 19th-century musicologist, claimed Gigault was born in Clayes-en-Brie, a village near Paris. However, no locality survives by that name. It is supposed that Gigault's birthplace was just outside Paris. A similar situation occurred concerning Gigault's date of birth: André Pirro deduced in the early 20th century that Gigault must have been born in 1624/5, however,

120-415: A few years later, on 7 August 1707. The inventories of Gigault's possessions, taken in 1662 and in 1700 (on the account of his marriage and his wife's death, respectively), reveal that already by 1662 he was no longer poor and could afford a well-furnished home with a collection of paintings and sculptures, and a large number of musical instruments: a chamber organ , two harpsichords (one with two manuals,

180-413: A later study by Pierre Hardouin revealed that the composer could not have been born before 1627. Gigault's father, Estienne Gigault, was a bailiff at the law-courts of Paris. Gigault was born into poverty and his financial situation remained dire at least until 1648, when he and his two younger brothers renounced their rights of succession to avoid their father's debts. Nicolas Gigault's mother died when he

240-424: A number of five-voice genres: préludes and récits with pedal cantus firmus in the tenor. Gigault's 1685 Livre was most probably meant as a record of Gigault's style, rather than a book for lesser organists; the music is at times quite sophisticated and requires a high degree of skill. Fran%C3%A7ois-Joseph F%C3%A9tis François-Joseph Fétis ( French: [fetis] ; 25 March 1784 – 26 March 1871)

300-442: A pair of viols, or on a lute, etc. The solitary allemande bears no connection whatsoever to Christmas. It is presented in two versions, the second being set in "ports de voix", showing various common ornamentation patterns. Gigault's second collection, Livre de musique pour l'orgue of 1685, contains 184 pieces. It begins with three organ masses, which rely heavily on Mass IV melodies, like all other surviving French organ masses from

360-603: A word and the wine becomes the Blood of Christ. And if sense is deficient to strengthen a sincere heart Faith alone suffices. Therefore, the great Sacrament let us reverence, prostrate: and let the old Covenant give way to a new rite. Let faith stand forth as substitute for defect of the senses. To the Begetter and the Begotten be praise and jubilation, greeting, honour, strength also and blessing. To

420-592: Is a Medieval Latin hymn attributed to Saint Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) for the Feast of Corpus Christi . It is also sung on Maundy Thursday during the procession from the church to the place where the Blessed Sacrament is kept until Good Friday . The last two stanzas (called, separately, Tantum ergo ) are sung at Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament . The hymn expresses the doctrine that

480-572: Is attempting to show the "facts, errors, and truths" of previous theories and theorists, as he interprets them, in order to provide a solid grounding for other scholars and to prevent subsequent interpretive mistakes. Fétis' main theoretical work and the culmination of his conceptual frameworks of tonality and harmony is the Traité complet de la théorie et de la pratique de l'harmonie of 1844. This book has influenced later theorists and composers including Paul Hindemith , Ernst Kurth , and Franz Liszt . In

540-516: Is devoted to explaining how tonalité organizes music. The primary factor of determining tonality is the scale. It sets out the order of the succession of tones in major and minor (the only two "tonal" modes which he recognizes), the distances which separate the tones, and the resultant melodic and harmonic tendencies. Tonality is not only a governed and conditioned state, but it is a socially conditioned one. Scales are cultural manifestations, resulting from shared experience and education. Nature provides

600-726: Is in the Royal Conservatory Library in Brussels. In 1856, he worked closely with Jean-Baptiste Vuillaume in writing a fascinating treatise about Antonio Stradivari ( Antoine Stradivari, luthier célèbre ). It includes detailed chapters on the history and development of the violin family, old master Italian violin makers (including the Stradivari and Guarneri families) and an analysis of the bows of François Tourte . His interest in instruments can also be gathered from his very substantial collection, which includes

660-512: Is known, Gigault's career began in 1646 when he was appointed organist of Saint-Honoré. In 1652 he left to take a similar position at Saint Nicolas-des-Champs , where he worked until his death. Gigault also served as organist at Saint Martin-des-Champs from 1673, and at the Hôpital du Saint Esprit orphanage from 1685. Gigault must have had a professional relationship with Étienne Richard , who worked with him at Saint Nicolas-des-Champs, and who also

SECTION 10

#1732764874102

720-429: Is much use of notes inégales , so much that some scholars believe the music to be unlistenable today, and in general, Gigault's work was judged negatively by most scholars. Nevertheless, the music is distinguished by a serious style, more suitable to the church than that of Lebègue ; Gigault's dialogues go beyond those of his contemporaries, Nivers and Lebègue, in that they employ more divisions, and he also cultivates

780-500: The Missa Pange lingua . An elaborate fantasy on the hymn, the mass is one of the composer's last works and has been dated to the period from 1515 to 1521, since it was not included by Petrucci in his 1514 collection of Josquin's masses, and was published posthumously. In its simplification, motivic unity, and close attention to the text it has been compared to the late works of Beethoven , and many commentators consider it one of

840-666: The Curiosités historiques de la musique (Paris, 1850), and the Histoire générale de la musique (Paris, 1869—1876); and partly theoretical, such as the Méthode des méthodes de piano (Paris, 1840), written in conjunction with Moscheles . While Fétis's critical opinions of contemporary music may seem conservative, his musicological work was ground-breaking, and unusual for the 19th century in attempting to avoid an ethnocentric and present-centered viewpoint. Unlike many others at

900-510: The Musik-Lexicon of 1882, Hugo Riemann states that "to [Fétis'] meditations we are indebted for the modern concept of tonality…he found himself emancipated from the spirit of a particular age, and able to render justice to all the various styles of music." Though some other theorists, most notably Matthew Shirlaw , have had decidedly negative views, Riemann's assessment captures the two key features of Fétis' text. Though he did not coin

960-538: The Revue musicale and in some lectures which had a profound impact on Liszt . Though music had not yet made it past the first phase, Unirhythm, by Fétis' time, he argues that composers may be able to "mutate" from one meter to another within the same melodic phrase. Though Liszt may have been an open disciple of the ideas of the Omnitonic and Omnirhythmic, the influence of such thinking can perhaps be seen most clearly in

1020-712: The bread and wine are changed into the body and blood of Christ during the celebration of the Eucharist . It is often sung in English as the hymn "Of the Glorious Body Telling" to the same tune as the Latin. The opening words recall another famous Latin sequence from which this hymn is derived: Pange lingua gloriosi proelium certaminis by Venantius Fortunatus . There are many English translations, of varying rhyme scheme and metre . The following has

1080-520: The indulgence of 300 days every time the Pange Lingua is recited, and 100 days only for those who recite the Tantum Ergo , always understanding that the aforementioned responsory is added Panem de coelo , etc. and the subsequent oration Deus qui nobis . Whoever practices this devotion at least 10 times a month has a plenary indulgence once a year on a day of his choice, in addition to

1140-1080: The Latin text with a doxology in the first column, and an English translation by Edward Caswall in the second. The third column is a more literal rendering. Pange, lingua, gloriósi Córporis mystérium, Sanguinísque pretiósi, Quem in mundi prétium Fructus ventris generósi Rex effúdit géntium. Nobis datus, nobis natus Ex intácta Vírgine, Et in mundo conversátus, Sparso verbi sémine, Sui moras incolátus Miro clausit órdine. In suprémæ nocte coenæ Recúmbens cum frátribus Observáta lege plene Cibis in legálibus, Cibum turbæ duodénæ Se dat suis mánibus. Verbum caro, panem verum Verbo carnem éfficit: Fitque sanguis Christi merum, Et si sensus déficit, Ad firmándum cor sincérum Sola fides súfficit. Tantum ergo sacraméntum Venerémur cérnui: Et antíquum documéntum Novo cedat rítui: Præstet fides suppleméntum Sénsuum deféctui. Genitóri, Genitóque Laus et jubilátio, Salus, honor, virtus quoque Sit et benedíctio: Procedénti ab utróque Compar sit laudátio. Amen. Alleluja. Sing, my tongue,

1200-727: The One who proceeds from Both be equal praise. Amen, Alleluia. There are two plainchant settings of the Pange lingua hymn. The better known is a Phrygian mode (Mode III) tune from the Roman liturgy, and the other is from the Mozarabic liturgy from Spain. The Roman tune was originally part of the Gallican Rite . The Roman version of the Pange lingua hymn was the basis for a famous composition by Renaissance composer Josquin des Prez ,

1260-630: The Paschal Victim eating, First fulfils the Law's command; Then as Food to all his brethren Gives Himself with His own Hand. Word-made-Flesh, the bread of nature By His Word to Flesh He turns; Wine into His Blood He changes: What though sense no change discerns. Only be the heart in earnest, Faith her lesson quickly learns. Down in adoration falling, Lo, the sacred Host we hail, Lo, o'er ancient forms departing Newer rites of grace prevail: Faith for all defects supplying, When

SECTION 20

#1732764874102

1320-569: The Saviour's glory, Of His Flesh, the mystery sing; Of the Blood, all price exceeding, Shed by our Immortal King, Destined, for the world's redemption, From a noble Womb to spring. Of a pure and spotless Virgin Born for us on earth below, He, as Man, with man conversing, Stayed, the seeds of truth to sow; Then He closed in solemn order Wondrously His Life of woe. On the night of that Last Supper, Seated with His chosen band, He,

1380-435: The authorship of the piece is now typically attributed to Fétis himself. The original Italian text for the song (Se i miei sospiri) was found set to different music by Alessandro Scarlatti in his 1693 oratorio "The Martyrdom of St. Theodosia". Pange Lingua Gloriosi Corporis Mysterium " Pange lingua gloriosi corporis mysterium " ( Ecclesiastical Latin : [ˈpandʒe ˈliŋɡwa ɡloriˈosi ˈkorporis miˈsteri.um] )

1440-558: The brow of Jupiter, Hercules' arm, or the breast of Jupiter, strut and preen as though they have laid a golden egg. Not one to be outdone, Fétis may have had the last word in this debate. In the 1845 edition of his treatise La musique mise à la porte de tout le monde , he describes the word "fantastique" saying that "this word has even slid into music. ‘Fantastique' music is composed of instrumental effects with no melodic line and incorrect harmony." Although known primarily for his contributions to musicology and criticism, Fétis had effects on

1500-427: The chaste muse could have a more noble mission; especially these desecrators who dare lay hands on original works, subjecting them to horrible mutilations that they call corrections and perfections, which, they say, require considerable taste. Curses on them! They make a mockery of art! Such are these vulgar birds who populate our public gardens, perching arrogantly on the most beautiful statues, and, when they have soiled

1560-518: The collection is arranged by mode: there are numerous fugues (a fact mentioned in the preface) and also various typical French forms such as dialogues and récits. Also included are three hymns: Pange lingua , Veni Creator and a complete setting of the Te Deum . Because the music of Gigault's second Livre is more representative of the French style of the third quarter of the century, rather than

1620-418: The earliest known examples of the French noël (a set of variations on a Christmas carol) and an allemande . Gigault's 20 noëls include variations on Christmas songs and church hymns connected to Christmas. These pieces always progress from two-part to four-part settings and feature a somewhat rigid variation technique. In the preface Gigault suggests that these pieces can be performed on any instruments: i.e., on

1680-473: The elder son Édouard Fétis (1812–1909) helped his father with the editions of Revue Musicale and became member of the Royal Academy. In 1866 his wife died, and he withdrew from the Brussels society and court. When his father died, Eduard inherited his complete library and collection of musical instruments. His talent for composition manifested itself at the age of seven, and at nine years old he

1740-742: The elements of tonalité, but human understanding, sensibility, and will determine particular harmonic systems. This concept was called a " Metaphysical principle" by Fétis, though Dahlhaus argues that the term is used in this case to denote an anthropological , culturally relative sense in his 1990 book Studies on the Origin of Harmonic Tonality, and theorist Rosalie Schellhous posits that the Kantian term "transcendental" might be more appropriate. In his comparative work, Fétis attempted "a new method of classifying human races according to their musical systems" following contemporary trends of social darwinism in

1800-582: The emerging fields of ethnology and anthropology. However, if one wishes to interpret Fétis' metaphysical theory, one of his unique theoretical ideas is laid out in book 3 of the Traité complet , that of harmonic modulation . Fétis argues that tonality has evolved over the course of time through four distinct phases, or ordres : Fétis later applied this same system of ordres to rhythm, "the least advanced part of music...[where] great things remain to be discovered." Though he did not publish these theories in any of his treatises, they appear in several articles for

1860-522: The end of the procession of the monstrance in Holy Thursday liturgy . Various separate musical settings have been written for this, including one by Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina , one by Franz Schubert , eight by Anton Bruckner , one by Maurice Duruflé , and one by Charles-Marie Widor . Beethoven wrote an organ reharmonization of Pange lingua. The work was discovered in October 2012 by

Nicolas Gigault - Misplaced Pages Continue

1920-739: The feeble senses fail. To the Everlasting Father And the Son who comes on high With the Holy Ghost proceeding Forth from each eternally, Be salvation, honor, blessing, Might and endless majesty. Amen. Alleluia. Tell, tongue, the mystery of the glorious Body and of the precious Blood, which, for the price of the world, the fruit of a noble Womb, the King of the Nations poured forth. Given to us, born for us, from

1980-942: The foundation for what would later be termed comparative musicology . Fétis died in Brussels . His valuable library was purchased by the Belgian government and presented to the Royal Library. His historical works, despite many inaccuracies, remain of great value for historians. His pupils included Luigi Agnesi , Jean-Delphin Alard , Juan Crisóstomo Arriaga , Friedrich Berr , Louise Bertin , William Cusins , Julius Eichberg , Ferdinand Hérold , Frantz Jehin-Prume , Jacques-Nicolas Lemmens , Adolphe Samuel , and Charles-Marie Widor . See: List of music students by teacher: C to F#François-Joseph Fétis . Some of his criticisms of contemporary composers have become quite famous, as well as

2040-504: The harmonic theories of M. Fétis. Troupenas did in fact remove Fétis' editorial marks, but Berlioz was still unsatisfied. He went on to criticize Fétis in one of the monologues of Lélio, ou le Retour à la vie , the 1832 sequel to Symphonie Fantastique : These young theorists of eighty, living in the midst of a sea of prejudices and persuaded that the world ends with the shores of their island; these old libertines of every age who demand that music caress and amuse them, never admitting that

2100-516: The high points of Renaissance polyphony . Juan de Urrede , a Flemish composer active in Spain in the late fifteenth century, composed numerous settings of the Pange lingua, most of them based on the original Mozarabic melody. One of his versions for four voices is among the most popular pieces of the sixteenth century, and was the basis for dozens of keyboard works in addition to masses, many by Spanish composers. Building on Josquin's treatment of

2160-555: The hymn's third line in the Kyrie of the Missa Pange Lingua , the " do–re–fa–mi–re–do "- theme (C–D–F–E–D–C) became one of the most famous in music history, used to this day in even non-religious works by composers including Simon Lohet , Michelangelo Rossi , François Roberday , Johann Caspar Ferdinand Fischer , Johann Jakob Froberger , Johann Caspar Kerll , Johann Sebastian Bach , Johann Fux wrote fugues on it, and

2220-442: The last, the collection may have been a compilation of earlier composed material. All major French forms are represented, although Gigault's way of naming them differs from his contemporaries: he uses the term "fugue" much more broadly (e.g., he uses "Fugue à 2" instead of "Duo"), never uses the term "dialogue", etc. The music is notated meticulously, with more attention to details of performance than in other contemporary sources. There

2280-452: The latter's extensive elaborations in the Gradus ad Parnassum made it known to every aspiring composer – among them Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart whose Jupiter theme borrows the first four notes. Anton Bruckner 's first composition was a setting of the first strophe of the hymn: Pange lingua, WAB 31 . The last two verses of Pange lingua ( Tantum ergo ) are often separated out. They mark

2340-670: The most important of his works, which did not appear until 1834. In 1821 he was appointed professor at the Paris Conservatory . In 1827 he founded the Revue musicale , the first serious paper in France devoted exclusively to musical matters. Fétis remained in the French capital till 1833, when at the request of Leopold I , he became director of the Royal Conservatory of Brussels and the king's chapelmaster. He also

2400-430: The music of Brahms , where hemiola and mixing of time signatures is a common occurrence. The Italian art song, "Se i miei sospiri", appeared in a Paris concert organized by Fétis in 1833. Fétis published the piece for voice and strings in 1838 and then again in 1843 for voice and piano with alternate lyrics ("Pietà, Signore"). It is these alternate lyrics with which the piece is now typically associated. Fétis attributed

2460-615: The musicologist and professor of the University of Manchester Barry Cooper . It was immediately proposed that the piece served as a sketch for the composer's Missa solemnis . Franz Liszt 's "Night Procession" from Two Episodes from Lenau's Faust is largely a fantasy on the Pange lingua melody. A setting of Pange lingua, written by Ciaran McLoughlin, appears on the Solas 1995 album Solas An Domhain . Pange lingua has been translated into many different languages for worship throughout

Nicolas Gigault - Misplaced Pages Continue

2520-445: The oldest surviving Arab oud . Fetis had the privilege to have Paganini, Schumann and Berlioz as contemporaries and to work with the violin maker and dealer, Jean Baptiste Vuillaume. Fetis's work provides a unique window into the times and as such is a particularly valuable reference for the modern researcher, dealer and player. More important perhaps than his compositions are his writings on music. They are partly historical, such as

2580-722: The other with one), three spinets , two clavichords , a bass viol , two treble viols, a theorbo and a guitar . Most of the paintings Gigault had in his home were of a devotional nature, which, coupled with the lengthy dedications of his organ collections to the Blessed Virgin Mary , suggests an important place of religion in Gigault's life. Apart from his activities as organist, Gigault was also in demand as an organ consultant and as an instrumentalist. Gigault published two collections of organ works. The first, Livre de musique dédié а la Très Saincte Vierge of 1682, contains

2640-511: The performance. The work is attributed NOT to the Alsascian lutenist Valentin Strobel, but to Jean (Johann) Strobach, a member of a prominent Bohemian family of musicians. This Strobach (fl. 1650–1720) served Leopold I, and there is no evidence that Fetis's score is a hoax. The composition was published in 1698, although no copy is known to have survived, except Fetis' manuscript score, which

2700-411: The period. However, Gigault's contemporaries limited their use of the chant to cantus planus settings, whereas in Gigault's masses chant melodies also appear paraphrased or transformed into fugue subjects, and form a very large proportion of the masses. The first and the third masses are large, each comprising more than 20 pieces, while the second mass is extremely short with just 7 versets. The rest of

2760-453: The publisher Troupenas , commented that [Fétis had altered Beethoven's harmonies] with unbelievable complacency. Opposite the E flat which the clarinet sustains over a chord of the sixth (D flat, F, B flat) in the andante of the C minor symphony, Fétis had naively written ‘This E flat must be F. Beethoven could not have possibly made so gross a blunder.' In other words, a man like Beethoven could not possibly fail to be in entire agreement with

2820-450: The realm of music theory as well. In 1841 he put together the first history of harmonic theory, his Esquisse de l'histoire de l'harmonie . Assembled from individual articles that Fétis published in the Revue et Gazette musicale de Paris around 1840, the book predates Hugo Riemann 's more well known Geschichte der Musiktheorie by fifty years. The Esquisse , as the title implies, is a general outline rather than an exhaustive study. Fétis

2880-550: The responses that they engendered. He said of Berlioz , "...what Monsieur Berlioz composes is not part of that art which we distinguish as music, and I am completely certain that he lacks the most basic capability in this art." In the Revue musicale issue of 1 February 1835 he wrote of the Symphonie Fantastique : I saw that melody was antipathetic to him, that he only had a faint notion of rhythm; that his harmony, formed by an often monstrous accretion of notes,

2940-432: The song to Alessandro Stradella and claimed to possess an original manuscript of the work but never produced it for examination. As early as 1866, musicologists were questioning the authenticity of the song, and when Fétis' library was acquired by the Royal Library in Brussels after his death, no such manuscript could be found. Owing to this and the fact that the style of the piece is inconsistent with Stradella's own period,

3000-401: The term "tonality," Fétis developed the concept into its present-day form. He claimed that "tonalité" is the primary organizing agent of all melodic and harmonic successions and that the efforts of other theorists to find the fundamental principle of music in "acoustics, mathematics, aggregations of intervals, or classifications of chords have been futile." The majority of the Traité complet

3060-489: The time, he did not see music history as a continuum of increasing excellence, moving towards a goal, but rather as something which was continually changing , neither becoming better nor worse, but continually adapting to new conditions. He believed that all cultures and times created art and music which were appropriate to their times and conditions; and he began a close study of Renaissance music as well as European folk music and music of non-European cultures. Thus Fétis built

SECTION 50

#1732764874102

3120-523: The untouched Virgin, and dwelt in the world after the seed of the Word had been scattered. His inhabiting ended the delays with wonderful order. On the night of the Last Supper, reclining with His brethren, once the Law had been fully observed with the prescribed foods, as food to the crowd of Twelve He gives Himself with His hands. The Word as Flesh makes true bread into flesh by

3180-1099: The world. However, the Latin version remains the most popular. The Syriac translation of "Pange lingua" was used as part of the rite of benediction in the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church of Kerala , India, until the 1970s. In the Roman Catholic Church, full recitation of the Pange Lingua , or the Tantum Ergo , is followed by the Latin traditional verses, connected to the indulgence in perpetuity: V. Panem de coelo praestitísti eis. R. Omnem delectaméntum in se habéntem. Oration Deus, qui nobis sub Sacraméntu mirábili Passiónis tuae memóriam reliquísti, tríbue quaesumus, ita nos Córporis et Sanguinis tui sacra mystéria venerári, ut redemptiónis tuae fructus in nobis iúgiter sentiámus. Qui vivis et regnas cum Deo Patre, in unitate Spíritus Sancti Deus per ómnia saecula saeculórum. Amen. Pius VII with Decree 25 August 1818 granted in perpetuity

3240-561: Was a Belgian musicologist , critic, teacher and composer . He was among the most influential music intellectuals in continental Europe. His enormous compilation of biographical data in the Biographie universelle des musiciens remains an important source of information today. Fétis was born in Mons , Hainaut , eldest son of Antoine-Joseph Fetis and Elisabeth Desprets, daughter of a noted surgeon. He had nine brothers and sisters. His father

3300-401: Was a child. Nothing is known about his education or how he came to become a musician. Pirro suggested several possible teachers, among them Charles Racquet , but no evidence exists of any lessons. Fétis's early claim that Jean Titelouze taught Racquet is now regarded as insubstantial, since Gigault was too young and his family could not afford trips to Rouen, where Titelouze worked. As far as

3360-467: Was an organist at Saint Waltrude, Mons. In 1800 he went to Paris and completed his studies at the Conservatory under such masters as Boïeldieu , Jean-Baptiste Rey and Louis-Barthélémy Pradher . In 1806 he undertook the revision of the Roman liturgical chants in the hope of discovering and establishing their original form. In this year he also began his Biographie universelle des musiciens ,

3420-441: Was nevertheless flat and monotonous; in a word I saw that he lacked melodic and harmonic ideas, and I judged that he would always write in a barbarous manner; but I saw that he had the instinct for instrumentation, and I thought that he could fulfil a useful vocation in discovering certain combinations that others would put to better use than he. Berlioz, who had proof-read Fétis' editions of the first eight Beethoven symphonies for

3480-493: Was organist of Saint Martin-des-Champs until his death in 1669. Gigault married twice. The first marriage, to Marie Aubert in 1662, produced five children: two sons and three daughters. The sons, Anne-Joseph and Anne-Joachim, became organists. Gigault's youngest daughter Emérentienne-Margueritte married an organ-builder and one of her two children, Augustin-Hypolite Ducastel, became a harpsichord-builder. Marie Aubert died on 7 August 1700. Gigault soon remarried, but himself died just

3540-513: Was the founder, and, until his death, the conductor of the celebrated concerts attached to the conservatory of Brussels, and he inaugurated a free series of lectures on musical history and philosophy. Fétis produced a large quantity of original compositions, from the opera and the oratorio to the simple chanson , including several musical hoaxes , the most famous of which is the "Lute concerto by Valentin Strobel", premiered with Fernando Sor as soloist. Carcassi, as well as Sor, participated in

3600-407: Was titular organist of the noble chapter of Saint-Waltrude . His grandfather was an organ manufacturer. He was trained as a musician by his father and played at young age on the choir organ of Saint Waltrude. In October 1806 he married Adélaïde-Louise-Catherine Robert, daughter of the French politician Pierre-François-Joseph Robert and Louise de Keralio, friend of Robespierre . They had two sons:

#101898