St John's College MS 150
Guido of Arezzo and Bede on music
Physical Description
Binding
A modern replacement. Sewn on five thongs. At the front, a marbled paper leaf, two modern paper flyleaves, four medieval vellum flyleaves (the first a former pastedown, with a College bookplate on the verso); at the rear, two medieval vellum flyleaves (the second a former pastedown), two modern paper leaves, and another marbled leaf (x–xiv).
History
Provenance and Acquisition
‘Iste liber est Fratris Iohannis de Erghom in quo subscript’ continentur […] Musica F’ (fol. viiv). The volume was ‘Arsmetrica Musica Geometria Perspectiua magistri Johannis Erghome’ F’ in the 1372 catalogue of the York Austin friars, ed. K. W. Humphreys, CBMLC, 1:153 (A 8.643) (Ker, MLGB 218, 321); the catalogue entry is generally equivalent to the list of contents on fol. viiv (indicated by the ellipses above):
a Musica Gydonis in prosa; b musica eiusdem in metro; c musica cuiusdam sub dialogo; d liber Bede de arte metrica; e item liber eiusdem de tropis’.
‘Kat’ wilstrop vj s viij d Robert Percy militis v s x d Percyvdll lyndlay vj s viij d farbarn’ xx d Thikhed Domina beatrix thorneff priorissa Domina Alicia thornton Domina katerina Brokhellis Domina maria Foston Domina Margareta Wistow Domina Iohanna home Domina alicia Newton Domina Isabella child’ (fol. ix; s. xv ex., secretary). The nuns are apparently those of Thicket (E. Yks., OSB).
The old shelfmark ‘Abac: ij. N. 50’ (fol. vv).
Manuscript 1 – Fols. 1–24
Contents
Language(s): Latin
ed. Jos. Smits van Waesberghe, Corpus scriptorum de musica 4 (1955) 46–233, with a description of our MS at 44.
‘Musica eiusdem in metro’ (the contents table, fol. viiv), i.e. GUIDO, Regulae rhythmicae, ed. Martin Gerbert, Scriptores ecclesiastici de musica (St Blasien, 1784; rept. [Milan, 1931]) 2:25–33.
ed. Gerbert, 2:34–7.
‘Musica cuiusdam sub dialago’ (the contents table), i.e. GUIDO, Regule de ignotu cantu or ‘Epistola Michaeli monacho’, ed. Gerbert, 2:43–50. The break at fol. 22 is followed by a musical gamut, perhaps the beginning of item 4.
The so-called ‘Dialogus ODDONIS de musica’, ed. Gerbert, 1:252–64 (the prologue missing here at 251). Michel Huglo, ‘L’auteur du “Dialogue sur la musique” attribue à Odon’, Revue de musicologie 55 (1969), 119–71 demonstrates that the work is in fact from Lombardy, and written c.1000 (Odo of Cluny, d. 942). Huglo discovered our copy intercalated into item 4 (see 125).
A tonarium from central Italy, replacing the Odonian work which usually follows item 5; other copies appear at Bayerische Staatsbibliothek, MS CLM 14523, fols. 132–3v; Rome, Biblioteca Vallicellana MS B.81, fol. 128. Followed by a musical scale, and a diagram of notes.
Six verses (perhaps associable with Walther, no. 4369). Fol. 24v is blank.
Physical Description
Collation
Layout
Written in long lines, 38 lines to the page. No prickings; bounded and ruled in stylus.
Hand(s)
Written in caroline, s. xi/xii; the localization depends on the use of ‘Aquitanian’ notation in some of the musical settings. Punctuation by point, medial point, high point, and occasional punctus elevatus.
Decoration
Headings usually in red (some in green), a few in rustic capitals.
Two-line red arabesque initials slashed in green at the heads of the texts.
Diagrams in text ink, with red and green decoration.
Texts divided by red-slashed capitals.
See AT, no. 641 (64) (fols. 1–24 only; dated s. xi2).
History
Manuscript 2 = Fols. 25–42, viii, ix
Contents
Language(s): Latin
CPL 1565, ed. C. B. Kendall, CC 123A 82–141. A contents table between the introduction and the text.
CPL 1567, in fact part 2 of the preceding text, ed. Kendall, 142–71. Fols. viii and ixrv are bounded and ruled, but blank; fol. viiiv is blank and unruled.
Physical Description
Collation
Layout
In long lines, 33–5 lines to the page. Prickings; bounded and ruled in black ink
Hand(s)
Written in textura quadrata, s. xiii ex. or xiii/xiv, a single hand, but differing decorative schemes for each text. Punctuation by point and medial point.
Decoration
Text 8 has headings in red, and three of the chapters are introduced by 2-line red lombards.
Elsewhere capitals are in text ink and ochre-slashed. Some extended top line ascenders, a few with heads or shrubs and ochre-slashed.
Texts broken by ochre-slashed capitals.
Text 9 has 2-line red lombards, unflourished, at textual divisions and occasional red paraphs to set off line run-over.
History
Additional Information
Record Sources
Availability
For enquiries relating to this manuscript please contact St John's College Library.
Bibliography
Funding of Cataloguing
Conversion of the printed catalogue to TEI funded by the Thompson Family Charitable Trust
Abbreviations
View list of abbreviations and editorial conventions.
Last Substantive Revision
2023-07: First online publication