Medieval Polyphony

with fretboard illustrations

(four strings in 4ths, gittern or lute)

And now for something really different (or is it?)

This section grew out of a series of discussions and tutorials on Medieval Polyphony (chords or sonorities) posted by Margo
Schulter at the Early Music Usenet newsgroup rec.music.early, January through March of 2004. Margo has been kind enough
to allow me to repost her essays here (which I had augmented with a set of accompanying fretboard entabulations, for four
course gittern or lute tuned in straight 4ths, during the course of the original thread).

When I tabled the idea of making these pages and hosting them on my web site, I assured Margo I’d make it clear that this
collaboration is not necessarily an endorsement of either me or The Cipher, it’s simply a way of making more and other kinds
of music education available to a wider audience (and of this later motive Margo is enthusiastically dedicated generally). Margo
says she prefers to apply GNU Copyleft to these works, i.e. “copying and distribution are freely permitted, as long as people
give the source, and also note any modifications made”. Again, my thanks to Margo Schulter, first for contributing to my own
education, and then for allowing me to share these pages with you.

The initial title of Margo’s Usenet thread (hence the tutorials discussed here) was Medieval Sonorities and Instruments.
Within that thread, Margo then published a multi-part essay titled:
Medieval Polyphonic Patterns Part I January 08, 2004
Medieval Polyphonic Patterns Part IIA January 19, 2004
Medieval Polyphonic Patterns Part IIB January 19, 2004

For those of you who just want to jump to the fretboard illustrations to see (and hear) where this is heading and perhaps
motivate you to read through some of this you can root through the original directory of images (the fretboard illustrations of the
medieval chords and progressions covered in these articles).

Note; I had intended to insert within these articles, links to drawings, comments, and bits of conversation, questions,
and further experimentations, that occured within the original Usenet thread. But as yet, that hasn’t happened -- I
never had the time. You’ll have to see the original articles, and in their original context, via Google Groups archives or
some similar Usenet archive of the Newsgroup rec.music.early. In any event, for now, you will have to root around
the directory of loose images linked to just above. So please forgive me, Margo and readers, the unfinished state of
this current presentation or reproduction.

Margo has other pertinent articles housed at Todd McComb’s web site, medieval.org. Here's a few of them:

http://www.medieval.org/emfaq/harmony/13c.html
http://www.medieval.org/emfaq/harmony/triad.html
http://www.medieval.org/emfaq/harmony/chords.html

Some of the fingering stretches are challenging. I used a 3/4 scale Baby Taylor guitar (lower 4 strings only) to test and play
these chords and progressions. The imagined original medieval-period instrument would have been a short-scale 4 string or
course fretted string instrument of the early guitar or lute family, e.g. guitarra latina, citole, lute, gittern. The tuning used for the
fretboard illustrations is all 4ths and (for convenience) tuned to EADG, just like the four lowest strings of a modern guitar.
Understand, there is still debate whether or not chords were actually played on such an instrument during this period (circa
1260 AD) to accompany song making or improvise accompaniment, etc. That whole contentious topic (were chords used in
medieval music generally, and specifically were chords played on guitar-like instruments in medieval Europe) was actually
what prompted this article and essays. If nothing else these articles establish unequivocally that chords were indeed used in
medieval music. The fact that lute and guitar-like instruments existed during this period is taken for granted because they can
be seen in the illuminations of The Cantigas de Santa Maria, the Holly Grail of medieval music, commissioned in the mid 1200s
by Alphanso X, king of Spain.

Index of articles:

Main page (where you are now)

Medieval Sonorities and Instruments, some of the content preceding the main essays (not done)

Image directory

Medieval Polyphonic Patterns Part I

Medieval Polyphonic Patterns Part IIA

Medieval Polyphonic Patterns Part IIB

 Medieval Polyphonic Patterns — Part I
Author: Margo Schulter
Fretboard illuminations: Roger E. Blumberg

Directory of images (fretboard illustrations of the medieval

chords and progressions covered in these articles)

Medieval Polyphonic Patterns:

Part I: The F-G-F theme

Please let me commence this promised essay by warmly thanking Cait for an exciting dialogue, and specifically for inspiring this post by
sharing a suggestion of Bill Taylor, an expert in early harp music of the British Isles, that one typical medieval pattern us eful in accompanying
songs is a "home" sonority on F and an "away" sonority on G -- for example, an alternation between F3-C4-F4 and G3-D4 or G3-D4-G4.

In looking at this and other characteristic patterns in medieval music, I'm going to focus on what happens in polyphonic compositions. This
recorded practice could serve as one guide to possible instrumental accompaniment practices for monophonic songs, albeit a guide which one
might want to use with some caution and with due artistic judgment.

When I speak of caution and judgment, I have in mind especially some predilections and at least potential biases of my own to which the
reader should be alerted.

First, for 35 years and a bit more, I've been improvising polyphonic textures in a medieval vocal kind of style on keyboards. If I produce
something that evokes for me an ensemble organum, clausula, conductus, motet, or cantilena, etc., then I'm happy. Also, my compositional
and analytical efforts have focused on written polyphony.

Secondly, my responses to improvised accompaniments in performances of monophonic song might reflect more a delight in familiar textures --
"how neat to have this trouvere song sound like an extempore conductus or motet" -- rather than a judicious evaluation of likely performance
practices for a particular genre at a particular epoch.

To take what might some might consider an especially telling example:

I have taken great pleasure in a rendition of a trobador song by Marcabru, from around the middle of the 12th century, performed in a lilting
modal rhythm with a plucked string accompaniment, as I recall, in a nice discant style (as noted in the performance notes) which I found a bit
like a conductus.

Someone looking more critically at likely period style might ask whether trobador songs in this era were likely to be accompanied at all (a
debatable question, as we've seen in recent threads), and whether a modal rhythm would prevail rather than a freer declamatory reading.

Anyway, there are some implicit assumptions in what follows that I'd like to make a bit more explicit. I tend to assume some kind of modal or
mensural rhythm which could invite something like a composed polyphonic texture in this type of rhythm, and an approach where techniques
like three-voice sonorities and progressions would not be out of place. These are the things that I'm accustomed to do, not necessarily the ones
you'd want to do in a given situation.

For more freely declamatory songs, there could be other models. One could look at polyphonic settings from the 13th century or a bit later of
Psalm recitation tones or the like, or even consider a trinic equivalent of the "dry recitative" of the 17th century or later.

With these caveats, I'll first consider the F-G-F pattern, and then, in Part II, another question which you have raised, Cait: the relationship
between steps a third apart, such as F and A.

It's prudent to conclude this preface by saying that the possibilities suggested below are meant to be illustrative rather than exhaustive.
-------------------------------
1. The F-G-F pattern
-------------------------------

In recommending the "F home, G away" pattern, Bill Taylor has called attention to a theme characteristic of much Continental as well as
English music in the 13th century.

We might actually take this as a theme within a yet more pervasive theme: the frequent alternation between steps a degree apart, typical of a
style where progressions by stepwise contrary motion define the ideal for efficient and compelling cadential action. Thus if our final or trinic
center of repose in on F, we'd expect unstable cadential sonorities on the adjacent steps of G or E, and this is in fact what tends to happen in
standard practice.

Likewise, if the final is G, we might expect to find and do find that the most popular cadences involve unstable sonorities on the adjacent steps
of A or F, and so on.

-----------------------------------------------
1.1. A Montpellier manifestation
------------------------------------------------

Here we'll focus on the F-G-F theme, and some of its documented or possible expressions. First, I'll quickly recall an example adapted from the
opening of a 13th-century Montpellier motet, #103, _Aimi! las! vivrai_/_Doucement me tient_/OMNES, which I seem first to have encountered
through an analysis of Richard Crocker in his _A History of Musical Style_:

1 2 3 | 1 2 3 | 1 ...
F4 E4 D4 E4 F4
C4 D4 C4
F3 G3 F4

(Maj7-5 + Maj3-1) (Maj6-8 + Maj2-4)

Here I've indicated the transient directed progressions introduced by the seventh sonority F3-C4-E4 at the end of the first unit and the sixth
sonority G3-D4-E4 at the end of the second, each lending impetus to the musical motion forward into the next unit. The momentary partitions of
M7|5_M3 and M6|5_M2 add a bit of color to the stable consonances, and the directed resolutions briding from one unit to the next could be
described as _cadentiae_ in a medieval meaning of that term: apt progressions from more tense to more concordant intervals.

------------------------------
1.2. A different style
------------------------------

Taking the same framework for the two outer voices, we can also arrive at a passage from one of the most famous F-G-F pieces of the era,
here transcribed in a 6/8 or 6/4 meter with two main beats to each measure:

1 2
1 2 3 4 5 6 | 1 ...
F4 E4 D4 E4 F4
C4 Bb3 C4
F3 G3 F4

(Maj6-8 + min3-5)
From a conventional Continental point of view, we start at "home" on the F trine, and move to "away" on a mildly unstable sonority: the split fifth
G3-Bb3-D4, with its two unstable thirds, 5|m3_M3. Then the E4 in the upper voice gives us the momentary sixth sonority G3-Bb3-E4 or
M6|m3_4, resolving in usual fashion to arrive back at our trinic "home" on F (Maj6-8 + min3-5).

In fact, however, this is the opening of the English round _Sumer is icumen in_, if one starts with the entry of the first voice singing the main
canonic melody above the repeated _pes_ in the lower two voices. (If we elect to sing the pes voices alone first to give a feel for the "ground
bass" pattern, then this passage would be a bit after the opening.)

While this three-voice passage at the beginning of the canon might suggest an F-G-F theme of trine-split fifth-trine, as more voices enter it
quickly becomes clear that we have a different vertical style with pervasive tertian sonorities as the norm, the kind of thing reported by
Anonymous IV for the "Westcountry" of England. This kind of writing, where thirds are treated as stable and conclusive, contrasts with other
kinds of styles in England as well as on the Continent where these intervals are regarded as mildly unstable, and often participate in directed
progressions to stable sonorities such as trines.

---------------------------------------------
1.3. A diversion after midnight
----------------------------------------------

Getting back to the latter kind of style, we could harmonize the framework of the outer two voices in many ways, for example this:

1 2 3 | 1 2 3 | 1 ...
F4 E4 D4 E4 F4
C4 D4 C4 B3 C4
F3 G3 F4

(Maj7-5 + Maj3-1) (Maj6-8 + Maj3-5)

This solution might come out of the same stylistic milieu as our first example adapted from Montpellier: as in that example, the quick directed
resolutions leading from one rhythmic unit to the next help move the harmonic rhythm along, and also to provide moments of unity knitting the
voices together in their often diverse motions.

The theme of alternating between F and G can be a taking off point for lots of ideas. For example, here's something I came up with very early
this morning as a kind of belated midnight discant diversion, with "r" in this notation showing a rest:

1 2 3 | 1 2 3 | 1 2 3 | 1 2 3 |
D4 E4 F4 r G4 D4 E4 F4
D4 B3 C4 E4 D4 C4 B3 C4
G3 F3 G3 F3

(Maj6-8 + Maj3-5) (Maj7-5) (Maj6-8 + Maj3-5)

Again I'm showing the directed resolutions because this is an aspect of technique in lots of motets and the like which it seems to me it wouldn't
hurt to do my part in emphasizing. Certainly I wouldn't want to suggest this kind of harmonic rhythm -- directed tension at the end of a unit
resolved at the beginning of the next -- as any kind of "rule"; it's just a common and useful technique.

Other nuances here are the rest in the highest voice, followed by its entry to supply the octave of a complete trine, and then by a turn of phrase
in this voice yielding a momentary sonority of G3-C4-D4, or 5|4_M2. From any usual standpoint this kind of sonority in the middle of a unit is
quite incidental, and one might well have the voices proceed in the same way for melodic reasons quite apart from this vertical detail. However,
I must confess to a weakness for 5|4_M2, and find it a nice touch of color.
----------------------------------------------------------
1.4. Adam de la Halle: An artful contrast
----------------------------------------------------------

A complete three-voice rondeau by Adam de la Halle might illustrate the F-G-F theme in another guise while also demonstrating an artful use of
form to give shape to the "home-away-home" scenario.

Readings of the rhythmic fine points in this rondeau, _He, Diex! quant verrai_, can vary, so that this version is only one possible solution, with
each of the indicated semibreves dividing a breve taken as having equal duration (e.g. triplets at the end of the second unit):

Musical Form: AB AAAB AB

A | B

1 2 3 + | 1 + 2 3 + + | 1 2 3 + | 1 + 2 + 3 | 123 ||
C4 F4 G4 A4 G4 F4 E4 D4 E4 F4 G4 F4 E4 D4 B3 C4
F4 F4 E4 D4 E4 E4 D4 C4 B3 C4 D4 C4 D4 E4 F4
F3 F3 A3 G3 A3 G3 G3 F3
Here the middle voice has the main melody, and we have a "departure and return" kind of scenario starting on F and eventually returning there.
Of special interest, and marking a pivotal point in both the vertical structure and the form, is the unstable split fifth sonority G3-B3-D4 or
5|M3_m3, strategically situated at the middle of the piece.

This mildly unstable sonority, which Jacobus as a passionate advocate for this late 13th-century era will note as a pleasant element of style
when aptly handled, marks a pregnant pause in the form: it occurs at the end of the "A" section of the rondeau, and signals that there is more to
come.

Moving into the "B" section, we first proceed to another split fifth sonority on A, the step above G, which leads by a very transient sixth sonority
A3-C4-F4 or m6|m3_4 to a momentary resolution on a G trine (min6-8 + min3-5), then bringing the music back home with a usual cadence
from a sixth sonority on G to F (Maj6-8 + Maj3-5).

A neat touch of cadential strategy occurs in the portion of the musical form -- AB AAAB AB -- where the "A" section is thrice repeated. Here the
conclusion of this section is directly followed by a return to the beginning -- resulting in another standard 13th-century cadence (voice-crossing
disregarded for the moment):

D4... F4
B3... C4
G3... F3

(Maj3-5)

In this formula for a G-F cadence, or more generally a cadence where the lowest voice descends by a step, the lower third of the _quinta fissa_
(here major) expands to a fifth, while the outer fifth expands to the octave of a complete trine. While not quite as "efficient" as cadences where
all unstable intervals resolve by stepwise contrary motion -- here the upper minor third resolves by similar motion to the upper fourth of the
trine, and the highest voice leaps by a third -- this progression is common, and serves as a close in motets.

Here it serves at once to resolve the suspense caused by the conclusion of the "A" section on an unstable sonority, to reaffirm the contrast
between F as "home" and G as "away," and also to give the piece a pleasant profile through the minor third motion D4-F4 in the highest voice
of this formula. The actual voice-leading here involves a crossing of parts:

D4... C4
B3... F4
G3... F3

As a kind of lead-in to Part II, I'll briefly note two possible roles for the step A in this piece on F.

In the "A" section at the second unit, the trine A3-E4-A4 might be considered a momentary "home away from home": it is approached by a
transient Maj2-4 resolution between the upper voices. When the A trine does play this role, it might be considered as something of a polyphonic
equivalent of a confinal -- or, I might say, co-center. For example, we might have F as center or final, A as co-center, and G as an active step
contrasting with either.

In the "B" section we see another possible role for the step A, by no means necessarily incompatible with the previous role: a step in cadential
progressions leading to G, which in turn leads to F. Thus if we try to come up with a simplified version of the "B" section, we might get
something like this:

... 3 | 1 2 3 | 1 2 3 ||
E4 F4 G4 E4 F4
C4 D4 B3 C4
A3 G3 F3
Here a sixth sonority on A resolves to a trine on G, and the upper voices then move to another sixth sonority on G which resolves to F. One
might say that A is to G somewhat as G is to F.

In this piece, we might call F the "ultimate" goal, and G the "penultimate," since it is the step with the cadential sixth sonority leading directly to
this goal.

Since the step A in this sequence likewise has an unstable sonority resolving to a trine on the step G, we might if so inclined call it "the
penultimate of the penultimate."

Of course, this simplified version of the "B" section disregards Adam's elegant ornamentation of the close, and also the variety brought about
by the voice-crossing. As Richard Crocker has well said in regard to the 13th-century motet, the composers are adept in finding rich variations
on standard passages and progressions.

Influences proposed for these three-voice rondeaux of Adam include the conductus, the polyphonic rondellus, and improvised accompaniments
of monophonic dance songs. If the last influence were significant, these masterpieces might record some of what improvising musicians were
doing -- or one version of this, as adapted by a composer skilled in both the trouvere song and the motet.

At any rate, the F-G-F or more generally "adjacent home and away steps" theme is a fertile start for improvising or composing: the dilemma
remains, of course, as to which types of improvised polyphonic techniques, or possibly newly composed arrangements, one considers
appropriate for a given genre in a given performance situation, with "HAP or HEP" questions[1] likely playing a role in one's choices.

------------------------------------------------------
1.5. An aside: Fluidity and oscillation
------------------------------------------------------

Having traced out some of the possibilities of the F-G-F theme, I should add that in some pieces we have a fluid oscillation or "see-sawing"
between F and G in which either might prove to be "home."

Part of this picture is that just as G is a favorite penultimate for a center on F, so F is an adjacent degree and common penultimate for a center
on G. Consider this final cadence of a kind often found, for example, in conducti:

C4 D4
A3 G3
F3 G3

(Maj3-1 + min3-5)

Here a split fifth on F, 5|M3_m3, resolves to a stable fifth on G; thus G is the ultimate, and F the cadential penultimate.

In some pieces, there's a charming fluidity, moving back and forth between F and G and eventually settling on one or the other at the final
cadence. This happens in a most elegant motet, _On parole/A Paris/FRESE NOUVELE, Montpellier #319.

The piece opens with a trine on F, and soon displays a felicitous point of form facilitated by the structure of the French tenor, apparently a
street cry advertising "Fresh strawberries, wild blackberries" -- or, it has been suggested by one commentator, possibly recording some kind of
political slogan.

To see (and hear) this point of form, let us consider the progression at the conclusion of the first statement of the tenor melody, measures 7-9
in a modern transcription barred in 3/4:

1 2 3 + | 1 2 3 | 1 2 3 |
A4 A4 G4 F4 G4 D4 E4 F4
 E4 D4 C4 D4 r C4
A3 G3 r F3

Here we start with a trine on A, with the upper voices moving by the end of the unit to a very quick sixth sonority resolving to a trine on G (min6-
8 + min3-5). While the lower two voices pause at the end of the measure, the note E4 in the highest voice exerts a very satisfying pull to the full
trine on F.

This formula thus might resemble the "B" section of the rondeau by Adam de la Halle (Section 1.4): there is again a descent in the lowest voice
of A-G-F, with A leading to a momentary resolution to G, and G to a trine on F.

However, the second and third rhythmic units of this example actually splice together the conclusion of the first statement of the tenor, ending
on G, as marked by the rest, and the commencement of the next statement starting on F. At the conclusion of this delightful motet, one of the
most beautiful pieces of music I have heard, we settle agreebly on a final cadence to G:

1 + 2 3 + | 1 2 3 ||
G4 A4 A4 G4 F4 G4
A3 B3 C4 D4
A3 G3

In addition to illustrating the fluid interplay between F and G, this piece has a feature making it appropriate to quote here: in the first excerpt, the
melodic turn in the highest line of G4-D4-E4-F4 provides one not unlikely source for my own use of this figure (Section 1.3).

------------
Note
-------------

1. "Historically Appropriate Performance" (HAP) aims to do, and do well, what reasonably _may_ have been done in a given era and genre;
"Historically Educated Performance" (HEP) seeks to canvass period sources and then do something that "fits the music in an informed way,"
quite possibly using new techniques, or techniques of a group such as the Studio for Early Music which some might hold more typical of 1970
than 1270.

Continued in Part IIA

Medieval Polyphonic Patterns:

Part IIA: The F-G-A question

Please let me again express my thanks to Cait for raising an important question prompting this portion of my essay: the role or possible
treatment of the degree A in a piece centered on F, especially in a style of accompaniment where F is taken as "home" and G as "away."

Before getting into some patterns of 13th-century polyphony that might be relevant for certain accompanied monophonic songs also, I would
offer some general observations applying to simpler and possibly often more appropriate textures than the conductus-like or motet-like three-
voice progressions I shall be describing.

One option with a piece centered on F, of course, is simply to maintain a single drone, for example one on the fifth F3-C4 or the complete trine
F3-C4-F4. Here the prominent note A in the melody will form a "split fifth" sonority F3-A3-C4 with the outer fifth of the drone divided into two
thirds, here the major third below and the minor third above; this sonority will eventually resolve to stability when the melody moves to the final
F, or possibly to its fifth C.
If one is using a moveable drone, however, or simply adding fifths or trines at points where they seem to have a pleasing effect and aptly
decorate the melody, then to a "home" of F3-C4-F4 and an "away" of G3-D4 or G3-D4-G4 one might add a "home away from home" of A3-E4
or A3-E4-A4. In this way A, like G and F, may have a stable and richly concordant sonority for its accompaniment, especially when it occurs
prominently.

I use the term "home away from home" because in Gregorian chant, melodies with a final of F often use A as a prominent tone, for example a
reciting tone in Psalm settings. When secular monophonic songs follow a similar pattern, then an accompaniment including some fifths or trines
on A to complement those on F (the final or note of repose) and G (often a note of motion and contrast) can reinforce this structure.

To this point, my remarks might apply to wide range of monophonic genres, once we cross the threshold of deciding that _some_ instrumental
accompaniment is appropriate. The technique of using a simple drone, or adding fifths or trines here and there where they seem to fit, could
apply to a melody in a free declamatory style as well as to one in a measured rhythm like that of a dance song.

What follows might be most relevant to songs following or approaching a measured rhythm, since the three-voice progressions I discuss are
those of measured polyphony, albeit sometimes _flexibly_ measured polyphony, as in the conductus (where a modern edition like that of
Gordon Anderson can show _one_ possible rhythmic interpretation).

However, the patterns I am about to discuss as resources for a deliberate strategy of accompaniment modelled on composed three-voice
textures can also arise when a melody is accompanied in a simpler style, providing as it were an unplanned adornment. As a compromise
between these simpler and more elaborate approaches, one might follow a more "modest" technique such as accompanying some principal
notes of a song with fifths -- but strategically disposed so that the vertical-melodic interactions sometimes pleasantly but unobtrusively produce
three-voice sonorities and progressions like those described below.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. F-G-A and alternation: Fifthing and mediating sonorities
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A basic question in polyphonic textures, composed or improvised, is how to move from point A to point B -- or from point F to point A, as in the
following melody:

F3 G3 A3

An attractive three-voice technique is to alternate stable and unstable sonorities, as in this idiom which seems to me typical of the conductus:

C4 D4 E4
C4 B3 A3
F3 G3 A3

(Maj3-1 + min3-5)

A characteristic of this figure is that the outer voices engage in "fifthing," moving together in concordant fifths, while the middle voice proceeds
in contrary motion. We start on a stable fifth F3-C4, move to an unstable split fifth G3-B3-D4, and then resolve the relatively concordant but
unstable thirds by progressing to another stable fifth, A3-E4.

There's thus an alternation of stable-unstable-stable, with F and A as stable and the contrasting degree of G as unstable. This kind of pattern,
composed or improvised, might play into a kind of tendency that some modern scholars have proposed for 13th-century melodies in
monophonic or polyphonic styles: degrees a third apart often seem to be "allied," and degrees a second apart to be "contrasting."

This kind of texture with two voices moving in fifths, and a third moving in contrary motion, has lots of possibilities, and we'll develop more of
them shortly. First, however, let's look at (and hear) what's happening to some of the two-voice progressions in this example, thereby
encountering one manifestation of a pleasant figure noted by the writer of a treatise from around the late 13th century.
Considering first the lower pair of voices, we have:

C4 B3 A3
F3 G3 A3

5 Maj3 1

Here we might say that in proceeding from the fifth to the unison, the unstable third "mediates" between these stable concords, making
possible stepwise contrary motion throughout and also providing an element of vertical contrast through its instability and tension.

We might refer to this general two-voice pattern as 5-3-1. Now let us consider the upper pair of voices:

C4 D4 E4
C4 B3 A3

1 min3 5

Here we move from unison to fifth via the unstable third B3-D4 which "mediates" between these stable concords, or 1-3-5. Again, we have the
pleasing contrast and alternation of a "stable-unstable-stable" pattern featuring stepwise contrary motion.

Our medieval author remarks that a third is useful for moving from unison to fifth or from fifth to unison, and indeed this is one favorite way of
proceeding either in two-voice writing or between two voices of a multi-voice texture, as here.

Another three-voice solution for the F-G-A theme involves descending motion of the outer voices, which again engage in fifthing, while the
middle voice ascends in contrary motion, treating A as the upper note of the fifth D3-A4:

C4 B3 A4
F4 G3 A3
F3 E3 D3

(min3-5 + Maj3-1)

Here we have 1-3-5 between the lower voices and 5-3-1 between the upper voices, with the resolution of the split fifth again involving a major
third contracting to a unison while a minor third expands to a fifth.

While the two examples are similar, there is a distinction in vertical color: the split fifth sonority in the first example, G3-B3-D4, has the major
third below and minor third above or 5|M3_m3, while here in E3-G3-B3 they are arranged conversely (5|m3_M3). Jacobus, writing around
1325, prefers the first arrangement but notes that the second is also acceptable, citing a motet known to us from the Bamberg and Montpellier
Codices opening with the sonority A3-C4-E4.

The theme of unstable mediating intervals or sonorities facilitating smoother motion between stable concords, and also providing the element of
directed resolutions by contrary motion, is a fertile one. For example, let us consider a variation on our last progression:

1 2 3 | 1 2 3 | 1
C4 B3 C4 D4
F4 G3 A3
F3 E3 D3

(min6-8 + min3-5)
Here the second fifth between the outer voices, E3-B3, expands to the octave of a complete trine D3-A3-D4 by way of the mediating minor
sixth E3-C4, a figure we might call "5-6-8." The result is a sixth sonority of m6|m3_4. While the outer minor sixth expands to the octave, the
lower minor third expands to the fifth.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2. Stepping up and down: Opposing and connecting sonorities
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Looking again at our three-voice examples so far, we might note a pattern when the lowest voice participates in the directed resolution of an
unstable interval by contrary motion. When the unstable interval contracts, the lower voice moves _up_; when the unstable interval _expands_,
the lower voice moves _down_.

C4 D4 E4 C4 B3 A3 C4 B3 C4 D4
C4 B3 A3 F3 G3 A3 F3 G3 A3
F3 G3 A3 F3 E3 D3 F3 E3 D3

(Maj3-1) (min3-5) (min6-8 + min3-5)

In the first example, the lowest voice takes part in a contracting resolution (Maj3-1) and moves up; in the second, it moves down as part of an
expanding resolution (min3-5); and in the third, it likewise moves down while participating in two expanding resolutions: min3-5
with the middle voice and min6-8 with the upper voice.

Accordingly, the lowest voice can "step up" with contracting resolutions (e.g. 3-1, 7-5, 6-4), and "step down" with expanding ones (e.g. 2-4, 3-5,
6-8).

For one method of "stepping up" from one stable fifth to another, let's consider this F-G situation:

1 2 3 | 1 ...
C4 D4
F3 A3 G3
F3 G3

(Maj3-1 + min3-5)

Here the two outer voices move in fifths, with the middle voice momentarily leaping a third to form an unstable split fifth sonority which resolves
in usual fashion, the lower major third contracting to a unison and the upper minor third expanding to a fifth.

Let us now focus on the lower pair of voices:

1 2 3 | 1 ...

F3 A3 G3
F3 G3

1 Maj3 1

The upper of these voices starts at a unison with the lower voice, ascends by leap to the unstable third F3-A3, and then descends by step to
complete the Maj3-1 resolution by which our lower voice "steps up." Since the upper voice approaches and leaves the note A3 in opposite
directions, by a kind of "zigzag" motion, we might call this note an _opposing_ tone, and the third F3-A3 an "opposing interval." We could
describe this two-voice pattern as motion from one unison to another decorated by the opposing interval of a third, or 1-3-1.

The upper pair of voices show (and sound) another common pattern:
 1 2 3 | 1 ...

C4 D4
F3 A3 G3

5 min3 5

These voices move from one stable fifth (F3-C4) to another (G3-D4), with the lower voice of the pair introducing the opposing tone of A3 and
the opposing interval of the minor third A3-C4, resolving min3-5. We could describe this as motion in fifth decorated by the intervening third and
its resolution, or 5-3-5. Our medieval theorist who notes that thirds are useful in moving from unison to fifth or vice versa also recommends
them in moving "from fifth to fifth," very likely meaning this kind of pattern.

Looking again at all three voices, we could describe the split fifth F3-A3-C4 or 5|M3_m3 as an "opposing sonority" resolving with the lower
major third contracting to a unison and the upper minor third expanding to a fifth, as the middle voice completes its 1-3-1 pattern with the lowest
voice and 5-3-5 pattern with the highest voice.

1 2 3 | 1 ...
C4 D4
F3 A3 G3
F3 G3

The situation of "stepping up" in the lower voice from F to G offers an opportunity to show another useful opposing pattern, 5-7-5:

C4 E4 D4 C4 E4 D4
C4 D4 F3 A3 G3
F3 G3 or F3 G3

(Maj7-5 + Maj3-1) (Maj7-5 + Maj3-1)

In the first progression, the lower two voices move in fifths while the highest voice decorates the progression with the opposing tone E4,
forming a momentary opposing sonority of F3-C4-E4 or M7|5_M3 and weaving a 5-7-5 pattern with the lowest voice and a 1-3-1 pattern with
the middle voice. In the second progression, both upper voices have opposing tones, moving in patterns of 1-3-1 and 5-7-5 with the lowest
voice and producing an opposing sonority of F3-A3-E4 or M7|M3_5.

To illustrate the difference between mediating and opposing tones, and how these two categories can nicely combine in a three-voice texture,
let us consider an attractive way of "stepping down" in the lowest voice from G to F:

1 2 3 | 1 ...
D4 E4 F4
D4 B3 C4
G3 F3

(Maj6-8 + Maj3-5)

Here the outer voices move by contrary motion from fifth to octave with a mediating major sixth (5-M6-8), while the lower voices move in fifths
with an opposing major third (5-M3-5). Together, these figures produce the sixth sonority G3-B3-E4 or M6|M3_4 with its standard directed
resolution.

The highest voice with its mediating tone moves in a "straight line," ascending by step (D4-E4-F4), while the middle voice with its opposing tone
moves in a zigzag pattern, down a third and up a step (D4-B3-C4). Two-voice figures like the mediating 5-6-8 or opposing 5-3-5 are like basic
"stitches" which can be deliciously interwoven in the tapestry of a three-voice texture.
This example also shows how the lowest voice can "step down" through expanding resolutions with one or more upper voices, here Maj3-5
with the middle voice and Maj6-8 with the upper voice.

Now let's consider the situation of "stepping down" from a trine on G to another on F, with two variations bringing into play other very useful
opposing figures:

G4 E4 F4 G4 E4 F4
D4 C4 D3 B3 C4
G3 F3 or G3 F3

(Maj6-8 + Maj2-4) (Maj6-8 + Maj3-5)

In the first example, the opposing tone E4 in the highest voice weaves an 8-M6-8 pattern with the lowest voice, and also a 4-M2-4 pattern with
the middle voice, producing the sixth sonority G3-D4-E4 or M6|5_M2 and its directed resolution with the outer major sixth moving to the octave
and the upper major second to the upper fourth of the trine on F.

In the second example, the two upper voices both have opposing tones forming patterns of 8-M6-8 and 5-M3-5 with the lowest voice, producing
a sixth sonority of G3-B3-E4 or M6|M3_4 and its standard resolution.

Now that we've done a bit of "stepping up" and "stepping down" with mediating or opposing intervals, let's consider a third kind of intervening
interval in another version of the last G-F progression:

1 2 3 | 1
G4 F4 E4 F4
D3 C4 B3 C4
G3 F3

(Maj6-8 + Maj3-5)

This time, in each upper voice, the leap of a third in approaching the opposing tone is "filled in" with the connecting step, so that our 8-6-8 and
5-3-5 patterns become 8-7-6-8 and 5-4-3-5, with the upper voices moving in fourths. These "connecting tones" C4 in the middle voice and F4 in
the highest voice facilitate smoother melodic motion, and also result in the mildly unstable "connecting sonority" of G3-C4-F4 or m7|4_4, an
outer minor seventh "split" into two concordant fourths. In a discussion of the minor seventh, Jacobus recommends this agreeable sonority.

While connecting sonorities often play a rather unassuming role in the middle of a rhythmic unit, they can sometimes make a much more
prominent and dramatic appearance, as with the beautiful m7|4_4 in this formula for an internal or final cadence.

1 2 3 | 1 2 3 | 1 2 3 ||
G4 F4 F4 E4 F4
D3 C4 C4 B3 C4
G3 F3

(Maj6-8 + Maj3-5)

Apart from the changes in rhythm, this progression is identical to the last, combining figures of 5-4-M3-4 and 8-m7-M6-8.

In stepping up and down, we can "mix and match" these figures in varied ways to weave a polyphonic fabric, as in the following example which
illustrates one optional nuance regarding 13th-century accidentals:

1 2 3 | 1 2 3 | 1 2 3 | 1 2 3 | 1 2 3 | 1 2 3 ||
F4 E4 D4 F4 E4 E4 F4 G4 F4 E4 F4
 C4 A3 G3 B(b)3 A3 E4 D4 C4 B3 C4
F3 G3 A3 A3 G3 F3

We start with a trine on F, and "step up" to a fifth on G through mediating intervals of the major seventh (8-M7-5) and major third (5-M3-1) in
the two upper voices with respect to the lowest voice, producing a mediating sonority of F3-A3-E4 or M7|M3_5, with standard resolutions of
(Maj7-5 + Maj3-1).

Next we "step up" again from our fifth on G to another on A, using an optional Bb in the middle voice, with opposing intervals of a minor
seventh (5-m7-5) and minor third (5-m3-1) above the lowest voice, and a mediating sonority of G3-B(b)3-F4 (min7-5 + min3-1).

After pausing on A, which might have the effect of a "home away fro home," we "step down" from this fifth to a trine on G by way of a mediating
tone in the highest voice, forming mediating intervals of a minor sixth (5-m6-8) with the lowest voice and a minor second (1-m2-4) with the
middle voice, and a mediating sonority of m6|5_m2 resolving (min6-8 + min2-4).

Finally, we "step down" from our a G trine to an F trine via connecting and opposing intervals formed by both upper voices with the lowest
voice, 8-m7-M6-8 and 5-4-M3-5, producing the momentary color of a connecting m7|4_4 sonority and an opposing sonority of M6|M3_4,
resolving (Maj6-8 + Maj3-5).

The optional nuance of accidental usage favored in some 13th-century styles and pieces with a final or "home" on F is a tendency to use Bb in
cadences on A (descending semitone Bb-A) and B-natural in cadences on F (ascending semitone B-C). However, this is only one 13th-century
approach suggested by manuscript accidentals: some pieces might use a consistent Bb or B-natural, and indicated accidentals sometimes vary
in different sources for the same piece.

Continued in Part IIB

Medieval Polyphonic Patterns:

Part IIB: The F-G-A question (continued)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3. A-G-F as antepenultimate-penultimate-ultimate (A-P-U)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Having surveyed a few usages of mediating, opposing, and connecting sonorities, we now consider a typical manifestation of the F-G-A
relationship nicely tying in with the theme of A as "home away from home."

In describing 13th-century passages, we might call the final sonority or its lowest note the _ultimate_, or U for short; and the immediately
preceding sonority (often unstable) or its lowest note as the _penultimate_, or P for short.

Most often, the penultimate is located a step above or below the ultimate. If F is the ultimate or U, for example, then G or E is often the
penultimate or P, as in these directed progressions:

D4 C4 E4 F4 E4 F4
B3 C4 B3 C4 D4 C4
G3 F3 G3 F3 G3 F3

(Maj3-5 + min3-1) (Maj6-8 + Maj3-5) (Maj6-8 + Maj2-4)

B3 C4 D4 C4 D4 C4
 G3 F4 B3 C4 G3 F3
E3 F3 E3 F3 E3 F3

(min3-1 + Maj3-5) (min7-5 + min3-1) (min7-5 + min3-1)

Similarly, if U is G, then P is often A or F, as in these similar three-voice progressions:

E4 D4 F4 G4 F4 G4
C4 D4 C4 D4 E4 D4
A3 G3 A3 G3 A3 G3

(min3-5 + Maj3-1) (min6-8 + min3-5) (min6-8 + min2-4)

C4 D4 E4 D4 E4 D4
A3 G4 C4 D4 A3 G3
F3 G3 F3 G3 F3 G3

(Maj3-1 + min3-5) (Maj7-5 + Maj3-1) (Maj7-5 + Maj3-1)

Adding the term _antepenultimate_ or A to describe the sonority or its lowest note that precedes P, let us consider this approach to a cadence
on F:

1 2 3 | 1 2 3 | 1 2 3 ||
A4 F4 G4 F4 E4 F4
E4 C4 D4 C4 B3 C4
A3 G3 F3

A P U
(P/P)

We start with a trine on A, the antepenultimate, with an opposing sixth sonority of A3-C4-F4 leading to a trine on G, the penultimate step where
a connecting sonority m7|4_4 leads to a cadential sixth sonority G3-B3-E4 and a trine on F, the ultimate step.

An important feature of this idiom is that the A-P progression, here from A3-C4-F4 to G3-D4-G4 (min6-8 + min3-5) could also serve as a
satisfying final or sectional cadence on G, in other words as a P-U progression where G is the ultimate.

We might therefore describe the antepenultimate A as "the penultimate of the penultimate" G, abbreviated P/P in the example. That is, the
antepenultimate-penultimate or A-P progression has a cadence-like quality, with the step A acting rather like a penultimate to G, in turn the
penultimate to F in the concluding P-U progression.

This affinity between A-P and P-U is strengthened by the use in both progressions of opposing sonorities of 6|3_4 (6-8 + 3-5) formed by basic
patterns of 8-6-8 and 5-3-5 in the two upper voices, varied by the addition of connecting intervals (8-7-6-8, 5-4-3-5) in the second progression.
By adding these connecting intervals to the first or A-P progression also, we could make the two progressions yet more symmetrical:

1 2 3 | 1 2 3 | 1 2 3 ||
A4 G4 F4 G4 F4 E4 F4
E4 D4 C4 D4 C4 B3 C4
A3 G3 F3

A P U
(P/P)
This kind of A-P-U theme need not be so symmetrical, and in practice composers find many charming variations, as with these passages from
the motet _Dieus! ou porrai/Chesont amouretes/OMNES_, Montpellier #288, and the rondeau _Fines amouretes ai_ by Adam de la Halle, with
the order of voices arranged so as to place the lowest line in the lowest voice:

1 2 3 | 1 2 + 3 | 1 ...
E4 F4 G4 F4 E4 D4 F4
E4 C4 D4 B3 C4
A3 G3 F3

1 + 2 3 | 1 2 3 + | 1 ...
E4 D4 E4 F4 G4 F4 E4 F4
A3 C4 D4 C4 B3 C4
A3 A3 G3 G3 F3

In these two examples we start from a fifth rather than a trine on A, so that the A-G progressions have a mediating 5-6-8 pattern in the highest
voice, followed by G-F progressions with connecting and opposing intervals. The middle voice of the first example has symmetrical opposing
patterns of 5-3-5 for both progressions, combined with the varied interval patterns and rhythms in the highest voice.

This kind of "cadential chain" for the descent of A-G-F is one example of a more general technique in which almost any motion from one
rhythmic unit to the next might be the occasion for a directed progression involving the resolution of instability by contrary motion.

-------------------------------------------------
4. The step A as penultimate of F
--------------------------------------------------

While progressions based on relationships such as F-G-F, F-G-A, or A-G-F are typical of a style favoring directed resolutions based on
stepwise contrary motion, sometimes the step A can serve as a penultimate to F, as in this beautiful final or internal cadence:

E4 F4
B3 C4
A3 F3

(Maj2-5)

A mildly unstable 5|M2_4 sonority expands to a complete trine, with the lowest voice descending by a third and the upper voic es ascending
stepwise in fourths. The lower voices have a resolution by what might be called "near-conjunct" contrary motion from an unstable major second
to a fifth, with one voice moving by step and the other by a third; the outer voices expand from a fifth to the octave of a trine.

A related formula has another mildly unstable sonority, 5|4_M2 -- the same intervals as 5|M2_4, but with the fourth below and the major second
above:

E4 F4
D4 C4
A3 F3

(Maj2-4)

Here the major second expands to the upper fourth of the trine by stepwise contrary motion, while the fifth of the first sonority again expands to
the outer octave of the resolving trine on F.
Jacobus of Liege catalogues and approves of both 5|4_M2 and 5|M2_4 as partitions of the fifth, with the major second placed either above the
fourth, or conversely. We might refer to such sonorities with the same intervals differently arranged as "conversities."

A 13th-century variation on the first progression, however, involves two more acutely tense intervals considered full or thorough discords by
such theorists as Johannes de Garlandia, Franco, and Jacobus: the minor second and the tritone:

E4 F4
Bb3 C4
A3 F3

(min2-5)

Here we have a sonority of A3-Bb3-E4, or 5|m2_A4, with the fifth divided into minor second below and tritone above: the minor second
expands to a fifth, while the tritone moves by parallel motion to a stable fourth and the outer fifth again expands to the octave of the trine on F.

Although excluded because of its acutely tense intervals from the catalogue of Jacobus, a sonority like A3-Bb3-E4 and its resolution shown
above seem to fit some remarks by Johannes de Garlandia around the middle of the 13th century. He advises that any dissonant interval
followed by a stable concord is "equipollent" to that concord, giving as one example a minor second before a fifth, a progression common in
two-voice as well as multi-voice compositions.

The term "equipollent" has been interpreted by modern scholars to mean either that a discord when aptly resolved becomes "equivalent" in its
good musical effect to that of a stable concord; or that it should, especially in freer rhythmic styles, be given a duration "equal" to that of the
resolving concord, thus lending extra emphasis to the progression.

The above A-F resolutions with a 2-5 or 2-4 progression are open to a range of treatments, for example with 5|M2_4 or 5|4_M2 occurring as a
mediating sonority:

1 2 3 | 1... 1 2 3 | 1
E4 F4 E4 F4
A3 B3 C4 E4 D4 C4
A3 F3 A3 F3

The first example has a mediating pattern of 1-2-5 between the lower voices, and the second 1-2-4 between the upper voices.

Variations on these A-F progressions can occur, for example, when the lowest voice has a figure of G-A-F, as in these two excerpts from the
motet _Salve, virgo virginum/Est il donc einsi/APTATUR_, Montpellier #268, with triplets in the highest voice (actually the middle voice of the
texture) at the third beat of the second excerpt:

1 2 + 3 | 1... 1 + 2 3 + + | 1...
G4 F4 E4 D4 C4 D4 C4 D4 D4 C4 B3 C4
D4 E4 F4 D4 E4 F4
G3 A3 F3 G3 A3 F3

(Maj2-4) (Maj2-5)

------------------------------------------------------------------------
5. A quick aside on melodic A-F: A gentle cadence
-------------------------------------------------------------------------

The above discussion of the step A as a penultimate to F addresses a situation where the _lowest_ voice moves A-F.
However, a monophonic song with the melodic figure A-F can also be treated as the middle voice of a mild and gentle cadence featuring only
stable intervals:

E4 F4
A3 C4
Accompaniment: E3 F3

Melody: A3 F3

Here the first sonority E3-A3-E4 or 8|4_5 has the fourth below and the fifth above, relatively stable but less smooth and conclusive in 13th-
century terms than the following F3-C4-F4 or 8|5_4. The effect draws in part of a melodic attraction to F where that step or trine is "home," and
in part on the distinction between 8|4_5 and 8|5_4 as conversities, or sonorities with the same intervals differently arranged.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------
6. A theoretical digression on the F-A relationship
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

In response to Cait's suggestion that the treatment of the step A in a piece with F as "home" and G as "away" can sometimes s eem
problematic, I might offer a curious theoretical aside relating to polyphony.

Suppose we take a diatonic scale or octave species of F-F, and number the degrees in ascending order from the final to its octave, using the
sign ^ to mark our degree numbers. Since the fourth degree is often fluid, with both B and Bb included in the basic _musica recta_ gamut, let's
indicate this step flexibly as B/Bb:

^1 ^2 ^3 ^4 ^5 ^6 ^7 ^8
F3 G3 A3 B3/Bb3 C4 D4 E4 F4

Thus a complete trine on F, or F3-C4-F4, is ^1-^5-^8. Given that directed medieval progressions often involve resolutions from unstable to
stable intervals by stepwise contrary motion, we might expect to see and hear degrees _adjacent_ to these featured in penultimate cadential
sonorities. Consider this four-voice progression:

E4 F4 ^7 ^8
D4 C4 ^6 ^5
B3/Bb3 C4 ^4 ^5
G3 F3 or ^2 ^1

The penultimate sixth sonority G3-B3-D4-E4 and the stable F3-C4-F4 together include seven of the eight steps of our F-F octave species
(counting B and Bb as alternative versions of the same ^4, either of which might occur in this cadential formula). The unstable sonority features
each step within the octave range which is adjacent to a step of the resolving ^1-^5-^8 trine.

As this example illustrates, more generally in 13th-century cadences we often have melodic motions of ^2-^1, ^4-^5, ^6-^5, and ^7-^8 in relation
to a given trine or octave species -- whether the final for the whole piece, or simply the local goal of some directed progression.

From a vertical point of view, this four-voice cadence also features four directed resolutions of unstable intervals by stepwise contrary motion:
Maj6-8 between the outer voices, Maj2-4 between the upper pair of voices, Maj3-5 or min3-5 between the lower pair (respectively with B3 or
Bb3), and min3-1 or Maj3-1 between the middle pair.

E4 F4 ^7-^8 E4 F4 ^7-^8 B3/Bb3 C4 ^4-^5 D4 C4 ^6-^5

G3 F3 or ^2-^1 D4 C4 or ^6-^5 G3 F3 or ^2-^1 B3/Bb3 C4 or ^4-^5
(Maj6-8) (Maj2-4) (Maj3-5 or (min3-1
or min3-5) Maj3-1)
Curiously, the one step not represented in this cadence is ^3, or A3, the only step which is neither part of the ^1-^5-^8 trine nor adjacent to any
of its steps.

When it occurs in a penultimate cadential role, ^3 might progress either to the final or lowest note of the trine, or to the fifth, moving a third to
arrive at either step: that is ^3-^1 or ^3-^5, for example:

E4 F4 ^7-^8 E4 F4 ^7-^8
B3/Bb3 C4 ^4-^5 A3 C4 ^3-^5
A3 F3 or ^3-^1 G3 F3 or ^2-^1

In the first progression, discussed in Section 4 on A-F resolutions, the lowest voice moves ^3-^1, with a 2-5 progression between the lower pair
of voices.

In the second progression, a sonority of M6|M2_5, catalogued and approved by Jacobus, resolves with another 2-5 progression between the
lower voices in which the middle voice moves ^3-^5, with a resolution from major sixth to octave between the outer voices.

While the ^3-^1 and ^3-^5 motions thus can play a useful and colorful role in 13th-century polyphonic cadences, they seem less prevalent than
the stepwise motions of ^2-^1, ^4-^5, ^6-^5, and ^7-^8.

Of course, this digression into the modern theory of trinic polyphony in a medieval or neo-medieval style might be taken as a bit tangential to
questions regarding the treatment of the step A in monophonic songs with a final of F. The traditional role of this step as a confinal or reciting
tone in Gregorian chant for example, might provide one pattern to which vernacular songs with F as "home" could be compared.

Most appreciatively,

Margo Schulter
2004, Copyleft