Chorbuch mit Messen und einem Credo für Herzog Wilhelm IV., illuminiert in der Werkstatt von Petrus Alamire

Bayerische Staatsbibliothek

Description

The choral book belongs to a small group of representative musical manuscripts donated to Duke Wilhelm IV of Bavaria (1508-1550). The codex comes from the workshop of Petrus Alamire (ca. 1470 - after 1534), who worked from 1503 as a music writer for the court of Burgundy-Habsburg. Alamire also worked as a singer, dealer in musical supplies, courier and even as secret agent for the English king. The choral book Mus. ms. 6 contains a credo and six complete masses. The first double page of almost each of the masses included is marked by splendid capitals or vowels, which are rendered in coating paint, partly also in gilt paint. They are made up of grotesque male heads with floral and snails' hats, stuck in funnel-shaped jesters' collars. Some of the heads are further characterised by funny details. Such grotesques are characteristic of the musical manuscripts from the workshop of Petrus Alamire. Datum: 2016

Author

Bayerische Staatsbibliothek, Musikabteilung

Rights Statement Description

CC0