Mensuration and proportion signs : Origins and evolution / Anna Maria Busse Berger.
| Author/creator | Berger, Anna Maria Busse |
| Format | Book |
| Publication Info | Oxford [England] : Clarendon Press ; New York : Oxford University Press, 1993. |
| Description | xi, 271 pages : illustrations ; 25 cm. |
| Subjects |
| Series | Oxford monographs on music Oxford monographs on music. ^A256395 |
| Contents | The representation and interpretation of mensuration signs. Tempus signs ; Modus signs. Mode-rest signs ; Modus cum tempore signs ; Unusual mode signs ; Prolation signs ; Intrinsic signs ; Modification of geometric signs and figures to indicate diminution and proportion ; Mensuration when no sign is given ; An explanation of [semi-circle mensuration signs] in German sources ; The origins of the Mensural system and mensuration signs -- The relationship between perfect and imperfect time. The problem ; Method of investigation -- Theorists who favour breve equality. Direct evidence ; Indirect evidence -- Theorists who favour equal breve and equla minim -- Theorists who favour equal minim. Direct evidence ; Indirect evidence -- Placement of tactus (battuta, mensura) -- Conclusions drawn from theoretical evidence -- Equal breve in musical sources -- Origins of the equal-breve tradition -- Suggestions for performance -- The relationship between major and minor prolation. The problem -- .Major prolation combined with minor prolation ; Augmentation ; Minim equivalence between major and minor prolation ; Major prolation in one voice musical practice -- Major prolation in all parts. Method of investigation ; Theorists who favour equal semibreve ; Theorists who favour equal minim ; Conclusions drawn from theoretical evidence ; Major prolation in all parts in musical practice ; Suggestions for performance -- Diminution by stroke and by mode signs. The problem -- Cut signs ; Southern theorists ; Northern theorists -- Diminution in the fourteenth and early fifteenth cenuries -- Conclusions drawn from theoretical evidence -- Modus cum tempore signs ; O3, O2, C3, and C2 in theory ; O2 in musical practice -- The relationship between cut signs and modus cum tempore signs -- Proportion signs. The problem -- Which proportions were used? -- How were the proportions indicated? -- From mensuration signs to fractions -- The relationship of proportions to each other -- Is the mensuration dependent on the proportion sign or the preceding mensuration sign? -- The mensuration of the note-values compared in a proportion -- The influence of arithmetic on mensural proportions -- The division of the battuta in unequal proportions -- The compared note-value in a proportion -- Appendix: index of signs. |
| Abstract | In the fourteenth century composers and theorists invented mensuration and proportion signs that allowed them increased flexibility and precision in notating a wide range of rhythmic and metric relationships. The origin and interpretation of these signs is one of the least understood and most complex issues in music history. This study represents the first attempt to see the origin of musical mensuration and proportion signs in the context of other measuring systems of the fourteenth century. Berger analyzes the exact meaning of every mensuration and proportion sign in music and theory from the fourteenth to the sixteenth century, and offers revisions of many currently-held views concerning the significance and development of early time signatures. |
| Bibliography note | Includes bibliographical references and index. |
| LCCN | 92012195 |
| ISBN | 0198162308 |
Availability
| Library | Location | Call Number | Status | Item Actions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Music | Closed Stacks - Ask at Circulation Desk | ML174 .B5 1993 | ✔ Available | Place Hold |