'Eros' and 'Thanatos': A Ficinian and Laurentian Reading of Verdelot's 'Si lieta e grata morte' Author(s): Stefano La Via

Source: Early Music History, Vol. 21 (2002), pp. 75-116 Published by: Cambridge University Press Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/853900 Accessed: 26/01/2010 17:48
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21. C)Cambridge University Press Early Music Histozy (2002)Volume Printed in theUnited Kingdom DOI:10.1017/S0261127902002036

STEFAN O LA VIA

EROS AND THANATOS:

A FICINIAN READING AND LAURENTIAN OF VERDELOT'S

SI LIETA E GRATAMORTE
madrigal, as The literary originsof the Italiansixteenth-century prtma inexpressive natureof the so-called well as the presumed perhaps represent two withtheseconda pratica, pratica as compared musical historiogracommonplaces of modern of the mostabused rhetorical and still believethat the linguistic, phy.Mostscholars suchas Pietro byPetrarchist humanists stylistic principles codified the birthof the new literary-musical Bembodirectlystimulated of thosewhoextract is the attitude genre.lEvenmoreproblematic cultural conpratica fromits specific the dichotomy prima/seconda controversy-and applyit to an text - the Artusi-Monteverdi the wholehistoryof period,largelycovering extendedhistorical the madrigal itself.2
and partlydevelopsa lectureI deliveredin Italianat the This essay partlysummarises suMedioevo University of Bologna(14 April 1999)as partof the cycleSei conferenze-lezioni La Face Bianconi.More recentlyI presenteda e Rinascimento organisedby Giuseppina more conciseversionat the Medievaland RenaissanceMusicConference(St Peter's I should College, Oxford,20-2 August 2000), at the suggestionof BonnieBlackburn. for givingme the opportuLa Face Bianconiand Dr Blackburn like to thankProfessor nity to developand presentthis work. ' See, above all, D. T. Mace, 'Pietro Bembo and the LiteraryOrigins of the Italian 55 (1969), pp. 65-86, whose theoryhas been acceptedand Madrigal', Musical Quarterly, scholars.Amongthe exceptions,see J. Haar, 'The variously developedby innumerable in I. Fenlon(ed.),Music of its Sourcesandits Character', EarlyMadrigal: A Re-appraisal Europe (Cambridge, 1981),pp. 163-92, at pp. 175-9, and I. in Medieval andEarly Modern Centuty: Sources and in the Early Sixteenth Fenlon and J. Haar, The Italian Madrigal 1988),pp. 13, 15-46, at pp. 28-30; Haar and Fenlonpointed Interpretations (Cambridge, - a out, in particular, the wide culturalhiatusthat separatesthe birthof the madrigal and its ratherVenetian - from Bembo'sPetrarchism typically Florentinephenomenon similarconclusions emerge also in S. La Via, 'Madrigale literary-musical developments; Studimusicali, e rapporto fra poesia e musicanella criticaletterariadel Cinquecento', 19 (1990), pp. 33-70. See also below,nn. 40-1. of this musicologicalcommonplace 2 A first attempt to show the basic inconsistency Study de Roreas Readerandas Read:A Literary-Musical appears in S. LaVia, 'Cipriano of Madrigals from Rore's Later Collections (1557-1566)' (Ph.D. diss., Princeton 75

Stefano La Via

Neitherof these viewsfindsanysolidfoundation in the works of the firstgreatmadrigalist, Philippe Verdelot. A close lookat his production showsnot onlya wide spectrum of literary interestsbutalsoa remarkable ability to givemusical formto the structureas wellas the contentof a greatvariety of poems.3 To realise this, and fully to appreciate Verdelot'smasteryas a literarymusicalexegete, it is essentialnot to undervalue the poems themselves, norto baseourmusical analysis on superficial or even arbitrary textualreadings. A case in pointis Verdelot's settingof the anonymous ballatamadrigal Sz lieta e grata morte (see Appendix 2 for an edition). Despiteits sixteenth-century fame,4 firstrevived in modern times byAlfredEinstein,5 scholars haveso far not essayed an interpretationof its textualandmusical contents.6 The onlyexception is
3

University, 1991), esp. Part I, and ch. 6, 'Cipriano between two prattiche? A Musicological Topos Revisited', pp. 14-125, at pp. 93-125. H. Colin Slim has already demonstrated this in a number of fundamental studies devoted to Verdelot, particularly in A Gift of Madr7gals and Motets (Chicago and London, 1972), pp. 41-65, 81-104, 161-90. Cf. also D. L. Hersh [= D. Harran], 'Verdelot and the Early Madrigal' (Ph.D. diss., University of California, Berkeley, 1963); and, more recently, H. C. Slim and S. La Via, 'Verdelot, Philippe', in The New GroveDictionaryof Music and Musicians,2nd edn (London, 2001), xxvi, pp. 427-34. The earliest surviving sources of Sz lietaegratamorte are, respectively: the so-called 'Strozzi partbooks' (Florence, Conservatorio di Musica Luigi Cherubini, MS Basevi 2495, dated c.1530: madrigal no. 19); the 1533 and 1537 Venetian editions, by Scotto and Antico and by Scotto, of Verdelot's Primolibrofor four voices (RISM 15332,isolated partbook in Paris, Bibliotheque Nationale de France, and RISM 15379, complete set in Bologna, Civico Museo Bibliografico Musicale, U308: madrigal no. 15); Adrian Willaert's Intavolatura de li madrigali di Verdelotto da cantare et sonare nel lauto (Venice: Ottaviano Scotto, 1536; RISM 15368,madrigal no. 15). Clear evidence of its growing success is the fact that in the first edition of Di Verdelotto tutti li madrigali del primo)et del secondo libroa quatrovoci (Venice: Girolamo Scotto, 1540; RISM 15402)Sz lieta is given pride of place as the opening piece of the whole collection; since then it has been reprinted - and variously rearranged with almost no interruption up to Claudio Merulo's edition of I madrigali delprimoet del secondo libroa quattrovoci nuoramente ristampati et da moltie importanti errori con ogni diligentia corretti(Venice: Claudio da Correggio, 1566; RISM 156622). A. Einstein, 'Claudio Merulo's Ausgabe der Madrigale des Verdelot', Sammelbdnde der Internationalen Musik-Gesellschaft, 8 (190S7), pp. 220-54, 516, includes a still valuable edition of Sz lietae gratamorte (Anhang, pp. 249-54), based on RISM 156622,15402and 155627. More recent editions of the madrigal have been made by Bernard Thomas andJessie Ann Owens on the basis of different sources: see Philippe Verdelot) 22 Madrigals for Four Voices or Instruments, ed. B. Thomas (London, 1980), pp. 39-41 (Sz lietne grata morte, based on 15379, 15368 and 154933- the latter being a reprint of 15402),and Philippe Verdelot, Madrigals for Four and Five Voices,ed. J. A. Owens (Sixteenth-Century Madrigal, 28-30; New York and London, 1989), vol. 30, pp. 81-5 (Se lieta e grata morte,based on 15379). Even Hersh [Harran], 'Verdelot and the Early Madrigal', pp. 90, 163, 175, 220, refers only sporadically to Se lieta e grata morteand only with regard to simple matters such as rhyme scheme, recurrence of initial rhythmic patterns and 'imitative motives', adoption of 'melodic word painting'. 76

Eros and Thanatos

a shortstatement byBernard Thomas, as partof his introduction to the valuable CD anthology of ItalianRenaissance Madrigals performedby the Hilliard Ensemble (EMI,1992):afterintroducing Verdelotas 'probably the most expressive madrigal composer of his generation', Thomasdescribes his Sz lieta as 'oneof the earlier piecesto exploitthe death/orgasm metaphor that becameso important later'.7 An attentive reader of the anonymous text,however,will findno traceof sucha sexualmetaphor:
Si lieta e grata morte dagli occhi di madonnaal cor mi viene che dolce m'e '1morir,dolce le pene. Perchequalhorla miro volgers'insi benignoe lieto giro, subitoper dolcezzail cor si more, la lingua muta tace,
. . . .

Such happy and welcome death from my lady's eyes comes to my heart that sweet to me is dying, sweet the
pain.

Ognl splrlto

glace

attento per sentire un si dolce morire. Ma tanto del morirgioisce '1core che pOl non sento nola, anzi la morte si convert'ingioia. Dunquese la mia donnae di tal sorte che sentir fammi morte si gradita, che saria poi s'ella mi desse vita?
. .

For whenever I see her turning in such kind and delightful motion, at once my heart dies of sweetness, my tongue, mute, is silent, every spirit lies alert to perceive such a sweet dying. But so much does my heart
* 1 -

reJolce

ln aylng

that then I feel no discomfort; rather, death turns into joy. Thus, if my lady is of such a sort as to make death so welcome to me, what would it be if she gave me life?

The openingtercet,the typical rigbresa of a ballatamezzana, introducesthe poem's maintheme:it is the lady's gaze,herocchi - and no morethanthat- whichconveys an oxymoronic feelingof sweet deathto the poet'sheart.The motifis then further developed in the twocentralmutazioni, wherethe poetdescribes the symptoms
7

B. Thomas,introduction to the HilliardEnsemble, Italian Renaissance Madrigals(recorded April 1991),London,EMI, 1992,pp. 2-4, at p. 2; here he seems to go far beyondwhat he hadstatedin the commentary to his Verdelotedition,p. 3: 'compared with the madrigals of Arcadelt,for instance,Verdelot'spieces have muchgreateremotionalrange.Sz lietne grata morteis one of the more ambitiousnumbers, with great deal of internalcontrast, and some word-painting on morteand volgersi; particularly effectiveis the way six barsof low,ratherstaticwritingpreparefor the dramaticleap at bar 40.' In both comments (1980edn, p. 7, and 1992CD programme booklet,pp. 16-17), moreover, Thomas gives a quite free translationof lines 5 ('movingin her beatificcourse'),6 ('my heart dies of happiness'), 8-9 ('everyspiritsleeps/ raptto experience / [sucha sweetdeath]') and 16 ('whatwouldshe be if she gave me life'). 77

Stefano La Via

of his fulguration: just as madonna turns to look at him, his heart dies of sweetness (second tercet), he is struck dumb and all his innerspiritssuddenly lie motionlessso to perceivethat sweetdying most intensely (central quatrain); a similar feeling of voluptas dolendi is eventuallydescribedin the secondmutazioni (penultimate tercet) as a sort of emotional metamorphosis: so much does his heart enjoy 'death', that it literally turns it into joy. Finally the volta, the closing tercet, restoresnot only the A-rhyme(morte/sorte) but also the main key words of the opening tercet (madonna/mia donna, szgrata morte/morte st gradita), this time to reach the crucial turningpoint of the poem:thus, if my lady'sgaze has such effects on me as to make me enjoy death, then what would I feel if she 'gave me life'? One wonderswhat kindof 'death'and 'life' the poet has in mind here. Is he just playingwith words? or is he tryingto tell us something deeper about love?Indeed,it wouldbe impossibleto answer such questions,that is, to understand Sz lieta, withoutconsidering the specificliteraryandphilosophical traditionthat lies behindthe poem. This is a typicallyFlorentinetradition,which directlyconnects the thirteenth-century stilnovisti - Guido Cavalcantieven more than Dante - to Lorenzo de' Medici's fifteenth-century CZanzoniere and to its Platonicfoundation, MarsilioFicino'streatise on Love. (For the following discussion, see the quotations in Appendix1, 1-3.) Cavalcanti's Rime, circulatingwidely in manuscriptthroughout the previousthree centuries,were first publishedin Florenceduring the 1520s, and a good selection of them also appeared in Giunta'ssuccessful1527anthology of Sonetti ecanzoni didiversi antichi autort toscani.8 Twoyearslater GiovanGiorgioTrissino,in hisPoetica, wouldhighlypraisethe 'sweetnessand sharpness' of Guido's verses and variouslyquote them, side by side with those by Dante and Cino da Pistoia, as an alternativemodel to Petrarch'sCZanzoniere.9 It is worthnoting that Trissino,Bembo'smain opponent,had also
Cf. G. Cavalcanti, Rime,ed. M. Ciccuto,intro. M. Corti (Milan, 1996; 1st edn 1978), wherea list of the primary manuscript andprintedsourcesis givenon pp. 48-9, including the referenceto the Sonetti e canzoni (Florence: Eredidi FilippoGiunta, 1527). 9 G. G. Trissino,La poetica, DivisionsI-IV (Vicenza: T. Ianiculo,1529).Trissinodid not contest the authority of Petrarchbut ratherBembo'sand Sannazaro's exclusiveuse of Petrarch as a model:this is whyhe quotesPetrarch as often as Dante,GuidoCavalcanti, Cino da Pistoia and other great authors ('lj altri buoni autori') such as Boccaccio,
8

78

Eros and Thanatos

frequented the OrtiOricellari - the maincentreof intellectual life in Florence between1513and 1522- together withotherkeyfigures suchas Machiavelli, Filippo and Lorenzo Strozzi, Francesco da Diacceto, Michelangelo andprobably evenVerdelot.l Already in this light, then, Verdelot's poeticchoicemaywell be closely linked notonlyto a specific Florentine tradition, butalsoto an even moreprecisecultural contextandliterary trend,completely independent of Bembo's Petrarchism. Not so muchin Petrarch's as in Guido's poetry, in fact,dowe findalmost entirely the imagery later to be revived bythe author of St lieta(seeAppendix 1, 1): the turn of madonna's eyes(Sonnet 4); the deathwhich'sucha sweetgaze' conveys to thelover's heart,making himconfuse pleasure withpain andrhyme gioiawithnoia(Sonnets 13, 15,24, Ballata 32);andthe almosttheatrical animation of the innerspirits, to be takenasvital functions but also as allegorical projections of the poet'sfeelings (Sonnet 6, Ballatas10,34).11 Twocenturies later,Guido became theprivileged model forboth
Guittone d'Arezzo, Francesco Sacchetti and even Lorenzo de' Medici (with particular reference to his ballata 'Donne belle io ho cercato': cf. Divisions II, IV, fols. 17V,67V). As for Guido, after praising the peculiar 'dolceza et acume' of his style (Division I, fol. 5v), Trissino quotes four of his most celebrated poems: the sonnet 'L'anima mia vilmente sbigottita' (11. 1-4), the canzone 'Donna me prega' (11.21-4), the ballata 'Perch'io no spero di tornar giammai' (11.1-6, 1-16), and the isolated canzone stanza 'Se m'ha del tutto obliato Merzede' (cf. Divisions III and IV, fols. 23V,24, 27r-V, 32, 41, 45v-46, 59, 59v). ' On Bernardo Rucellai's gardens, the so-called Orti Oricellari, and on the complex events that led up to the conspiracy against Cardinal Giulio de' Medici, see esp. R. Von Albertini, DasJlorentinische Staatsbewastsein im Ubergang vonderRepublik zumPrinzipat(Bern, 1955), translated into Italian as Firenzedalla Repubblica al Principato: storiae coscienza politica (Turin, 1970), pp. 67-85. Rucellai (d. 1514) had been a close friend of Lorenzo il Magnifico; Diacceto, one of the leading members of the Rucellai circle, had been Ficino's favourite disciple; moreover, Cardinal Giulio had always been on good terms with the Republican wing of the Orti, particularly with its leader Machiavelli, and in part even with rather 'liberal' aristocrats such as AlessandrQde' Pazzi or Battista della Palla, the real promoters of the conspiracy. On Verdelot's association with the Rucellai circle, and in particular with Machiavelli, see Slim, A Gift, pp. 53-61; Fenlon and Haar, TheItalian Madrigal,pp. 37-45; Slim and La Via, 'Verdelot', pp. 427-8. On the key role played by the two Strozzi brothers in the early history of the madrigal, see F. A. D'Accone, 'Transitional Forms and Settings in an Early 16th-Century Florentine Manuscript', in L. Berman (ed.), Words and Music: The Scholarns View.A Medleyof Problems and Solutions Compiled in Honorof TillmanMerrittby Sundry Hands (Cambridge, Mass., 1972), pp. 29-58, and R.J. Agee, 'Filippo Strozzi and the Early Madrigal',Journal of theAmerican Musicological Society,38 (1985), pp. 227-37. On Michelangelo's close relationships with both Lorenzo de' Medici and Cardinal Giulio, see below, n. 39. " See the complete version of each of these poems (but see also Sonnets 5, 7, 16, 20, 22, 23, Canzone 9, 27, Canzone stanza 14, Ballatas 19, 26, 30, 31) in Rime, ed. Ciccuto; according to Maria Corti (ibid.,'Introduzione', pp. 5-27), Guido's basically negative view, 79

Stefano La Via

Ficino's conception of contemplative loveandLorenzo de'Medici's poetry. Lorenzo's CZanzoniere, in particular the sonnetsincluded in his CSomento de'miei sonetti, mightbe considered as a faithfulreading of the Platonicdoctrinealready codified by his tutorin his treatise Sopra loamore (seeAppendix 1, 2:excerpts fromOrations II, VI,VII) According to Ficino(Oration II, ch. 8),13 he who falls in love 'dies'as his ownthought abandons himandturnsto the beloved, as his soulmovesto the other'sbody.But if loveis not requited, thenthe loveris saidto be entirely dead,sincehe livesneitherin himselfnorin his beloved, andhe has no hopeto be resurrected; if loveis requited, on the otherhand,bothlovers'die'in orderto be resurrected and 'live'one in the other.The 'double death'of the unrequited loveris thenopposed to the requited lover's 'happy death'anddouble life:the latteris firstresurrected in the beloved as he hasthefeelingof beingrequited, thencomes back onceagain to life whenhe recognises himselfin the beloved, and therefore he no longerdoubts beingloved. Ficino's 'vitaldeath'concerns the purely contemplative phaseof the fallingin love,andis the onlyexperience capable of redeeming humanbeings,andof leadingthem to God(cf. also Oration VI,chs.6, 8, 10).14 Heretoo,as in Guido andDante,the beloved's
12 his symptomatic paradox of falling of quite in love as as the the loss of of any rational The Petrarca, instance, or in the in faculty, terms reflects and images (Rerum 2-3, 59 the and first XIV, in particular used Averroes's conception Canzoniere ed. 112, M. 131, are love death see reason.

in Petrarch's pragmenta), 8S87, Canzone of his Vita 94,

different; (Milan, 167, 171, of

Francesco for 183,

Canzoniere the Sonnets 14, in

vulgarium 39, in part 61, the

Santagata 133, closer 141, to ed.

1996), 175, course,

Ballatas

73. nuova

Much

Guido, L.

is Dante, (Milan,

particularly sections

(1283-90),

Magugliani

1952),

II-III,

XVI, XIX, XXIV, XXVI.

12 First Platonis 1469; diately written in Latin with the MS title in Commentarium Marsilii Ficini Vaticana, Strozzi (El libro 98), florentini Vat. the lat. in Convivium dated immede amore and Florence, (autograph Biblioteca into Italian 73; and Biblioteca Apostolica 7705, was

Medicea-Laurenziana, by Ficino himself Biblioteca o ver) Convito in Marsilio Ficino

treatise Bibl.

translated LXXVI,

dellnAmore, Centrale, (Florence: di Platone: S. Gentile, I use the

Mediceaand

Laurenziana, printed 1544) scritti, Viti of M.

Florence, lo Amore

Nazionale di Platone

II.V.98), Neri Dortelata,

posthumously . Its main sources

as Sopra are

described

e il ritorno 1984), ed.

mostra

di manoP.

stampe (Florence, Ficino,

e documenti 1984), Sopra

(Firenze) pp. 60-1,

17 maggio 64-8, cat.

16giagno nos. 46,

S. Niccoli, modern 1998). to edition

48-9, ed. e dello

50-2. G. Rensi

lo amore) e disputa and (On in every of

orvero

Convito

di Platone, semplice) ibid., in love); doti of pp.

(Milan,

3 Esortazione and 4 Del two gifts dispute

allo on

amore) simple

de lo amore mutual how soul); the love): to fall Quali

scambievole

(Exhortation

love,

40-4. in tutte amanti pp. 96-8, le anime dal padre 102-3, sono due amori amore (How (Which

modo dello kinds belong

innamorarsi live the

Come gli

of love to

abbino

dello

lovers

father

love):

ibid.,

109-15.

80

Eros and Thanatos

eyes are seen as the concretereflection of the divinerays,as a magical meansof human salvation. Melancholic people, morethan anyothers,needto experience contemplative lovein orderto survive (cf. Oration VI, ch. 9):15 becauseof their extraordinary sensitivity, visualbut also musical, and also by virtueof the restless activity of theirinnervitalspirits,theyneedconstantly to experiencebeauty, by 'seeing'and'listening to' it. In thiscontext(Oration VI,ch. 9,16 butcf. alsoOration VII,chs. 1 and 14)l7the Greekpoet Sappho, evenmorethan the philosophersSocrates and Guido,standsout as Ficino's classicalmodel of amore malinconico; this is hardlysurprising, considering that Ficino's symptoms of falling in lovearequitesimilar to thosefound in Sappho's famousfragment no. 31 (the onlyone that was certainlyknownat the time).l8 Here, in fact, one findsthe earliest description of boththe symptoms of amorous fulguration andthe consequent Love/Death association laterrevived by the author of St lieta e grata morte, especially in the centralquatrain:

Quali passioni sienonegliamanti percagione dellamadre d'amore (Whichpassionsare in the loversthat are causedby the motherof love):ibid.,pp. 103-9. everythingthat has been said, with the opinionof the philosopher GuidoCavalcanti); Perquali gradi if urori diviniinnalzino l'anima (Bywhichdegreesthe divinefurorsraisethe soul):ibid.,pp. 135-7, 155-7. The numbering of the fragment(31, not 2 as in other editions)is the one proposed in Poetarum Lesbiorum Fragmenta, ed. E. Lobeland D. L. Page (Oxford,1955),and followed also in Saptho etAlceus, Fragmenta, ed. E. M. Voigt (Amsterdam, 1963).Fragment 31 was quotedas an instanceof the sublimein Pseudo-Longinus' De sublime (lst c. BC), 10; its modernfame is also due to Catullus'quite free and incompleteLatinreworking, where even the finalimage of death is left out. Cf. P. Radiciotti, 'Introduzione', and F. Acerbo, 'Premessa',to the volume Cantidi Saffio(Rome, 1992), pp. ix-xvi, xix-xxxvi; both Sappho'sfragmentand Catullus'versionare edited and translatedthere on pp. 4-7. Even thoughLonginus' treatisewouldbecomewidelyknownonly from the secondhalf of the sixteenthcentury(as I learn fromLeofranc Holford-Strevens, pers. comm),it is still possiblethat a fine humanistsuchas Ficinohad alreadyhad directaccessto it and, therefore,to Sappho's Greek text as well. This wouldhardlybe the case for Petrarch whosedoublementionof Sappho(Triumphus Cupidinis, iv. 25-7, and Triumphus Fame, iia. 8S8) seems to rely insteadon Horace(Odes, ii. 13, 2X5), not yet on Ovid (Heroides, xv. 99, discoveredonly during the fifteenth century);both Latin poets, together with Catullus,might even have inspiredRaphael'sfamous melancholicportraitof Sappho (includedin his Parnassus, Vatican,Stanzadella Segnatura,1509-11). 81

'6Ibid.,pp.105-8. 7 Conclusione di tutte le cose dette, conla oppenione di Guido Cavalcanti filosofo (Conclusions about

StefanoLa Via
. . . Oh, this is what makesmy heart tremble, deep inside my breast: just as I look at you, for an instant, and suddenlyI have no morevoice, my tongue is broken, a sharpshudderof fire runs along my flesh, . . . I almost think I am dead.l9

All these elements, in the end, come together in the later phase of Lorenzo'sCanzoniere (see Appendix 1, 3a)2and in his final Comento (see Appendix 1, 3b);2lin comparison,Bembo's later Asolani wouldindeedappearas a muchmoresuperficial and rigidly doctrinalvulgarization of Ficino'sPlatonicconceptionof love.22 In Lorenzo'ssonnets, just as in Ficino's inspired prose, madonna's 'murderous' gaze, its divineray,piercesthe poet'sheart andcauses him a 'sweet death',which is also the first step towardshis erotic and mystical'resurrection' (Sonnets68, 92, 100, 108-9, quoted in Appendix1, 3a).23 Andyet Lorenzo,himselfdazzledby the divine ray of love, seems never to take this step: even in his last poems we find him suspendedin 'a sweet existence, between death and life', his heart confortedby the same vital spirits that Guido and

9 'To'

n Fav / vapAiav ev (Sm0OV EXTOalV, / O5 Wp 85 <MX pO%' O5 +OVal/ (S' OV6' EV ET' EIK1, // akka vaF ev kova ea, ksxov / 6' avava %pw svp VXa66pOnKV, // . . . T0Va<V 6' OXlp '=6Vni / vaivoF' eF' avxa.' My own trans-

lationof these twoexcerptsfromfragment 31 (11.5-10,15-16)is basedpartlyonAcerbo's and Radiciotti'sedition (quoted in n. 18), partly on that publishedin Saffio,Alceo, Anacreonte, Liricheeframmenti, ed. F. M. Pontani(Turin,1965),pp. 18-19.I wish to thank LeofrancHolford-Strevens once again for kindlyhelping me improveboth my understandingof the Greektext and my rendering of it in idiomaticEnglish. 20 Lorenzo de' Medici,Canzoniere (Florence, c.1464-83),ed. P. Orvieto(Milan,1984,repr. 1996);on its variousphases, and in particularits later anti-Petrarchist and Ficinian turningpoint,see P. Orvieto'ssplendid'Introduzione', ibid., pp. vii-xl. 21 Lorenzo de' Medici,Comento de'miei sonetti(Florence,1480-91),ed. T. Zanato(Florence,
1991).

Cf. P. Bembo,Gli Asolani (Venice:Aldo Manuzio,1505),moderneditionin P. Bembo, Prosedella volgarlingua. Gli Asolani.Rime, ed. C. Dionisotti(Turin,1966),pp. 311-504:in particular BookI, entirelydevotedto Perottino's unhappy love, chs. 12-16, pp. 33744, and Gismondo's ratherjoyful repliesin BookII, chs. 8-13, 22, pp. 393408, 425-7; cf. alsoBembo's Rime 3, 9-10, 57, 68, 79, 86, Stanza 45, and aboveall Rimerifiutate, Madrigal 9, 'E cosa naturalfuggirda morte',originally includedin BookI of the Asolani and later replacedwith the Canzonetta'Quand'io penso al martire'. 23 Cf. Lorenzo de' Medici,Canzoniere, respectively 'Se in qualcheloco aprico,dolce e bello', 'Quandomorraquesta dolce inimica','Si bella e la mia donna,e in se raccoglie','Se talor gli occhi miei madonnamira'and 'Quandoa me il lume de' begli occhi arriva'; but see also Sonnets72-3, 75, 91, 95-6, 99, 105, 107.
22

82

Eros and Thanatos

Ficino had alreadydescribedin detail (Sonnet 96, Canzone 117, quoted in Appendix 1, 3a).24 Lorenzo'sphenomenological explanation,especiallyin his comment to Sonnet 11 (Comento, 11:9-19, quotedinAppendix 1, 3b),25 fits even more neatly the situationand vocabulary of St lieta e grata
morte:

Se il mio cuorefortunatosospiraquandoe piu pressoalla donnamia, ne e cagione la dolcezzache lui sente, la quale e si grandeche tiene occupatetutte le forze e spiriti vitali e gli svia dal loro officio naturale alla fruizione di quelladolcezza.Se primail cuoreavevabisognodi respiraree refriggerarsi, molto piu ne ha bisogno sopravenendo tanti spirzti,e' quali di naturasono caldi.E di qui nasce il sospiro, e quincisi rinfrescail cuore; el quale,avendogia dimenticatose stesso, per se non si curavadi morire, anzi bramava st dolcee szfelice morte. (If my fortunateheartsighs when it is closer to my lady, this is due to the sweetness it feels, whichis so great that it keeps all the strengthand vital spirits busy, and divertsthem from their naturaloffice to the fruition of that sweetness. If earlier my heartneeded to breathe and be refreshed,it needs that even more now with the suddenarrivalof so manyspirits,whichare warmby nature.This gives birth to the sigh, and thereforerefreshes the heart;which in turn, having forgotten aboutitself, did notcareaboutdying,and ratherlongedforsuchsweetandhappy
death.)

Indeed, the similarities between Lorenzo's comment and Verdelot's anonymouspoem are so striking that one might even think of a direct relationshipbetween them: Lorenzo'sspecific terms may well have inspired,in particular,the very incipit of St lieta, its central quatrain and its penultimate tercet. Both poets, moreover,limit their experience to a one-way,ecstatic contemplationof the lady'seyes and of their divinebeauty;their self-complacent 'sweet death' is not yet 'life' in the complete sense that Ficino had meant in his definitionof reciprocallove. Their love, in fact, is still unrequited,suspendedbetween death and life, confined in such a voluptuousand yet unresolvedoxymoron.Hence the anonymouspoet's final question: what would happen 'if my lady gave me life?':that is, if she returnednot only my gaze but also my love?if she gave me the finalproofthat my love is entirely
24

25

Cf. ibid.,'Glialti sospir'dell'amoroso petto'and'Quando raggiodi sole';see also Sonnets 95, 109, 110. Lorenzode' Medici,Comento, commentto Sonnet 11, 'Se il fortunatocor, quandoe piu presso',pp. 198-202. Cf. also ibid.:'Proemio'24-37, 60-2, 89-100 (with referenceto Dante, Petrarch,as well as to Cavalcanti and his 'Donnami prega'),pp. 136-8, 142-3; 'NuovoArgumento'19-26, pp. 173-4;commentsto Sonnets5, 9, 12, 22-3, 25-6, 30-5, 39-40, pp. 178-80, 191-5, 202-8, 251-62, 266-74, 285-311, 324-31. 83

StefanoLa Via

requited?if she allowed me to accomplishmy resurrectionand final salvation? We might wonder,at this point, whether Verdelotwas able to catch the poem's subtle concetti, its literary and philosophicallusions, and even to give them musicalexpression.My impressionis that he fulfilled both tasks: Ficino and Lorenzo- perhaps even Sapphoand Guido behind them - have just given us the key to understandingnot only the anonymoustext but also Verdelot's profoundly expressivemusical responseto it. Eachcompositional choice,indeed,contributes to the most effective musical representationof that Ficinianand Laurentiankind of amore malinconico whichis at the heart of St lietae gratamorte (see my annotatededition of the madrigal,in Appendix2, and Tables 1-2). The most obviousof such choices concerncleffing,ambitus and rhythm. The gloomy nature of Verdelot's reading, in fact, depends primarilyon the dark colour of its compacttexture and on its static declamation: that is, on its fairlylow clef combination and ambitus, and on the homogeneous slowness of its pace, obtainedthroughan almost exclusiveadoptionof white notation in the context of the so-calledmisura comune (the sign, denoting alla breve tactus). What makes such tardita stand out most effectively,moreover, is the adoptionof an almost pervasivehomophonic writing;this is interruptedonly in a few instances by brief imitative hints, usually at beginningsof lines and in connectionwith positiveconcepts of sweetness, pleasure and delight (see bars 10-15, 22-5, 40-1, 48-52, 61-6: 'che dolce . . .', 'volgersiin si benigno e lieto giro', 'un si dolce . . .', 'che poi non sente noia', 'che sentir fammi morte si gradita,/ che sariapoi . . .'). Otherwise,particularly in the incipit and in the central symptomaticquatrain (bars 27-44), Verdelot seems to anticipatethe 'choralrecitativestyle' of Rore'sand even Monteverdi's seconda pratica madrigals:26 here too in fact - and this is not a uniquecase in Verdelot- we findthe most clear and intel26

Concerningthe use of the so-called 'choral recitative style' in the madrigalsof Monteverdi and some of his predecessors (RoreandWertaboveall), see respectively A. Einstein,TheItalian Madrigal(Princeton, 1949),i, pp. 417-18, ii, pp. 516, 724;D. Arnold, 'Seconda Pratica:A Background to Monteverdi's Madrigals', MusicELetters, 38 (1957),pp. 341-52, at pp. 345-6, 351;S. La Via, 'Originidel "recitativo corale"monteverdiano: gli ultimimadrigali di Cipriano de Rore',in Monteverdi: recitativo in monodia e polifonia(Rome, 1996),pp. 23-58. 84

Eros and Thanatos

ligible declamationof the poetic text, as well as the segmentation of the musical discourse in single phrases clearly marked by cadences (see Table 1 and the edition in Appendix2).27 Even if each musical phrase usually correspondsto a single poetic line, the strongest cadential resolutions - followed by a simultaneousrest in all voices- are carefullyadoptedto markthe veryincipit of the poem as well as the endingof its four main divisions and synctacticperiods:that is, respectively,the ending of lines 3B (rzpresa = periodI), 10f (firstmutazioni = periodII), 13G (secondmutazioni = periodIII) and 16H (volta = periodIV). More or less weak and passingresolutions,on the other hand, never followed by a simultaneousrest, tend to be used within each block, particularlyin the two central mutazioni, revealing Verdelot's attention to both metre and syntax. By virtue of their strategic position and of their clear perceptibility,however,cadences are also given a specificsemantic function,which in turn appearsto orient the tonal trend of the whole setting: their expressivefunction, in other words,is at workat both levels of micro-and macrostructure. Table 1 sums up the madrigal'stonal-cadentialplan, of which a synopsisis givenin Figure 1:it shows,in the firstplace, the sharp preponderance of Phrygian and half-cadence types over the authenticmodel. My use of these terms is clarifiedin Appendix3, which also offers a detailed definitionand exemplification of each cadential type with reference to Verdelot'spractice.28 It will suffice here to recall that the negative,suspended,pathetic natureof both the Phrygianand half-cadencetypes is due mainly to the
27

28

Manyother madrigalsby Verdelotexhibit a similarlyhomophonic writing,even with episodicadoptionof choralrecitative.Amongthem, particularly close to the typology and even to the expressivecontents of Sz lieta, are O dolce nocte(Machiavelli, in the 'Newberry-Oscott Partbooks', c.1526-9,ed. Slim in A Gi#), Se maiprovasti, donna, qual sia amore (Bologna,CivicoMuseoBibliografico MusicaleQ21, c.1526,and RISM15332, ed. Thomas,Owens), Se voiporgesti unasolfiata (15332,ed. Owens),La bellamanmiporse (15332,ed. Owens),Qualmaraviglia, o donna (1534'6,ed. Owens),Quando madonna Amor, lasso, m'invita (1534'6, ed. Owens),None ver che pietade (1537",ed. Owens).Cf. also Slim and La Via, 'Verdelot', p. 430. I have first definedand appliedmy analyticalsystem in La Via, 'Cipriano de Rore as Readerand as Read',pp. 13448 (theoreticalprinciples),152-398 (analysesand conclusions), completedunder the supervisionof Harold Powers;more recently I have furtherdevelopedthe same methodin variousessays,particularly in n lamento di Venere abbandonata: da Tiziano a Cipriano deRore(Lucca,1994), and "'Natura delle cadenze"e "naturacontrariadelli modi":punti di convergenza fra teoria e prassi nel madrigale cinquecentesco', Saggiatore musicale, 4 (1997), pp. 5-51. 85

Table 1 Formaloutlzneand tonalplan of Verdelot's Si lieta e gra Cadences Phrygian

Rtpresa I

la
2B 3B

Si lieta e grata morte dagli occhi di madonnaal cor mi viene che dolce m'e '1morir,dolce le pene. Perchequalhorla miro volgers'insi benignoe lieto giro, subitoper dolcezzail cor si more, la lingua muta tace, ogni spiritogiace attento per sentire un si dolce morire. Ma tanto del morirgioisce '1core che poi non sento noia, anzi la morte si convert'in gioia. Dunquese la mia donnae di tal sorte che sentir fammimorte si gradita, che saria poi s'ella mi desse vita?

g>A

Mutazioni

4c 5C 6D
II

c >D (x) c6 > D

7e 8e 9f lOf 11D 12g

III
Volta

(g > A o ((x) g >a/d) ((x) g6 > [d4]a g >(a)/ (x) c6 > D (x) g6 > A
)

13G 14A
IV 15H 16H

Key to Table 1 text Poetic Numbersand letters in the left columndesignaterespectively lines and rhymes;small and capitalletters distinguish7syllablelines (such as la) from 1l-syllablelines (such as 14A). sonorities Vertical symbolsdesignatesingle vertical letter-notation Conventional sonoritiesor 'triads';small and capitalletters distinguish minorfrommajortriads;for example:d = D minortriad;D = D majortriad. Smallor capitalletters, with no addedsymbols,designate triads;small letters with added 5/3 or 8/3 root-position unf designate8/8 unfilledtriads (withouta third); superscript = 8/8 unfilledtriad rootedon D. 00 for example:dUnf 6/3 and 6 and 4 designaterespectively Addedsuperscripts 6/4 triads (equivalentto 'firstinversion'and 'secondinversion');for example:c6 = 6/3 C minortriad;d4 = 6/4 D minor triad. tonal focus,or the pitch class of the lowest d / D = primary in note in the sonoritythat ends the piece nalis or cordayinale modalterms). sixteenth-century in mezana or corda tonal focus (contnalis a /A = secondary modalterms). sixteenth-century

Cadences The linkageof one letter denotes that one triad 'r cadence(see definitionsa g > A or c6 > D = Ph d > A or g > D = hal g > d = plagalimper A > D or D > g = au The symbol(x) refers the cadentialresolution, and Ph di settima) (sincopa Bracketsand arrowsde cadence,as in: (D > g) = passingaut A > d 9 (g > d) < = followedby passingpla ((x) g6 > [d4]a) = passi Evadedcadences(fugg a designatedrespectively (x) A > (d)/ = the expe evadedand divertedinto = the authen A > dUnf/B; poetic line, is 'elided'by line, with the effect of tu < (ext) = cadentialexte

:)

c c>D )l,:) > D g>A (Phry) gd>A > A g>D g >

Stefano La Via

r
/ /
vi

-l

(Phry) (au+hc) (au) A>d (Phry) (hc)

;)
\ (Phry)

g>(a)

r---- -l
(Phry) (au+hc)
Figure 1

downward motion of their semitone resolution,which even leads to 'imperfection' in the case of the half-cadence; the more positive characterof the authenticcadence,on the contrary,depends on its ascendingand 'perfect'kindof resolution,whichin this case is weakened,elided or even reversed. The patheticgravita of the Phrygian andhalf-cadence resolutions, onto A or D, which mark the first two sections of the madrigal (lines la, 3B, lOf, at morte, pene, morzre, bars 4-5, 18-19, 42-4), is even increased,in sectionsIII and IV, in association with morepositive rhymewordssuch as gioia (line 13G,bars54-5) and vita (line 16H,finaltwobars).At this level too, as in that of rhythm, Verdelot chooses to underscorethe negative, painful member of the oxymoronto the detrimentof its pleasantandjoyful counterpart. The same logic appearsto inform,at the macro-structure level, the overall tonal-cadentialplan of the piece, its coherence and symmetryas well as its inexorablynegative trend. The expected positiveresolutiononto the main 'tonal focus'of the madrigal29 29 The useful term Tonal the 'tonal focus' was first used by Karol Berger in a paper April of two 1987). things: presented Harold a cluster at the Symposium later adopted Coherence same term in Pre-Tonal to designate Polyphony 'either (Princeton, or both Powers of dia-

88

Eros and Thanatos

its initial and final D sonority- not only is rare and feeble, but is repeatedlydenied or reversedin variousways: (1) externally,by means of a specularoverturnor 'cadentialchasm'- from A > D to d > A (half-cadence)or g > A (Phrygian)- with pathetic emphasison the alternativetonal focusA; (2) internally,by means of negative cadence models that either resolve directlyonto D or transformthe originalauthenticclose A > D into the half-cadence g > D, as in the cadential extensions of the ripresa and volta. The resulting symmetryof the whole tonal-cadentialarchitecture (see the synopsisin Figure 1) faithfullymirrorsnot only the structureof the ballata-madrigal (the varied return of the opening tercet in the final volta)but also the parallel circularityof its concepts:the return of the 'welcomedeath' inspiredby the gaze of 'my lady'. The final rhetoricalturn towards'life', being also a turn from reality to idealization,does not allow Verdelot to close the piece with a positiveauthenticcadence to D (see bars 65-73). The solemn extension with protractio longaeand suspended halfcadence g > D, albeit conventional,gives definitivestress to the negative member of the oxymoron(i.e. of the voluptas dolendi), in a way that rendersalmost mimeticallythe lover'sunresolvedsuspension between death and life. The overall coherence and homogeneityof Verdelot's setting, however,does not preventhim fromgivingsome kindof relief also to the oxymoron itself, by means of a cleverly designed upward/downward oscillation of the melodic profile. At first, the ascendingmotionand its reversalcorrespond exactlyto the 'sweet death' positive/negativesequence:see, for instance, in the incipit (opening five bars), the quasi-fauxbordon oscillationof the three compact upper parts against the bassus; particularlyelegant, in the cantus,is the reversalof the stepwisediminishedfourthascent,
tonically adjacent pitch classes of the order of three to six, within which one or two predominate; a tonal center around which pitches and pitch relationships cluster or seem to be dominated. In medieval/Renaissance theoretical terms, tonal focus would be either a diatonic species of the fourth or fifth, or a degree in a Guidonian hexachord. Tonal focus is meant for concrete analysis of pieces or parts of pieces, and is hence likely to be a matter of judgement in any particular instance': H. S. Powers, 'Monteverdi's Model for a Multimodal Madrigal', in F. Della Seta and F. Piperno (eds), In Cantuet in Sermone: For Nino Pirrottaon his 80th Birthday(Florence, 1989), pp. 185-219, at pp. 185-6, n. 5. Cf. also S. La Via, 'Monteverdi esegeta: rilettura di Cruda Amarilli/ O Mirtillo', in M. Caraci Vela and R. Tibaldi (eds), Intornoa Monteverdi (Lucca, 1999), pp. 77-99, at p. 86, n. 16. 89

StefanoLa Via

into descent of a diminished up to F3(at Sz lietae grata))30 fromC#3 A similar up-andfifth, from G3 down to C#3(melisma at morte). line 13G, downfluctuationcomes backeven at the 'metamorphic' 52-5, (bars is inverted units opposing two of the order the when gioia):once again, not only in the canvs. si convert'in anzila morte tus but in all three upper voices, evokingthe quasi-fauxbourdon oscillation of the incipit. In the simplest possible way, then, of the two oxyVerdelot is showing here the interchangeability moronicunits, or, in other words, that process of mutual penetration that distinguishesan oxymoronfrom a real antithesis. and melanAlso at this level, however,it is the element ofgravita cholic pathos that in the end prevails over that of sweet piacethe final segment of each melodic phrase (especiallyin volezza:3l the cantus) is alwaysdescending,and its stepwisemotion tends to outline harshintervalssuch as the diminishedfourthand fifth, or pathetic figures such as the Phrygiantetrachord.A direct consequence of such a prevalentlydescendingtendencyis the gradual loweringandrestrictionof the overallambitus,whatanysixteenthcenturytheoristwouldconsideras a genericsymptomof a plagally oriented kind of'modality'. however,poses some serious problemsof St lietae gratamorte, modalattribution,especiallywith referenceto the eight-modesystem, the only one Verdelotcouldpossiblyhave been familiarwith (see Table 2). We find neither this madrigal,nor its unusualtonal type - cantusmollis,low clefs (C2-C4-C4-F4), final D - in any Perhapsa traditionalthemodallyorderedcollectionof the time.32
30

31

32

are attachedto capitalletters to desnumbers 3, subscript Here, as well as in Appendix system,Gl corresponds hexachordal ignatepitchlevel:with referenceto the Guidonian to Gammaut, C2to Cfa ut, C3 to c solfa ut, and C4 to cc solfa. one of the landmarks traditionally (or dolcezza), The stylisticdichotomygravit2/piacevolezza (cf. P. Bembo,Prosedella volgarlingua (Venice:Tacuino,1525), of Bembo'sPetrarchism in Bembo,Prose,ed. Dionisotti,pp. 146 ff.), was alreadyquite familiarto Lorenzode' but also,and aboveall, to GuidoCavalcanti: Medici,whoappliedit not onlyto Petrarch uno stile grave,lepidoe dolce,e questecose amorose trovarsi 'Chinegheranel Petrarca di chi di soprafacemmo con tanta gravitae venustatrattate. . .?';'E GuidoCavalcanti, abbi insieme 61, p. 142], non si pubdire quantocommodamente menzione['Proemio' me prega'] comemostrala canzonesopradetta ['Donna e la dolcezza, la gravita coniunto e alcuni sonetti e ballate sue dolcissime':Lorenzode' Medici, Comento,ed. Zanato, 31, p. 175, Lorenzo 95, 99, pp. 147, 148;later on, ibid., 'NuovoArgomento' 'Proemio' uses similartermsto describethe beautyof his belovedlady: 'Erala sua bellezza,come dolce e piacevole'. . . . l'aspettosuo gravee non superbo, detto, mirabile: abbiamo Polyphony',Journal in Renaissance Cf. H. S. Powers,'TonalTypesandModalCategories Society,34 (1981),pp. 428-70. Musicological of theAmerican
90

wr

Eros and Thanatos Table 2 Tonal type andpossible modal representation in Verdelot's Si lieta e grata morte (1) tonal type:
;

= cantus mollis, or B; system C2 = 'low'clef combination(cantus:C2, altus:C4, tenor:C4, bassus:F4) D = pitch class of the lowest note in the last sonority

(2) ambitusof each voice, species of 8ve/5th/4th,cadences:

c

112}.
115

^ v l Xb '> %7

["] [b] ["] l --: ,!1:

L--J

[E A

r ["]

b +

-.

><'. ,

> ["] ["]

vb
B

< +
b
i) la v

[b]

sol re

1f

re

[corda mezana] cadential emphasis:

cordamezana corda finale (openingsonority) first cadence = Phry

+

2 main cadences: end of ripresa and end of volta = au + (ext) hc

+

1 internalcadence: 7 internalcad.s: llD= (Phry) 4c= (Phry) (tenor)(bassus tacet) 5C = Phry 6D = au rep. 7e = (pla i.) gf= (au) 13G = Phry

6 internalcad.s: 2B = hc 8e= (hc) lOf= hc 12g = (Phry)rep. 14A= Phry

Key to Table 2
Downward and upwardarrowsbetween notes indicatesemitone tendencyonly in relationto the two main pitch classes of the piece (D andA), corresponding to the modal finalis (Zarlino's corda finale) and confinalis(Zarlino's cordamezana). Accidentalswithin squarebracketsindicateoccasionalalterationof diatonic pitches (usuallyat cadencepoints). au = authenticcadence hc = half-cadence pla i. = plagal imperfectcadence Phry = Phrygian cadence (ext) = cadentialextension rep. = repeat

StefanoLa Via

orist such as the FlorentinePietro Aaronwould have ascribedit to the first mode,33 whose positive and joyful ethos,34however, hardlyfits the unquestionably graveand melancholiccharacterof Verdelot's madrigal.From the rather retrospectiveviewpointof dodecachordaltheorists such as Gioseffo Zarlino, on the other hand, the tonal type of Sz lietamight be seen as an antelitteram representationof the Hypoaeolianmode 10, transposeda fifth lower by B flat, perhapswith an inner Hypophrygian (even more than Hypodorian) commixture.35 The particularly close connection betweenthe two plagal modes 10 and 4, accordingto Zarlinohimself, is due basically to their common species of fourth (D-C-B;-A), besides, naturally,their descendingmodo diprocedere and low ambitus; for these reasons, he also attributes to them exactly the same melancholicand plaintive 'nature',particularly suitable to materie amorose.36 Here our exegetic circle might find its final closure. Zarlino's modal terms, even though hypotheticaland retrospective,37 would fit perfectly the essence of Verdelot's reading, and would give
33

Cf. P. Aaron,Trattato della naturaet cognitione di tutti gli tuonidi cantofiguratonon da altrui piu scritti (Venice, 1525),chs. 1-3, and in particular ch. 4, 'Dichiaratione del primoet secondotuono',unnumbered folio.According to Aaron,'anysongwhoseTenorends on D sol re' - includingthose 'with the B molle',since this does not affect the species of fifth- 'willundoubtedly be ascribedto either the firstor the secondmode'.In the case of Sz lieta, Aaron's firstmode (ratherthan the second)seems to fit quitewell the octave speciesin the tenor (withthe regularfifth belowthe 'transformed' fourth,and not vice versa)as well as its wholeprocessus. For a discussion of Aaron'sterms,cf. H. S. Powers, 'Is ModeReal?PietroAron,the Octenary System,andPolyphony', BaslerJahrbuchfur historische Musikpraxis, 16 (1992),pp. 9-52, at p. 28 et passim. Cf. Aaron,Trattato,ch. 25, 'Della naturaet operationedi tutti gli tuoni',unnumbered folios,where the first modeis associatedwith affectionsof 'happiness, joy and hilarity'
(letitia,gaudioet hillarit2d'animo).

34

35

36

37

G. Zarlino, Le istitutioniharmoniche (Venice:F. dei Franceschi, 1558),part IV, chs. 5-29, pp. 301-5, and esp. ch. 19, 'Del secondomodo',ch. 21, 'Del quartomodo',and ch. 27, 'Del decimo modo',pp. 322-3, 324, 332. On Zarlino'shumanisticinterpretationof Glareanus' dodecachordal system,and on his rathermodernconceptionof 'transposition' (as opposedto Aaron's'transformation'), modo di procedere, modalspecies,relationship between tenor and the other voices, and naturacontrariaof authenticand plagal modes,see La Via, 'Naturadelle cadenze',pp. 14-22, 42-50. On mode 10 and its structural as well as affectiveconnection with modes2 and 4- also with reference to Verdelot'sfour-voicemotet Gabrielarchangelus locutus est Zachariae (1532l)- cf. Zarlino, Istitutioni, p. 332; on the similarlygrave,melancholic and plaintive natureof these three plagalmodes,see also pp. 322-4. It must be stressedhere that Zarlino'sreferenceto Verdelot,just quoted abovein n. 36, is not at all exceptional: indeed,in the wholeIstitutioniharmoniche Verdelot'smadrigals and motets stand out among Zarlino'smain practicalmodels, second only to Willaert's Musica nova. 92

Eros and Thanatos

further confirmationto everything that has emerged from my analysis.At every level, indeed - from rhythm, melody and texture to cadentialand tonal strategy- Verdelot'smusic appearsto be aimed at the most melancholic,at times even funereal,representationof the anonymous poet'sfatal experienceof amorousfulguration,and, behindthat, of a specifically Florentine,Platonically oriented conceptionof amore contemplativo. Without going beyond the limits of a workinghypothesis,one might even see in early madrigalssuch as Sz lieta e grata morte the particularreflectionof a wider culturalphenomenon: the Florentinepoliticaland artistic revival,duringthe 1520s,of the cult of Lorenzoil Magnifico, whose main promoterwas CardinalGiulio de' Medici (since 1523 Pope Clement VII), Verdelot's own patron,38 who commissionedhis early madrigalsas well as Michelangelo's BibliotecaLaurenziana and Medici chapel in San Lorenzo.39
38

39

R. Sherr,'Verdelot in Florence,Coppiniin Rome,and the Singer"LaFiore"',Journal of theAmericanMusicological Society, 37 (1984),pp. 402-11, at pp. 402-4, 409, has uncovered and published a letter fromNiccolode Pictiswhichdocuments Verdelot'sentranceinto the serviceof CardinalGiuliode' Mediciin May 1521;see also N. Pirrotta,'Rom',in MGG,xi, p. 706;Slim,A GiJi, pp. 53-62, and Slim and La Via, 'Verdelot', pp. 427-8. See also above,n. 10, and below,nn. 39 and 40. Authoritative scholarssuch as Haar and Fenlon,however, tend to excludethe possibility that the Medicifamily,and in particular CardinalGiulio, might have playeda primaryrole in the Florentinepatronageof the early madrigal,also on the groundof Verdelot'sassociationwith Machiavelli and the OrtiOricellari, and of his supposedoppositionto the Medicifamily:see Haar, 'The EarlyMadrigal', p. 164,and I. Fenlon,'Contextand Chronology of the EarlyFlorentine Madrigal', in M. Muraro(ed.), La letteratura, la rappresentazione, la musica al tempo e nei luoghi di Giorgione (Rome, 1987),pp. 281-93, at pp. 283-5. The Florentinerenewalof the GoldenAge of Lorenzoil Magnifico startedduringthe papacy of Giovannide' Medici, Leo X (1513-21); it is in this period (1519) that Michelangelo began to workon his decorative sculptures of the Medicichapel,encouraged in particular by Cardinal Giulio,who,as PopeClementVII (1523-34),wouldlater commissionMichelangelo's BibliotecaLaurenziana (1524-7, 1533-4);both worksrepresent a tributeto the Medicidynastyas a whole, but also a retrospective celebration of Lorenzoas politician,patronof the arts and man of letters. In the same years,various retrospective homageswere addressed to Lorenzoby differentpersons,such as the biographerNiccolo Valori (VitaLaurentfi Medicis, dedicated to Leo X in 1518), the Republican Machiavelli (Istorieforentine, commissioned by the Mediciin 1518),the aristocratAlessandro de' Pazzi (Discorso, 1522,written at the explicit requestof Cardinal Giulio), the literary critic Trissino (La poetica,1529; see above, n. 9), the painter Pontormoand the artists who decoratedLorenzo's villa at Poggio a Caianoafter the Medicirestorationin 1512.See, in particular, Von Albertini,Firenze dallaRepubblica al Principato, pp. 69-70, 78-83; C. de Tolnay,Michelangelo, iii: The Medici Chapel (Princeton, 1970, 1st edn 1948), pp. 7-13, 26, 33-5, 63-75; J. S. Ackerman,TheArchitecture of Michelangelo (Harmondsworth, 1970, 1st edn 1961), pp. 97-122, at pp. 98-104; H. Hibbard, Michelangelo (NewYork,1974),pp. 177-219; J. Cox-Rearick, Dynasty andDestiny in Medicean Art:Pontormo, LeoX, andthe TwoCosimos (Princeton,1984),Parts I-III, pp. 15-227. 93

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Even outside such a hypothesis,40 both Verdelot'spoetic choice and his sensitivemusicalresponsesuggestonce again that the traditionalPetrarchanand Bembist-oriented view of the literaryorigins of the sixteenth-century madrigal should be further re-examined, widened and also reconciled with its primarily Florentineroots.4lThe profoundexpressivityof Verdelot'smusic also seriously challenges the even more schematicgbrima/seconda gbratica opposition: here, as elsewhere,the composeris clearlyinterested in mirroring and highlightingnot only the formalsurfaceof his chosen poetrybut also its inner meanings,up to the point of offering us a key to their clarificationand deep understanding. Even though he is not as yet interested in the musical dramatization of poetic contrastsand antitheses, some of his solutionsincluding his tonal, cadential and melodic strategies - clearly anticipatethose that Ciprianode Rore, the supposed'founder'of the seconda gbratica, will restore and bring to perfectionin his later
masterpieces.42

Universitadegli Studi di Pavia

40

41

42

A hypothesis in line with the recent conclusions reached by F. A. D'Accone, 'Lorenzo il Magnifico e la musica', in La musica a Firenzeal tempo di Lorenzo il Magnifico, Congresso internazionale di studi (Firenze, 15-17giagno 1992), ed. P. Gargiulo (Florence, 1993), pp. 21948, at pp. 246-8. Here D'Accone stresses the key role played by Lorenzo in promoting transalpine polyphony in late fifteenth-century Florence, and even in laying the groundwork for the imminent birth of the madrigal; he identifies in particular the Fleming Heinrich Isaac, Lorenzo's favourite composer (a stable member of the Medici court from 1484 to 1496 and still in Florence between 1512 and 1517) as the true predecessor of early madrigalists such as Bernardo Pisano, Francesco Layolle and Philippe Verdelot. In this broader sense my Ficinian and Laurentian reading of Verdelot further substantiates the historical view of the Florentine origins of the Italian sixteenth-century madrigal already proposed by several American and British scholars in the 1970s and 1980s. Besides the essays by Haar (1981), Fenlon and Haar (1988), D'Accone (1972), Agee (1985) and Fenlon (1987) cited in nn. 1, 10 and 38, see also F. A. D'Accone, 'Bernardo Pisano and the Early Madrigal', in Internationale Gesellschagih fur Musikwissenschaft: Report of the Tenth Congress (Ljubljana, 1967), ed. D. Cvetko (Kassel, 1970), pp. 96-106, and J. Haar, 'Madrigals from the Last Florentine Republic', in S. Bertelli and G. Ramakus (eds), EssaysPresented to MyronP. Gilmore(Florence, 1978), ii, pp. 383403. From this angle, Verdelot's St lieta e grata morteis a forerunner in particular of Rore's sombre setting of Della Casa's sonnet 'O sonno, o della queta, humida, ombrosa', analysed in La Via, 'Natura delle cadenze'. 94

Eros and Thanatos

APPENDIX 1

Some Antecedentsand PossibleLiterarySourcesof Sz lietae gratamorte 1. Guido Cavalcanti, Rime 4. 5: quandoli occhi gira 9. 4: mostrandoper lo viso agli occhi morte 13. 1: Voi che per li occhimi passaste 'l core 15. 11-12: . . . ritornerebbe in allegrezzae 'n gioia. Ma si e al cordolente tanta noia. . . 24. 9-14: Ma quandosento che st dolce sguardo dentro degli occhimi passo al core e posevi uno spiritodi gioia, di farne a lei merce, di cio non tardo: cosi pregatafoss'ellad'Amore ch'un poco di pieta no i fosse noia! 32. 1-4: Quandodi morte mi conven trar vita e c 1 pesanzagtota, come di tanta noia lo spiritod'amord'amarm'invita? 6. 1-4: Deh, spiritimiei,quandomi vedete con tanta pena, come non mandate fuor della mente parole adornate di pianto, dolorosee sbigottite? 10. 13-16: Questa pesanzach'e nelcordiscesa ha certi spirite' gia consumati, i quali eran venuti per difesa del cordolente che gli avea chiamati. 34. 18-21: Pieno d'angoscia,in loco di paura, lo spirito delcordolente giace per la Fortunache di me non cura, c'ha volta Morte dove assai mi spiace.
. .

2. Marsilio Ficino, Sopra lo Amore II. 8: Platone . . . disse: quello amatore e un animo nel propriocorpo morto, e nel corpod'altrivivo . . . Platonechiamal'amoreamaro,e non senzacagione,perchequalunque ama, muore amando. . . Muore amandoqualunqueama: perche il suo pensierodimenticando se, nella personaamata si rivolge.... Due sono le spezie d'amore,l'uno e semplice,l'altro e reciproco. L'amoresemplice e dove l'amatorenon ama l'amato. Quivi in tutto
95

StefanoLa Via l'amatoree morto,perchenonvivein se . . . e nonvivenell'amato, essendo da lui sprezzato.... Adunquein nessun luogovive chi ama altrui e non e da altrui amato; e pero interamentee morto il non amato amante;e mai non resuscita
* . .

Ma dove lo amato nell'amorrisponde,l'amatorealmen che sia nell'amato vive. Qui cosa maravigliosaawiene, quando duoi insieme si amano:costui in colui e colui in costui vive.... Una solamente e la morte nell'amorereciproco; le resurrezionisono due: perche chi ama muore una volta in se, quandosi lascia; risuscita subito nell'amatoquandol'amato lo riceve con ardente pensiero;risuscita ancoraquandoegli nell'amatofinalmentesi riconosce,e non dubita se esser amato. O felice morte alla quale seguonodue vite! VI. 6: coloroche sono nati sotto una medesimastella sono in tal modo dispostiche la immaginedel piu bello di loro, entrandoper gli occhi nell'animodi quell'altro,interamentesi confacon una certa immagine,formata dal principio di essa generazione, cosi nel velame celestiale dell'Anima, come nel seno dell'anima.... Tre cose senza dubbiosono in noi: Anima, Spiritoe Corpo.L'Anima e il Corposonodi naturamoltodiversa,e congiungonsi insiemeper mezzo dello Spirito,il quale e un certo vaporesottilissimoe lucidissimo,generato per il caldo del cuore dalla piu sottil parte del sangue. VI. 8: ogni amorecominciadal vedere . . . lo amoredel contemplativo si chiama'divino', dello attivo'umano', del voluttuoso'bestiale'. VI. 9: per lungo amoregli uominipallidi e magridivengono. . . La intenzionedello amante tutta si rivoltanella assiduacogitazione della personaamata. . . dovel'assiduaintenzionedell'animoci trasporta, quivivolanoancoragli spiriti . . . Questi spiriti si generanonel caldo del cuore,dalla sottilissimaparte del sangue.... Inversoquesta [personaamata]sono tirati ancoragli spiriti,e volando quivi continuamentesi consumano. . . Di qui il corposi secca e impallidisce:di qui gli amanti divengonomalinconici.... I collerici e i melanconiciseguitanomolto i diletti del canto e della forma,come unicorimedioe confortodi loro complessione molestissima, e pero sono a le lusinghe di Amore inclinati:come Socrate il quale fu giudicatoda Aristoteledi complessione malinconica. E costuifu dato allo Amore piu che uomo alcuno, secondoche egli medesimoconfessava.I1 96

Eros and Thanatos

medesimopossiamogiudicaredi Saffopoetessa,la qualedipingese stessa me anconlcae lnnamorata.... Chi neghera lo Amore essere ignudo?perche nessuno lo puo celare: con cio sia che molti segni scuoprinogli innamorati: cioe il guardaresimile al toro e fiso, il parlare interrotto,il colore del viso or giallo, or rosso, gli spessi sospiri, il gittare in qua e in la le membra,i continui
. . . .

rammarlc.

l1 . . .

VI.10:il raggiodella Bellezza che e copia e padre dell'Amoreha questa forza, che e' si riflette quivi onde ei venne, e riflettendositira seco lo amante. Certamentequesto raggiodiscesoprimada Dio e poi passando nello Angelo, e nell'Anima,. . . e dall'Anima nel corpopreparatoa ricevere tal raggiofacilmentepassando,da esso corpoformosotralucefuora, massime per gli occhi, come per transparentifinestre:e subitovola per aria, e penetrandogli occhi dell'uomoche bada,ferisce l'Anima,accende lo appetito.... Questo medesimoawiene alle volte agli Amanti e agli Amati . . . VII.1: Guido filosofo . . . seguito lo Amore socraticoin parole e in costumi. Costuicon gli suoi versi brevementeconchiusecio che da voi di Amore e detto.... Guido Cavalcantifilosofo tutte queste cose artificiosamentechiuse nelli suoi versi.... Imperocche quandone' suoi versi dice:solee raggio,per il Sole intende la luce di Dio, per il raggiola formade' corpi. VII.14: Quattro adunquesono le spezie del divino furore:il primo e il furore poetico, il secondo il misteriale cioe sacerdotale,il terzo la divinazione,il quarto e lo affetto dello amore.... Orfeo da tutti questi furorifu occupato,. . . Ma dal furoreamatorio spezialmentesopragli altri furonorapiti Saffo,Anacreontee Socrate. 3. Lorenzo de Medici (a) Canzoniere: 68. 9-14: Ne sa piu il tristo core omai che farsi: o fuggir ne' begli occhi alla sua morte o ver lontan da quei morirognora. Dice fra se: 'Se un tempo in quelli occhi arsi,
dolceera il mio morir,lieta mia sorte:

92. 12-14:

onde meglio e che ne' belli occhi mora.' Rispondesorridendo Amore allora:
97

StefanoLa Via
e mia morte,. . . 'dolce

e semprevive Amore'. petto . . . 96. 1, 4, 5-8, 12-14: Gli alti sospirdell'amoroso caldi ancornel mio cor hanno ricetto. Gli narranle paroleche ha lor detto Amore,in dolci e tacite favelle; tutti gli spirti allor per udir quelle correndo,resta il coreoppressoe stretto.... La vita e morte,onde parti, par faccia: cosi uno spiritoin due alterna e move
e vita. un dolceviverch'epramorte
100. 9-11:

108. 1, 4-5, 12-14:

109. 1, 9-14:

117.18-26:

Oh bella morte e, oh, dolor suavi! Oh pensier'che portate ne' sospiri, ad altri ignota, al cor tanta dolcezza! Se talor gli occhi miei madonnamira . . . pero soventei suoi begliocchigira verso 1l mlel . . . Giuntoal mio cor, che in lei vie piu s'accende, la pigra speme e lunga pieta caccia: cosi vede i miei spirti allor contenti. Quandoa me il lume de' begli occhi arriva. . . Li spirti incontroa quel dolce splendore da me fuggendolieti vanno,in cui (e loro il sanno)Amorgli uccide e strugge. Se la mia vista resta o se pur fugge, che mortain me allor vive in altrui, dubbioamorososolvail gentil core. Venne per gli occhi pria nel petto tenebroso degli occhi vaghi il bel raggioamoroso, e desto ciascunspirtoche dormiva, spartipel petto, sanza cure ozioso. Ma tosto che sen giva in mezzo al cor la bella luce viva, gli spirti, accesi del bel lume adorno, corsonoal core intorno.
1*

de' miei sonetti: (b) Comento

NuovoArgumento25: Veramente quandola natura gli creo, non fece solamentedue occhi, ma il veroluogodovestessiAmoree insiemela Morte,o vero vita e 'nfelicitadegli uominiche fiso gli riguardassino.
98

Eros and Thanatos

5. 4-7 ff.: E pero se mi trovavoalla presenzadi lei, el viso suo,veramente angelico,parevaal cuoredolce e altero:dolce perchecosi veramenteera, altero gliele facevaparere el dubbio... della poca pieta.... Di questo suo timore nasceva in lui l'affanno,e pero li spiritivitali, correndoper soccorrere al cuore, lasciavano la facciamia senza colore,pallidae smorta. 11. 9-19: Se '1 mio cuore fortunato. . . sospirain quel tempo quandoe piu presso alla donna mia, . . . ne e cagione la dolcezza che lui sente, la quale e si grandeche tiene occupatetutte le forze e spiritivitalie gli svia dal loroofficionaturaleallafiuizione di quella dolcezza....se primail cuore aveva bisogno di respirare e refriggerarsi,molto piu ne ha bisogno sopravenendo tanti spiriti,e qualidi naturasonocaldi.... E di qui nasce il sospiro,e quinci si rinfrescail cuore; el quale, avendogia dimenticato se stesso,perse nonsi curava di morire, anzibramava szdolce e sz felicemorte. 40. 19: Godevomiadunquenon solamente quella presente bellezza, ma ancorala speranzadi molto piu dolce morte, la quale . . . con grandissimo desiderio aspettavo, perche quanto maggiore erano le offese, cioe el desideriodi tanta bellezza, piu dolce si faceva la morte. E pero la speranzadi questa morte mi empievail cuoredi tanta dolcezza,che il cuore gia se ne nutrivae viveva: intendendo questamortenella formache abbiamo detto morireli amanti,quandotutti nella cosa amata si trasformano . . . E pero questa morte non solamente e dolce, ma e quella dolcezza che puote averel'umanaconcupiscienzia, e per questoda me come unico remedioalla salute mia era con grandissima dolcezzae desiderioaspettata come vero fine di tutti i miei desiderii.

99

StefanoLa Via
APPENDIX 2

AnnotatedEditionof Verdelot'sSt lietae gratamorte Preliminary notes The present edition of Sz lietae gratamorte, far from being a criticaledition in the strict sense, is basedprimarily but not exclusively on the earliest complete survivingprinted source of Verdelot'smadrigal: n primo libro de'madrigali di Verdelotto, novamente stampato, et consomma diligentia corretto(Venice: Ottaviano Scotto, 1537) (RISM 15379;Bologna, Civico Museo Bibliografico Musicale,U308). Of both the first edition - issued in 1533by the Scotto familyand AndreaAntico (RISM15332) - and an otherwiselost second edition [1535-6], only a single bass partbooksurvives (respectively in Paris,BibliothequeNationalede France,Thibault collection,and in Florence,BibliotecaNazionaleCentrale):see Fenlon and Haar, TheItalianMadrigal, pp. 296-9. Not surprisingly, this sourcepresentsa few mistakesin the poetic text, and almost no accidentals.Both the correctionof such mistakesand the additionof editorialaccidentalsreflect musical,exegetic and analytical considerationswhich have often found confirmationin other relevant sources:in particular,the earlierbut incompleteFlorentinemanuscript knownas the 'Strozzi partbooks' (Florence, Conservatorio di MusicaLuigi Cherubini,MS Basevi 2495: Cantus, Tenor, Bassus,c.1530;see Fenlon and Haar, pp. 159-61); and AdrianWillaert'sIntavolatura de li madrigali di Verdelotto (Scotto 1536 = RISM 15368).Later sourceshave also been consulted such as Scotto's and Gardano'srespective editions of Di Verdelotto tutti li madrigali delprimo et delsecondo libroa quatro voci(Scotto 1540, 1549 = RISM 15402, 154933; Gardano1556 = RISM 155627), and Claudio Merulo'sfinal edition of I madrigali delprimo et secondo librodi Verdelot a quattro voci(RISM156622). Significant variantsin the poetic text: la: St lietae gratamorte Sz lieta (Strozzic.1530; 15368;15379 Tenor;later sources)vs. Se lieta (15368Index title; 15379Cantus,Altus, Bassus) 3B: chedolce m'e'I morir, dolce lepene dolc'et lepene(Strozzic.1530)vs. dolce lepene(15368,15379, later sources) 6D: subito perdolcezza il corsi more dolcea. . . maore (Strozzic.1530)vs. dolcezza . . . more ( 15368,15379,later sources)
100

Erosand Thanatos 14A:Dunque se la miadonna e di tal sorte Dunque (Strozzic.1530;later sources)vs. Donque ( 15368;15379) 16H:chesaria poi stellami desse vita chesarza poi se la mi dessz vita (Strozzic.1530) chesarza poi se la mi desse vita (15368) cheseria poi s'ellamidesse vita (15379Tenor) chesaria poi si la medesse vita (15379Cantus,Altus, Bassus) chesaria poi s'ellami desse vita (later sources) The musicaltext givenin the two earliestvocalsourcesof St lieta(Strozzi c.1530and 15379) is almostidentical: I havefoundonlyone mistakein the Strozzi tenor partbook(bar 27, at ssubito',A, B;, V); but I have also acceptedthe rhythmicsolutiongiven in the manuscript bass partbook, at bar63: 'morte'= 2.j insteadof JJin all the othersources(including 15379). Original accidentalsin 15379are indicatedabove the stave with the symbol*; the symbolt at bar 62 in the bassus (E; at 'sentir')refers to the only accidentalfoundin the Strozzipartbooks. Giventheir high quantity,accidentalsfoundin other sourceshave also been inserted within the musical text without brackets.Almost all of them correspond to the accidentalsalreadyincludedby Willaert (15368) and Merulo (156622), listed below: Cantus: 2
15368

11 14 15 C

20-124 26-7 37 39
F F} C C C C

54 61 68
4

C} C

156622 C} C Altus: 5 8
4 4

F C} CtB-C F

C C

15368 C 156622 C

9-10 12 16 24 25 29 32 44 55 61 69 C F F 4 B C C C F C C} F F} 4 B CtB-C"CtB-C C} F} C F
C} C F} F F F
4 4

Tenor: 2
15368 F 156622

12 14 19 23 25-6 38 59 64-5 73
C F F C F F} F} F

Bassus: 8 24 26 36 54 62 67 71 15368 Eo Eo B Eo C} E>$ Eo F} 156622 Eo Eo B Eo C} Eo E> C} F}

15368,bar 54: in the fourth line of the tablature (representing the C-string in the lute) number 5 (= F) should be read as number 3 (= E;).

101

StefanoLa Via Entirelynew accidentals(not found in any of the sixteenth-century sourceshere consulted)have been inserted only in three cases, at bars 13 (cantus, 'mo-[rir] ', F#)and 22 (cantus, 'mi-[ro]', E;; altus, '[mi-] ro', F#);they are indicatedabovethe stave with the symbol+. I have kept the originalnotation (includingthe sign, denotingalla breve tactus), with Mensurstrich and no bars between staves, in order to rendermore faithfullyits basically'white',slow-paced character,and to make visible more clearlysingle note values (withoutligatures) as well as rhythmic-melodic figures. Literaryand musicalannotationsare intendedto help the readerfollow my analysis.Numbersand letters above the stave (such as la, 2B, etc.) signal the beginningof each line in the poetic text (see also the Key to Table 1);verticallines markthe corresponding caesurasbetween musicalphrases.Letter-notation symbols beneaththe stavedesignatethe corresponding sonorities,harmonicprogressions and cadences (see also Table 1 andrelatedKey).Cadenceresolutions are also highlighted within the musicaltext by means of arrows(half-toneresolution)and hyphens (step motionor skip in the accompanying voice/s).

102

[R

Si

lie - tae

gra - ta

mor g

te >A

da gli oc-chidi ma - don

che dol-ce m'e '1mo-rir,

dol

ce

le

pe g6(x)A

> (d)

@ vb

r r r + r -

C r W

JxJ J @J

fb f tI *

Mutazioni(I):

ib "

#f#f f
,J ,J f

r
4 0

|:
: vol-ger-s'in

g :
si be - ni gnoe lie to

Per - che qual-hor la mi - ro

Xb 11 flb -

Per - che qual-hor la mi - ro

1
I

vol - ger-s'in si be - nigno e lie - to

Sf Ff r 2 F

r r Cr

r JlrJ---l:--J--J-#Jl---+Fo
mi - roLvol ger-s'in si be - ni -

Per - chequal-hor la

gnoe lie-to

bfr

r
gi

rbfr
to

Per - che qual-horla

mi - ro c > D

{vol-ger-s'in

si be-

ni-gnoelie

---

-E:

f:

--J

rf:

rf:

--------n

-fff

[W
:

.
perdolsez-zail cor si mo re,

W
|

su - bi-to

ib f'

r#?#F->: Sr f f r f f f f f 'J
re, su-bi- to perdol-cez-za il cor si mo -

f
JlJJggJ

f .J11
ce,

cor si mo

re, lla linsua mu-ta ta

+KJJO
cor si mo -

J$rffF fJ r
re,

FJ
-

o
-

J
-

su-bi-to perdolsez-zail cor si mo

re,:la lin-gua mu-ta ta

ce,:

:b J r .
cor si mo A

_
re, > dUnf

fJ
il

r .............r S: r r r r
cor si mo A -

f,
yd)

re,lla lingua mu-ta ta >d (g

ce,lo

flb 5)

eIfff# b ,,

O o ,, #' ..

{}..

f, 1

lo:

f J .. M _f - #'' - ffRf f -f J JIS fr

Mutazioni (II):

WJ
|

(i)
per

(i)

at-ten-to

sen - ti - re g un

si dol - ce

mo - ri

re.

Ma tan-to

per

sen

ti - re

lun

si dol

ce

mo - ri

re.

Ma tan-to

ib # o 2.e
per sen ti //re

g
lun

f
si dol - ce

0|
mo - ri re.

rf
3

Ma tan-to

/
per D sen (g ti - re >A
>

r---'
:

un

si dol

ce )

mo - ri d

re. A

Ma tan-to

dunf/Bb

9 I:

r r r

J o . I: J J S. JJ

J r6 ........

Xb
r
I

f
re
-------------------

|f:[ fr
|

|f
ia, | an - zi
I

che poi non

sen- to no

la

mor - te s

tbf,f:
-relche poi

L_______----------n

non sen-to

ffr

f J
no -

a-

ia,

* f
C
non sen- to no -

-fF
:

an - zi

la

mor - te s

f ff

0 4
re
r----------__u

|r
|

o J,J S
ia,: an - zi

S r rC
la

che

poi

mor - te s

-re (x)g (a)F

f che d

poi d6)

nonsen- to

no (x)

ia, g6>[d4]a g >(a)F/d

an - zi

la

mor - te s

p {b b

rf S

Jr# ro-

ur J

o ................ o o r s} ' - #'' bf

'

bf f f

rg

Volta:

H
Dun - que se

,
la mia don - nae di

, @
tal sor te

W
|

r
I

che

sen-tir fam

Dun - que

r rJ ;
se la

miadon - nae

di

tal sor

J#f #f te lche sen-tir fam-mimor

f r J

+ b ||

,J J

J
la mia don-nae di

j J
tal sor

Xj
te

-|
Iche

CC
sen-tir

Dun - que se

Dun - que se

la mia don-nae

di

tal

sor (x) g6

te >A

che

sen

g)

(x)A>

D6

8
ib

w
-

f f f f f rSf r
sa-ria poi
_ _ n

----

r
vi

S
#[
-

1
ta?

Iche
_ _

s'el-la

mi des-se

ib
-

o
ta,

-,,J ,J ,J ,J ,J ,J ,J
Iche sa-ria poi s'el - la mi

J J .......
des - se vi ta,

- J JJr
che sa-na

poi s'el-la

Xb #
-

RJxJ uJJ J
ta,lche sa-riapois'el la

j
mi

des-se

JJ

vi

/ta,

J J
che

sa-ria

J JJJ
poi s'el-la

pb
-

\o
ta,

-,:

r r

f rr#i
poi s'el-la mi

J J 2' - f f f f
che sa-ria poi

+
s'el-la

zche sa-ria

des - se vi- ta,

mi d

Eros and Thanatos

APPENDIX 3

Verdelot'sUse of Cadencesin St lietae gratamorte: Definitionsand Examples I. AuthenticCadence Equivalentto the modern'authentic'cadence- but still alien to its tonal and harmonicfunctionV > I - it does not even correspond necessarily to a 'perfect'cadence in the strictly sixteenth-century, Zarliniansense. What makesa cadenceauthentic,in fact, is not so muchthe perfectresolution of the structuralvoices - into an octaveor unison- as two additionalfactors,whichcontributeto its positive,syntactic,stronglyassertive character: * The upwardmotion of the half-step resolution,which can be represented with the symbols7 > 1 (denotingnot yet 'leading-note> tonic' in the modernsense but ratheran ascendingsemitoneresolutioninto the pitch class corresponding to the root of the final triad). * The fact that the ascending semitone, usually placed in one of the upper voices (as the final part of the so-calledclausula cantizans) is accompanied in the lowest soundingvoice either by the upwardskip of a fourth or by the downward skip of a fifth (5-1, clausula basizans); a thirdstructural voice- usuallyin one of the middlevoices (but sometimes also in the cantus), never in the lowestvoice as in the 'perfect' Zarlinianmodel - may also accompany the same resolutionby downward step (2-1, clausula tenorizans). In the case of Salieta(cf. Appendix2 and Table 1), quite significantly, Verdelotadoptsonly six cadencesof this kind (out of 20), and even tends to deprivethem of their usual dynamiccharacterand syntacticfunction. Not only is their occurrencealways internal (first setting of both the repeatedlines 3B and 16H;lines 6D, 9f, 15H),but their passingresolution is alsovariously weakened,elided,evadedor even reversed, andnever followedby a simultaneous rest in all voices.Moreover, the cadentialsuspension typical of Zarlino's cadenza diminuita(7th-6th, 2nd-3rd or 4th-3rd, usuallyproduced by syncopation in the clausula cantizans), is here used only twice (lines 3B and 16H) and in associationwith two of the weakest cadentialcaesurasof the whole madrigal(bars 15-16, 68-9): in both cases, in fact, the authenticcadenceis first 'announced' by the syncopationin the uppervoice and then turned more or less dramatically into a half-cadence; in the former,extremecase (3B, 'pene'),the cadence is first preparedin the most emphaticway (by extendedmelismaticsyncopationin the cantus) and then immediatelyevadedbefore the cadential extension (see my detailed descriptionbelow). All the remaining cadences belong to the 'simple' type (Zarlino'sunsuspendedcadenza
111

StefanoLa Via semplice), either perfectly homorhythmic(line 9f) or lightly decorated (lines 6D, 15H). The presence of all three structuralclausulae characterisesonly the first, three-voiceauthenticcadence (line 6D, 'il cor si more', bar 29: A > dUnf) as well as its amplifiedrepetition(bars32-3: A > d, with use of all four voices): notice the stable permanence,from one phrase to the next, of the cantizans and basizans in the altus and bassuspair,while the tenorizans, first sung by the tenor, is eventuallytaken up by the cantus and repeatedan octave above.This is actuallythe only instance, albeit repeated, of a full authentic close in the whole madrigal.Only in one other case (line 15H, 'gradita',bars 64-5: D > g) do we find both the cantizans and the basizans resolutionstypicalof the authentic type (with no tenorizans), but they are compressed in the two lowervoices,and there is no real breakbetweenthe endingof line 15H('gradita') and the beginning of line 16H ('che saria'),due to the anticipatedentryof cantusand tenor. In two similarbut still weak instances (line 9f, 'sentire',bars 3940; line 16H, 'vita', bars 68-9), the whole harmoniceffect is that of an authentic cadenceA > d, even though, at a strictly melodic level, the clausula basizans is missing(as in a morecommonly Zarlinian kindof 'perfect cadence'):the bassus anticipatesits pause, without completing(at least immediately)its expected upwardskip of a fourth (A,-[D2]), and yet this is implicitlyaccomplished - and made clearlyaudible- by the tenor,with its typicaldownward step motion,E2-D2. The feeble character of both these cadencesalso dependson variousother factors: * bars 3940: not only does the simultaneous'evaporation' of altus and bassuscause the resolutionof the remainingcantus/tenorpair into a quite empty d-sonority(8/8, with no third and fifth), but the anticipatedbeginningof the next phrase(line 10f,'Un si [dolce]',altus/bassus), has the effect of turningimmediately that unfilledd-sonority into a majortriadrootedon B flat, causingalso the 'elision'of the cadence itself: in other words,the very endingof line 9f (emptyd, '[senti-]re') coincideswith the beginningof line 10f (B flat, 'un si [dolce]'); * bars 68-9/ 70-3: the authenticresolutionof all voices (confirmed even by the delayedskip of a fourthin the bassus,at the repriseof 'saria') is here comparatively much stronger;and yet the conventional protractio longae in the cantus,with cadentialextensioncarriedout by the three lower voices, leads inevitablyto the inner dissolutionof the authenticcadenceitself and to its definitivetransformation into 'halfcadence'(see my definitionbelow):fromA > d to g > D. An even more dramatickind of extension,to be sure, is alreadyused to seal the openingritresa section (line 3B, 'che dolce m'e '1morir,dolce 112

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in the cantus, is here cantizans, le pene', bars 15-16/16-19): the clausula la cadenza resolutely'evaded'by all the other voices, as in a typicalfuggir not only is the expectedd-sonorwith the symbolsA > (d)/g); (represented ity immediatelyavoidedand replacedby a G minortriad,but this seems to be assertedby means of a clear authenticcadence (D > g, at 'morir' in the altus, and at '[pe-]ne'in the bassus,bars 16-17) which is in turn g > D, identicalto the one in the finalclose. reversedinto a half-cadence, II. Half-cadence,Plagal Imperfect,Phrygian These three cadential types, albeit different from one another, are motion of the half-step resoluequally characterisedby the downward tion, which also contributes to their variously negative, suspended, pathetic nature. Over two-thirdsof the cadences used in Verdelot'sSa lieta belong to this category(14 out of 20): eight to the Phrygiantype, five to the halfcadencetype and one to its plagalimperfectvariant.Their specificplaceis always plan of the madrigal,moreover, ment in the whole architectural relevant:threeof the foursectionsof the madristrategicandstructurally gal (I, II, IV: the framingri,bresa and voltaas well as the first mutazioni) invariablystart with a Phrygiancadence and end with a half-cadence, includes Phrygian while the remaining section III (second mutazioni) cadences only. The fact that only the latter type (in five out of eight cases) is furtheremphasisedby cadentialsuspension- the half and plagal cadencesbeing either 'simple'or lightlydecorated- furtherconfirms the special importancegiven by Verdelot to the pathetic cadence par excellence. 1. Half-cadence moderntype but alien In a half-cadence(equivalentto the homonymous semitone - 4 > 3 if descending to its I > V harmonicfunction) the of the uppervoices in one is triad root-position the final to referred by the downward either voice sounding in the lowest is accompanied and skip of of a fourth or the upwardskip of a fifth. Due to the 'imperfect' resolutionof its structuralvoices, the half-cadenceturns out to be the reversedform of the authentic type; if seen from this angle - and thus if referrednot to the final but to the startingtriad of the cadence- the half-stepresolutionmay also be read as 1 > 7 functionof its downward the same kind of structural cantizans; and considereda reversedclausula (1-2). (1-5) and to the optionaltenorizans reversalapplies to the basizans Such a structuralreversal,or 'cadentialchasm',characterisesall the of Sa lieta,in particularboth the extremelygrave and sushalf-cadences extensionsadoptedby Verdelotto close respectively pendedhalf-cadence 113

StefanoLa Via the openingritresa(bars 15-19) and the final volta(bars69-73). In both instances,in fact, an identicalhalf-cadenceg > D (with reversedcantizansandbasizans resolutionscompressed in the two lowervoices)not only weakens and transformsthe main suspendedauthenticcadenceA > d (whichin the first case is even evaded)but reversesa ratherpassingbut similarlyauthentic resolutionD > g, occurringrespectivelywithin the extension itself (bars 16-17, altus/bassus, 'pene'/'morir')and before the extension, at the end of the previousline (bars 64-5, tenor/bassus, 'gradita'). If the three remaining half-cadences(lines 2B, 8e, lOf; 'mi viene', 'giace', 'morire';bars 8-9, 36-7, 42-4) sound even more pathetic and gloomy, this depends also on the downward motion of the clausula basizans, andon the consequentparalleldescentof all (or almostall) voices. The same, quite slow-pacedhalf-cadenced > A is here repeatedwith just a few variants:both the structuralclausulae are alwaysgiven at the same pitch-level(D2-A, in the bassus, D3 > C#3either in altus or cantus), as well as the ratherneutralaltizans (variously endinginto A2either in tenor or altus, evaporatedin the case of line 8f); what changes is merelythe placementof the additionalsemitone commonto the plagal and half-cadencetypes (F3 > E3,cantus:lines 2B and lOfvs. F2 > E2 tenor:line 8e). Notice, in the first and thirdinstances(lines 2B and lOf), how the same closing formulaof a descendingdiminishedfifth (BS3 > A3-G3-F3 > E3in the Cantus)is carefully appliedto quite differentwords, concepts and - therefore- note values: a fluent melismaticgesture at 'viene' (bars 8-9), whose initial Phrygianflavour(BS3> A3) is underscoredby the ascendingstep resolutionin the tenor (G2-A2); a syllabic, rather slow and heavy series of four semibrevesand a breve at 'dolce morire'(bars41-4), with static repeat of A2in the tenor ('[mo] rire'). 2. Plagal imperfectcadence What I call a plagal imperfectcadence (to be distinguishedfrom a 'plagal perfect'cadence)differsfroma half-cadence in the morefeeble quality of its resolutionand the minorqualityof both its startingand ending root-position triads:the downward half-stepmotion (6 > 5), in fact, does not lead fromoctaveor unisonto an imperfectconsonance(as in a halfcadence),but rather connectsan imperfectconsonance(usuallya third or tenth) to a fifth. In Sa lieta the plagal imperfectcadence occursonly once, andjust in passing,to underscore the lover'ssymptomatic loss of speech (line 7e, 'la lingua muta tace', bars 33-5). Quite significantly, this is the only line in the wholemadrigal that is not declaimedby the cantus;compressed below its prolongedD3 (at '[mo-]re',the final syllableof the previousline), the 114

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static choralrecitativeof the three lowervoices (with repeatedd minor triad at 'la lingua muta') is only temporarily markedby the most feeble and 'silent' cadencein the whole setting (at 'tace'): the downward halfstep resolutionin the altus does nothing but repeat for the last time, with augmentedvalues, the same BS2 > A2gesture that has alreadybeen obsessivelyreiterated at the words 'lingua muta';the descendingsemitone in the altus is accompanied by the upwardskip of a fifth in the bassus, G1-D2, while the tenor steps downfrom G2to F#2(not to F#2 as in a half-cadence),and the cantus literallytacet(i.e. interruptsits upper 3 pedal point, at the strong beat of bar 35). Notice the close similaritybetween the whole setting of line 7e and both the cadential extensions that close the opening and the final sections of the madrigal(lines 3B, 16H,bars 15-19, 68-73): what makesthe differenceis the very adoptionof plagal instead of half-cadenceresolution, in the context of a fairlystatic 'choralrecitative'writing;all this is clearlydictated not only by syntacticand rhetoricalneeds but also, and above all, by precise expressivepurposeson Verdelot'spart. 3. Phrygiancadence In a Phrygiancadence,the descendingsemitone (clausula tenorizans, 2> 1 if referredto the final triad) is usuallyin the lowest voice, sometimes also in one of the uppervoices, and is alwaysaccompanied by upwardstep motion in the other structuralvoice (clausula cantizans), with consequent 'perfect' resolution. If considered as a sort of variant of the half-cadence(and similarlyrelated to its authenticmodel), the function of its downward half-stepresolutionmay also be read as 6 > 5 (without losing its identity as clausula tenorizans). Its primaryrole in Sa lieta goes beyondthe simple numericaldata (8 cadencesout of 20 are Phrygian) and is evidentat everysingle level. Each section of the madrigalinvariablystarts with a Phrygiancadence, and section III (the secondmutazioni) includesonly cadencesof this type. Its constant recurrencecontributesdecisivelyto the melancholic,self-complacent voluptas dolendi tone of the whole setting. Last but not least, this is the only cadential model that even plays a consistent metric and prosodicfunction:its almost identical repetition furtherunderscores the consonance betweenboth the 4c/5Crhyming couplets ('miro'/ 'giro' = c > ]) / c6 > D, bars 22, 26-7) and the quite distant but still rhyming la/14A lines ('morte'/ 'sorte' = g > A / gfi> A, bars 4-5, 60-1). In both cases the progressionfrom seven-syllableto eleven-syllable line - i.e., in Bembo'sterms from 'piacevolezza' to 'gravita' - corresponds to the progression froma relativelypleasantand light to a rather grave and solemn form of Phrygiancadence:the tenorizans
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StefanoLa Via downward half-stepresolutionis placedat first in one of the upperparts (respectivelyaltus at 'morte',and cantus at 'miro':bars 4-5, 22), later in the bassus (at 'sorte'and 'giro',bars 60-1, 26-7); moreover,the cantizans upward-step motion, at first plainly stated in the bassus as in a 'simple' kind of cadence (at 'morte' and 'miro',bars 4-5, 22), is later reinforcedby means of cadential suspensionand placed in one of the inner voices (respectively altus at 'sorte',and tenor at 'giro',bars 60-1, 26-7). In the case of lines la/14A, the metric/prosodicand rhetoric/semanticfunctions are indissolublyrelated, as the return of the same Phrygiancadenceonto A signals quite clearlythe return not only of the openingrhymebut also of the main terms of the poetic discourse, first introducedin the incipit. Three of the four remainingPhrygiancadences, all includedin the secondmutazioni section (lines l lD, 12g, 13G, 'core','noia','gioia':bars 47-8, 49-50/51-2, 54-5), are characterised by the suspensionand perfect resolutionof the two structural voices, even thoughthis is accomplished in a progressively strongerfashion.In each case, as in the most classical and fullyresolvingkindof Phrygian cadence,the syncopated clausula cantizans (either in cantus or altus) is placed above the clausula tenorizans (either in tenor or bassus). But in the first two instances the 'staggering' of the two vocal pairs (cantus/tenor vs. altus/bassus)has the effect of variouslyobscuring,weakeningand eliding the two-voiced resolution (bars47-8, 49-50); the resultinggradual'evaporation' culminatesat the end of line 12g ('nonsento noia',bars 50-2), where the cantusand tenor voices are left alone, and their expected Phrygianresolution is even evaded(the tenor descendsfrom G2to F2instead of rising to A2).In the last case, on the contrary(bars54-5, 'in gioia'),both the full textureand the homophonic writing are resumed,and all voices participatein the strongestPhrygiancadencein the whole madrigal: c6 > D, almost identical with the previousone at 'lieto giro' (bars26-7), and similarlymeant to underscoreby contrast the melancholicnature of that 'joy';its new strength - justified by obvioussyntacticreasons- depends also on the placementof the two structuralclausulae in the outer voices as well as on the fact that its full resolutionis clearly markedby a simultaneous rest of a semibrevein all voices.

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