Calculated to Please the Ear: Ockeghem’s Can Peter Urquhart Tijdschrift van de Koninklijke Vereniging voor Nederlandse Muziekgeschiedenis, D. Alste, AMl. Iste/2de, [Johannes Ockeghem]. (1997), pp. 72-98. Stable URL: bhutp:flinks,jstor-org/sici?stci= 183-1079 28 1997 2G47%IA L%IE2%ICTIGIACTPTEORIED.0.CO®IB2-Z ‘Tiidschrift van de Koninklijke Vereniging voor Nederlandse Muctekgeschiedenis is curcently published by Koninklijke Vereniging voor Nederlandse Muziekgeschiedenis. ‘Your use of the ISTOR archive indicates your acceptance of ISTOR’s Terms and Conditions of Use, available at htp:sseww jstor org/aboutiterms.html. ISTOR’s Terms and Conditions of Use provides, in part, that unless you hhave obtained prior permission, you may aot download an entie issue of a journal or multiple copies of articles, and ‘you may use content in the ISTOR archive only for your personal, non-commercial use Please contact de publisher regarding any further use ofthis work, Publisher contact information may be obtained at lhupsfovwwjstor.org/jounals/kne. ten, Each copy of any part ofa JSTOR transenission must contain the same copyright tice that appears on the screen or printed page of such transtnission, ISTOR isan independent not-for-profit organization dedicated to creating and preserving a digital archive ot scholarly journals. For more information regarding ISTOR, please contact support@jstor.org. up:thrwwjstor.orgy “Thu Mar 16 14:31:31 2006Pecee Urquhart CALCULATED TO PLEASE THE FAR: OCKEGHEM’S CANONIC. LEGACY (Civica appreciation of Ockeghem's works, although continuous since Ins time, hes \aried widely in contene eheough the intervening five centuries. Works that had been singled oue for praise and study in the {6th century ~ the eanon Prenez sur may, the Missae Prelatiomun-and Cutust con swere seen 25 hopelessly artificial and stein the 18h century. ln che 20th century, atencion has turned fiom the ngors of Ockeghem’s constructive methods in cerain works towards the apparent lck of seructure in others! We asume naw that we understand the obscures ofthe canonic aed modal ‘experiments, because we can transcrive them from their anigirat puzzle form inco out notion wichout error. However, in defining these warks a5 canonic puraes of exercises in solmination and mode, do we undersand them any beter than did our 18dh-ceneury frcbears? Wha my thes pieces hve meant co singers not interested i creating ascore, buen realizing the music inca sound divedy fom its highly compact Charles Burney, in is Ganon Hisar of Music (1789}, was one of the 18th-centary commentators genecal eres] of Ockeghem’s pusale compositions Burney reports Att the feputstion ofthe composer stemmec from the respect accorded hien i theory treatises such as the Dedecaterdon of Glareanus (1547). About Glarean, Burney states hac ‘this writer tll us, che [Ockeghem] wes fond of dhe Kesdohsut in he canes; chat i, ofcomposing amelody which may be sungin various modes, keys athe pleasure of the performer, observing only the ratio, or relation of consonant notes in the harmony? Burney’ reaction to his {6th-cencury predecessor's description of the athlon is ecorded in a footnote "Thisscerseaoply no more than thatthe singer 2s was usal i old music shold hese iscover and expres the aecidertal ft and sharps, without which, however ecclesiastical the meledy might lock, the harmory would be intolerable; and, indeed, this kind of muse seems more ealeulited to please he eye chan the car! ‘Today, i large pare we share Burney's assumption that singers would have watked out on their ows the harmonic problems of the music with performers accidentals. We've named the process music fita, a term chat Burney knew, but one that he did noe assaciate with a performers practice or with editorial ccidencals.’ Because he assumed thae singers would correct the harmony 2s needed, 'as was usual in old music’, Burney ‘was clearly nocas impressed by these kathola 2s was Glarean. However, ifsingers were responsible for working out the pitch implications of such works as the Cuiueis toni mass and Preez sur may, is chete teally any content co Ockeghem’s compositional conceit? Is there anything special about Ockeghem’s Rusholiea? n‘The two works by Ockeghem that Glarean named ate normally che only ones associated with this term, katkolikon: he canon Prenez sur mey andthe Missa Cuesvis toni! However, the ides of madal manipulation of'a melody i€ alsa necessary toa itd ‘work by Ockeghem, his Missa Prolationum. The Prolation mass methadically explored ccanans at every interval ftom the unison to the octave, and thus began a tradition of encyclopedic canonie works thae stretches co J. S. Bach’s Galdterg Variations and beyond? In the Prolation mass, Ockeghem was clearly more cautious with the imperfectinterval canons can with the perfect ones, (or he awigned che imtervals ofthe second, thi, sich and seventh to the short segments of the mass only ~ the ‘Christe’, “Kysie [1 ‘Sanews', and a eworvoice ‘Pleni sunt czeli’. The rest of the mass, including, the very lengghy ‘Gloria’ and ‘Credo’, was set with canons 2¢ the more traditional perfect interval ofthe unison, fourth, fifth and actave (Table 1) Table 1. Canons in Ockeghem's Missa Profaiontm: Seeaon Voices _intersl Section Voices —_tntersl Kysie 1 4 unser Sancrus 4 ath Chistes} Pleat a 7 Kye 2 4 Bed Hiesanna 4 Sth Glows 4 ah Benedicess 4 (duee) ath Qui talis 4 4h Agw:Dat 4 ath Credo 4 5 Agus 2 2 5h Ecresucrecie 4 5b Agnus 3 ‘ seh ‘Tae canons ac imperfect intervals, although sight, ae exemely significant. Together swith Prenes sur may, chey sugges he following claim: Cckeghem may have been the catliet compoter to explore the ute of esnonic writing at intervals other than the perfect ones of the unison, octave, fourth and fi@h. The tack with canons at ehese imperfect interval isto write a melody that ean be readily expresied in ewo different modes. Certain intervals must either be avoided entitely, or they must be handled careflly when they force the introduction of accidentals, Every interval may turn out tahavea diferent quality when transposed. Accidentalsare forced mastofien when the line taversesa fourth or fifth, thats, when the perfect quality ofthese linear intervals is ‘uansformed into augmented or diminished intervals. The problems ceeated by the induction of acidentals can be minimized by thinning the eexeure, a ploy uied by ‘Ockeghem in hit canons a the second, sixth and seventh, which consist mostly of two-voice wring. For instance inthe ‘Sanctus’ (Example 1), which is composed of four-out-of-cwo canon atthe sixth, the interval of Gea Cin te cp line in m. 17-18 ‘expressed eater in the conteatenor as Bb to E. This fourth rmust either be ung as Bb ea #b, or as By co Bit maces lice which introduced accidentals chasen, since there ate only ew voices present forthe fst hal of che ‘Sanctus’. More imporsane co notice i that the imitation is not exact with rgaed tothe quality of the intervals The conte a