The Polyphony Database
polyphonydatabase@gmail.com
About the database❯
PolyphonyDatabase.com is a detailed catalogue of early music sources designed to help musicians perform, academics study, and enthusiasts explore a vast and glorious repertoire quickly and easily. It aims to combine the practicality of CPDL with the academic rigour and ambition of the RISM census, to make use of similar projects where possible, and to directly combat the frustrations performing musicians have with all existing resources.
Its three main goals are:
- To assist performers, directors, and editors by cataloguing the contents of primary sources, source concordances, and basic information about how each piece of music can be performed.
- To provide a reliable starting point for academic research by linking to library catalogues, other existing databases, and facsimile images of early music manuscripts and prints.
- To provide a repository for properly sourced critical editions, performing scores, and recordings of as much of this music as possible, each carefully vetted for typesetting quality and accuracy, and made available for free download, so that this music might be discovered and appreciated by a wider audience.
The database was founded by Francis Bevan in 2014 as an outlet for his editing hobby and is regularly updated by him and a small team of enthusiasts. If you would like to contribute some cataloguing time, recordings or editions, submit corrections, commission an edition or just donate some cash, please get in touch with Francis via email: polyphonydatabase@gmail.com. Read more about the project's history at the 2018 Crowdfunder page.
The best way to help fund the project is to commission performing editions. New editions can be made quickly for as little as £10.
Understanding the clef images
A red clef means the voice is missing from this source. Where there are no concordances to fill in the gaps, this means the piece will require reconstruction.
A green clef means the voice is incomplete in this source. This might denote a fragment of a larger work, or a e.g. canonic voice that isn't written out in full.
A faded clef means much of the piece can be performed without this voice. For example, an extra 6th voice in the Agnus Dei of an otherwise 5vv Mass setting, or a short gimel in a big votive antiphon. Filtering by number of voices will exclude these clefs, while filtering by a specific voice combination will include them.
A blue clef denotes a voice that uses more than one clef in this source - this is particularly prevalent in earlier printed sources. We've estimated the larger clef on the left to be the most used to give an idea of voice distribution at a glance.
An X clef is used as a placeholder for voices we know are necessary, but haven't yet worked out which! This can be because there are no extant sources for a missing voice and no reconstruction has yet been attempted (it will normally become obvious which voice is missing once editing starts), or because we have catalogued a source from an incomplete facsimile that we know to be complete elsewhere.
Title |
Function(s) |
Composer |
# |
Sources |
Surge propera amica mea - Tempus putationis advenit
|
|
Massaino, Tiburtio
before 1550–after 1608
|
5 |
|
Surge propera amica mea - Tota pulchra es
|
|
Nucius, Johannes
c.1556–1620
|
5 |
|
Surge propera amica mea - Veni de libano sponsa
|
|
Conflicting attributions
|
6 |
Guillermi le heurteur, Ecclesiae diui... (RISM L1638)
Guillermi le heurteur, Ecclesiae diui Martini Tvronensis canonici, artisqve modvlatorie peritissimi professoris. Operum musicalium liber primus
Paris: Attaingnant, Pierre, 1545
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#1
|
|
Attrib: Guillermi le heurteur |
|
Thesauri musici tomus tertius contine... (RISM 1564/3)
Thesauri musici tomus tertius continens cantiones sacras quas vulgo motetas vocant ex optimis musicis selectas
Nuremberg: Berg, Johann and Neuber, Ulrich, 1564
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#47
|
|
Attrib: Dominicus Phinot |
|
|
Surge propera amica mea - Vox turturis audita est
Nancho Alvarez
|
|
Guerrero, Francisco
1528–1599
|
6 |
Motteta ... que partim quaternis, par... (RISM G4871)
Motteta ... que partim quaternis, partim quinis, alia senis, alia octonis concinuntur vocibus
Venice: Gardano, Antonio, 1570
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#36
|
|
Attrib: Francisci Gverreri |
CF: Veni sponsa Christi |
|
Surge propera - Surge propera
|
|
Ferrabosco, Alfonso (i)
1543–1588
|
5 |
|
Surge sancte Dei - Ambula sancte Dei
|
|
Palestrina, Giovanni Pierluigi da
c.1525–1594
|
5 |
Motettorum Quinque vocibus liber quintus (RISM P728)
Rome: Gardano, Alessandro, 1584
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#21
|
|
Attrib: Ioan. Petraloysii Praenestini |
|
Motettorum quinque vocibus liber quintus (RISM P729/730)
Venice: Scotto, Girolamo, 1588-1593
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#21
|
|
Attrib: Ioan. Petraloysii Praenestini |
|
Motettorum quinque vocibus liber quintus (RISM P729/730)
Venice: Scotto, Girolamo, 1588-1593
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#22
|
|
Attrib: Ioan. Petraloysii Praenestini |
|
Motettorum quinque vocibus nunc denuo... (RISM P731)
Motettorum quinque vocibus nunc denuo in lucem aeditus. Liber quintus
Venice: Gardano, Angelo, 1595
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#21
|
|
Attrib: Ioan: Petraloysii Praenestini |
|
|
Surge speciosa
|
|
Molinaro, Simone
c.1570–after 1633
|
5 |
|
Surgit Christus cum tropheo - Dic Maria quid fecisti - Dic Maria quid fecisti
|
BVM |
Willaert, Adrian
c.1490–1562
|
4 |
Musica quatuor vocum, (quae vulgo mot... (RISM W1106)
Musica quatuor vocum, (quae vulgo motecta nuncupatur) Noviter omni studio, ac diligentia in lucem editu Liber Primus
Venice: Scotto, Girolamo, 1539
(Choirbook, MS)
RISM
#25
|
|
Attrib: Adrian Vvilaert |
|
Musica quatuor vocum (motecta vulgo a... (RISM W1109)
Musica quatuor vocum (motecta vulgo appellant) nunc denuo summa diligentia recognita ac in lucem exeuntia additis etiam ab authore multis motectis qui in priori editione desiderabantur. Liber secundus
Venice: Gardano, Antonio, 1545
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#16
|
|
Attrib: Adriani Vvillaert |
|
|
Surgite dilectissimi
|
|
Ratti, Lorenzo
1589/1590–1630
|
6 |
|
Surgite montes currite fontes - Canite tuba psallite organis
|
|
Anerio, Giovanni Francesco
c.1567–1630
|
5 |
|
Surgite pastores
|
|
Bianciardi, Francesco
1571-1572–1607
|
5 |
Sacrarum modulationum quae vulgo mote... (RISM B2600)
Sacrarum modulationum quae vulgo motecta, & quatuor, quinis, senis, & octonis vocibus concinuntur. Liber secundus nunc primum in lucem editus
Venice: Gardano, Angelo, 1601
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#7
|
|
Attrib: Francisci Bianciardi Casulani |
|
Promptuarii musici sacras harmonias s... (RISM 1611/1)
Promptuarii musici sacras harmonias sive motetas V. VI. vII. & VIII. vocum ... Pars prima
Strasbourg: Kieffer, Carl, 1611
(Partbook, Print)
#9
|
|
Attrib: Francisci Bianciardi |
|
|
Surgite populi
|
|
Vecchi, Orazio
1550–1605
|
8 |
|
Sur la rouseée my fault aller la matinée
|
|
Millot, Nicolas
after1589
|
5 |
|
Sur la rousée fault aller la matinée
|
|
Passereau, Pierre
fl.1509–1547
|
4 |
|
Sur le joly joly jonc ma doulce amye
|
|
Passereau, Pierre
fl.1509–1547
|
4 |
|
Sur le pont d'avignon
|
|
Anon
|
4 |
|
Surrexit autem Saulus
|
|
Dragoni, Giovanni Andrea
c.1540–1598
|
5 |
Motectorum ... Quae quinque vocibus c... (RISM D3499)
Motectorum ... Quae quinque vocibus concinuntur, super omnia fere Festa Sanctorum, tres in partes divisa, quarum quaelibre continet festa quatuor mensium, Liber Primus, Prima Pars
Rome: Mutii, Nicolo, 1600
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#11
|
|
Attrib: Io. Andreae Draconis |
|
|
Surrexit Christus
|
Easter VI |
Resinarius, Balthasar
c.1485–1544
|
4 |
Responsoriorum numero octoginta de te... (RISM R1196)
Responsoriorum numero octoginta de tempore et festis iuxta seriem totius anni, Libri duo, Primus de Christo, & reno eius, Doctrina, Vita, Passione, Resurretione & Ascensione. Alter, de sanctis, & illorum in Christum fide & Cruce
Wittenberg: Rhau, Georg, 1543
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#29
|
|
Attrib: Baltasare Resinario |
|
|
Surrexit Christus
|
Easter VI |
Paminger, Leonhard
1495–1567
|
5 |
Secundus tomus ecclesiasticarum canti... (RISM P829)
Secundus tomus ecclesiasticarum cantionum, quatuor, quinque, sex, et plurium vocum, a passionem Domini et salvatoris nostri Jesu Christiu usque ad primam Dominicam post Festum S. Trinitatis
Nuremberg: Gerlach, Dietrich, 1573
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#85
|
|
Attrib: Leonartum Pamingerum |
|
|
Surrexit Christus
|
Easter VI |
Zangius, Nikolaus
c.1570–c.1618
|
6 |
|
Surrexit Christus et illuxit populo suo
|
|
Handl, Jacob (Gallus)
1550–1591
|
4 |
|
Surrexit Christus hodie
|
|
Anon
|
4 |
(D-Mbs 79)
c.1570-c.1590
(Choirbook, MS)
#15
|
|
Attrib: Anon |
|
|
Surrexit Christus [I]
|
Easter VI |
Paminger, Leonhard
1495–1567
|
4 |
Secundus tomus ecclesiasticarum canti... (RISM P829)
Secundus tomus ecclesiasticarum cantionum, quatuor, quinque, sex, et plurium vocum, a passionem Domini et salvatoris nostri Jesu Christiu usque ad primam Dominicam post Festum S. Trinitatis
Nuremberg: Gerlach, Dietrich, 1573
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#83
|
|
Attrib: Leonartum Pamingerum |
|
|
Surrexit Christus [II]
|
Easter VI |
Paminger, Leonhard
1495–1567
|
4 |
Secundus tomus ecclesiasticarum canti... (RISM P829)
Secundus tomus ecclesiasticarum cantionum, quatuor, quinque, sex, et plurium vocum, a passionem Domini et salvatoris nostri Jesu Christiu usque ad primam Dominicam post Festum S. Trinitatis
Nuremberg: Gerlach, Dietrich, 1573
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#84
|
|
Attrib: Leonartum Pamingerum |
|
|
Surrexit Dominus
|
|
Senfl, Ludwig
c.1486–1542/1543
|
4 |
|