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 |
Vostro fui vostro son
Pothárn Imre
|
|
Lassus, Orlande de
c.1532–1594
|
5 |
|
Vos virgem sois nostra madre
|
|
Anon
|
3 |
|
Vos, Virgen, soys nuestra Madre
|
|
Anon
|
3 |
|
Voudriez chrestiens delaisser le Seigneur
|
|
Anon
|
4 |
Tiers livre, ou sont contenues plusie... (RISM 1555/17)
Tiers livre, ou sont contenues plusieurs chansons tirées du recueil: des meileures tant anciennes que modernes, composées de divers excellents musiciens: desquelles avons changé la verbe lubrique en lettre spirituelle et chrestienne. Le tout à quatre parties & en quatre livres.
[Geneva]: Du Bosc, Simon and Guéroult, Guillaume, 1555
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#1
|
|
Attrib: Anon |
|
|
Voulant amour soubz parler gracieulx
|
|
Arcadelt, Jacques
1507–1568
|
4 |
|
Vouldries vous bien estant de vous aymée
|
|
Maille
|
4 |
|
Voulez ouir chansonette qu'a Paris
|
|
Willaert, Adrian
c.1490–1562
|
5 |
|
Voulez ouyr les criez de Paris
|
|
Janequin, Clément
c.1485–after 1558
|
4 |
|
Vouloir m'est pris de mettre
|
|
Goudimel, Claude
1514-1520–1572
|
4 |
|
Vouloir m'est pris de mettre
|
|
Bourgeois, Louis
c.1510-1515–1559
|
4 |
|
Vous aurez tout ce qui est mien
|
|
Anon
|
4 |
|
Vous aurez tout ce qui est mien
|
|
Willaert, Adrian
c.1490–1562
|
5 |
|
Vous avez tort du mal qu ainsi j'endure
|
|
Anon
|
4 |
|
Vous congnoisses leur que j ay en ce monde
|
|
Cavillon, Antoine
|
4 |
|
Vous dont fortune
|
|
Anon
|
3 |
|
Vous estes belle en bonne foy
|
|
Jeune, Claude le
c.1528–1600
|
4 |
|
Vous estes si doulce et benigne
|
|
Guyot de Châtelet, Jean
1512–1588
|
6 |
|
Vous estes trop jeune pour estre m'amye
|
|
Gombert, Nicolas
c.1495–c.1560
|
4 |
|
Vous larez sil vous plaist madame
|
|
Josquin Desprez
c.1450–1521
|
6 |
Le septiesme livre contenant Vingt & ... (RISM 1545/15)
Le septiesme livre contenant Vingt & quatre chansons a cincq et a six parties, composees par feu de bonne memoire & tresexcellent en musique Iosquin des pres, avecq troix Epitaphes dudict Iosquin, composez par divers aucteurs
Antwerp: Susato, Tylman, 1545
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#17
|
|
Attrib: Iosquin de Pres |
|
|
Vous marchez au bout du pied Marionette
|
|
Willaert, Adrian
c.1490–1562
|
3 |
|
Vous marchez du bout du pied marionnette
|
|
Anon
|
4 |
|
Vous m'avies vostre cueur donné
|
|
Mornable, Antoine de
fl.1530–1553
|
4 |
|
Vous ne larez pas si je puis
|
|
Josquin Desprez
c.1450–1521
|
6 |
Le septiesme livre contenant Vingt & ... (RISM 1545/15)
Le septiesme livre contenant Vingt & quatre chansons a cincq et a six parties, composees par feu de bonne memoire & tresexcellent en musique Iosquin des pres, avecq troix Epitaphes dudict Iosquin, composez par divers aucteurs
Antwerp: Susato, Tylman, 1545
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#2
|
|
Attrib: Iosquin des Pres |
|
|
Vous ne l'aurez pas si je puis
|
|
Willaert, Adrian
c.1490–1562
|
6 |
|
Vous perdes temps de me dire mal d'elle
|
|
Arcadelt, Jacques
1507–1568
|
4 |
Le Parangon des chansons. Tiers livre... (RISM 1538/17)
Le Parangon des chansons. Tiers livre contenant. xxvi. chansons novelle au singulier prouffit: & delectation des musiciens.
Lyon: Moderne, Jacques, 1538
(Tablebook, Print)
RISM
#25
|
|
Attrib: Archadelt |
|
Le Parangon des chansons. Tiers livre... (RISM 1543/13)
Le Parangon des chansons. Tiers livre contenant XXVI chansons nouvelle
Lyon: Moderne, Jacques, 1543
(Tablebook, Print)
RISM
#25
|
|
Attrib: Archadelt |
|
Tiers livre, ou sont contenues plusie... (RISM 1555/17)
Tiers livre, ou sont contenues plusieurs chansons tirées du recueil: des meileures tant anciennes que modernes, composées de divers excellents musiciens: desquelles avons changé la verbe lubrique en lettre spirituelle et chrestienne. Le tout à quatre parties & en quatre livres.
[Geneva]: Du Bosc, Simon and Guéroult, Guillaume, 1555
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#10
|
|
Attrib: Arcadelt |
as Vous perdez temps o iuges de la terre |
|