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 |
Ascendens Christus in altum
|
Ascension |
Porta, Costanzo
c.1528–1601
|
5 |
|
Ascendens Christus in altum
|
Ascension |
Ferrabosco, Domenico Maria
1513–1574
|
5 |
|
Ascendens Christus in altum
|
Ascension |
Betti, Steffano (Fornarino)
c.1520–1577
|
5 |
|
Ascendens Christus in altum
|
Ascension |
Mosto, Giovanni Battista
before 1550–1596
|
5 |
|
Ascendens Christus in altum
|
Ascension |
Aleotti, Raffaella
c.1570–after 1640
|
5 |
|
Ascendens Christus in altum
|
Ascension |
Dalla Casa, Girolamo
d.1601
|
6 |
|
Ascendens Christus in altum
|
Ascension |
Hylaire
|
4 |
|
Ascendens Christus in altum
|
Ascension |
Handl, Jacob (Gallus)
1550–1591
|
4 |
|
Ascendens Christus in altum
|
Ascension |
Ingegneri, Marco Antonio
c.1535–1592
|
4 |
|
Ascendens Christus in altum
|
Ascension |
Poss, Georg
c.1570–after 1633
|
10 |
Orpheus mixtus vel, si mavis concentu... (RISM P5246)
Orpheus mixtus vel, si mavis concentus musici, tam sacris, quam profanis usibus elaborati, tam simulatis instrumentorum, quam vivis hominum vocibus concinnati, quibus vox octava imitium, sextadecima finem scribit
Graz: Widmanstetter, Georg, 1607
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#28
|
|
Attrib: Georgio Poss Francone |
|
|
Ascendens Christus in altum
|
Ascension |
Anon
|
6 |
(I-TVd 5)
Treviso: d'Alessi, Giovanni, 1559-1572
(Choirbook, MS)
#14
|
|
Attrib: Anon |
Thematic catalogue, first phrase only |
|
Ascendens Christus in altum
|
Ascension |
Merulo, Claudio
1533–1604
|
5 |
|
Ascendens Christus in altum - Ascendit Deus in iubilatione
|
Ascension |
Buissons, Michael-Charles des
fl.1560–1570
|
6 |
|
Ascendens Christus in altum - Ascendit Deus in iubilatione
Nancho Alvarez
|
Ascension |
Guerrero, Francisco
1528–1599
|
5 |
Motecta (RISM G4877)
Venice: Vincenti, Giacomo, 1597
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#56
|
|
Attrib: Francisci Gverreri |
|
|
Ascendens Christus in altum - Ascendit Deus in iubilatione
Francis Bevan (SSATB)
Nancho Alvarez
John's College, Cambridge
|
Ascension |
Victoria, Tomás Luis de
1548–1611
|
5 |
Motecta que partim, quaternis, partim... (RISM V1421)
Motecta que partim, quaternis, partim, quinis, alia, senis, alia, octonis vocibus concinuntur
Venice: Gardano, Antonio, 1572
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#15
|
|
Attrib: Tomae Lvdovici de Victoria Abulensis |
|
Thomae Ludovici de Victoria Abulenis ... (RISM V1422)
Thomae Ludovici de Victoria Abulenis motecta quae partim quaternis Partim, Quinis, Alia, Senis, Alia, Octonis, Alia,
Duodenis, Vocibus, Concinuntur...
Rome: Gardano, Alessandro, 1583
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#17
|
|
Attrib: Thomae Lvdovici de Victoria |
|
Motecta festorum totius anni cum Comm... (RISM V1433 (1585/6))
Motecta festorum totius anni cum Communi sanctorum, quae partim senis, partim quinis, partim quaternis, alia octonis vocibus concinuntur
Rome: Gardano, Alessandro and Basa, Domenico, 1585
(Choirbook, Print)
RISM
#14
|
|
Attrib: Thomae Lvdovici a Victoria |
|
Motecta quae partim quaternis, partim... (RISM V1423)
Motecta quae partim quaternis, partim quinis, alia senis, alia octonis, alia duodenis vocibus concinuntur
Milan: Tini, Francesco and Tini, Simone, 1589
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#17
|
|
Attrib: Thomae Lvdovici de Victoria |
|
Cantiones sacrae Thomae Ludovici a Vi... (RISM V1424)
Cantiones sacrae Thomae Ludovici a Victoria abulensis, musici suavissimi, quatuor, quinque, sex, octo, et duodecim vocum, nunquam ante hac Germania excusae.
Dillingen: Mayer, Johann, 1589
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#17
|
|
Attrib: Thomae Lvdovici a Victoria Abulensis |
|
Motecta que partim, quaternis, partim... (RISM V1425)
Motecta que partim, quaternis, partim quinis, alia senis, alia octonis, alia Duodenis vocibus in omnibus solemnitatibus per totum annum, concinuntur, Noviter recognita & impressa
Venice: Gardano, Angelo, 1603
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#17
|
|
Attrib: Tomae Lvdovici de Victoria Aulensis |
|
Sambrook book (US-NYp Drexel 4302)
London: Tregian, Francis (ii), 1613-1619
(Score, MS)
RISM
#22
|
|
Attrib: Ludovicus a Victoria |
|
|
Ascendens Christus in altum - Ascendo ad patrem meum
|
Ascension |
Brouck, Jacob de
fl.1568–1583
|
5 |
|
Ascendens Christus in altum - Ascendo ad patrem meum
|
Ascension |
Lhéritier, Jean
c.1480–after 1551
|
4 |
Primus liber cum quatuor vocibus. Mot... (RISM 1539/13)
Primus liber cum quatuor vocibus. Mottetti del frutto a quatro
Venice: Gardano, Antonio, 1539
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#23
|
|
Attrib: Leretier |
|
Excellentiss. autorum diverse modulat... (RISM 1549/10)
Excellentiss. autorum diverse modulationes que sub titulo fructus vagantur per orbem ab Antonio Gardane nuper recognite. Liber primus cum quatuor vocibus
Venice: Gardano, Antonio, 1549
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#23
|
|
Attrib: Leretier |
|
Excellentiss. autorum diverse modulat... (RISM 1549/10a)
Excellentiss. autorum diverse modulationes que sub titulo fructus vagantur per orbem ab Antonio Gardane nuper recognite & edite. Liber primus cum quatuor vocibus
Venice: Scotto, Girolamo, 1549
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#23
|
|
Attrib: Leretier |
|
Secundus tomus evangeliorum quatuor, ... (RISM 1555/10)
Secundus tomus evangeliorum quatuor, quinque, sex, et plurium vocum continens historias & doctrinam, quae in Ecclesia proponi solet: De Ascensione Christi. De Missione Spiritussancti
Nuremberg: Berg, Johann and Neuber, Ulrich, 1555
(Choirbook, Print)
RISM
#9
|
|
Attrib: Lerethier |
|
Moteti de la fama, libro primo, a qua... (RISM 1555/15 (L2316))
Moteti de la fama, libro primo, a quattro voci
Venice: Scotto, Girolamo, 1555
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#15
|
|
Attrib: Ioanne Lheritier |
|
Motetti del frutto a quatro voci. Li... (RISM 1562/2)
Motetti del frutto a quatro voci. Libro primo. Novamente coretti e stampati.
Venice: Scotto, Girolamo, 1562
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#20
|
|
Attrib: Leretier |
|
|
Ascendens Christus in altum - Ascendo ad patrem meum
|
Ascension |
Clemens non Papa, Jacobus
c.1510–1555/1556
|
5 |
Sacrarum cantionum (vulgo hodie motet... (RISM 1554/6)
Sacrarum cantionum (vulgo hodie moteta vocant) quinque et sex vocum ad veram harmoniam concentumque ab optimis quibusque musicis in philomusorum gratiam compositarum. Liber primus.
Antwerp: Laet, Jean de and Waelrant, Hubert, 1554
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#7
|
|
Attrib: Clemens non papa |
|
Liber decimus ecclesiasticarum cantio... (RISM 1555/8)
Liber decimus ecclesiasticarum cantionum quinque vocum vulgo moteta vocant, tam ex Veteri quam ex Novo Testamento, ab optimis quibusque huius aetatis musicis compositarum unius toni omnes antea nunquam axcusus
Antwerp: Susato, Tylman, 1555
(Partbook, Print)
#5
|
|
Attrib: Iacobus Clemens non Papa |
Psalmo Lxvii |
|
Ascendens Christus in altum - Omnis pulcritudo Domini
|
Ascension |
Elimon
|
4 |
(I-Bc Q.20)
Bologna, c.1530
(Partbook, MS)
#9
|
|
Attrib: Elimon |
|
|
Ascendens Jesus in naviculum
|
|
Ratti, Lorenzo
1589/1590–1630
|
8 |
|
Ascendens Jesus in navim
Francis Bevan (SATTB)
|
|
Wanning, Johannes
1537–1603
|
5 |
|
Ascendens Jesus Jerosolimam - Et tradent eum gentibus
|
|
Clemens non Papa, Jacobus
c.1510–1555/1556
|
4 |
|
Ascendente Jesu in naviculam - Domine salva nos
Pothárn Imre
|
|
Wert, Giaches de
1535–1596
|
6 |
|
Ascendente Jesu in naviculum - Domine serva nos perimus
|
|
Vulpius, Melchior
c.1570–1615
|
6 |
|
Ascendente Jesu in naviculum - Et accesserunt discipuli
|
|
Otto, Georg
1550–1618
|
6 |
|