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''Sub Arturo plebs – Fons citharizantium – In omnem terram'' is an isorhythmic motet of the second part of the 14th century, written by an English composer known by the name of Johannes Alanus or John Aleyn. It stands in the tradition of the ''Ars nova'', the fourteenth-century school of polyphonic music based in France. It is notable for the historical information it provides about contemporary music life in England, and for its spectacularly sophisticated use of complex rhythmic devices, which mark it as a prime example of the stylistic outgrowth of the ''Ars nova'' known today as ''Ars subtilior''.〔Günther, Ursula: Das Wort-Ton-Problem bei Motetten des späten 14. Jahrhunderts. In: ''Festschrift Heinrich Besseler zum 60. Geburtstag.'' Leipzig: Deutscher Verlag für Musik, 1961. 163–178.〕 It has been dated conjecturally to either around 1358, which, within that school of composition, would make its compositional technique exceptionally innovative for its own time, or some time later during the 1370s. == Text and contents == ''Sub Arturo plebs'' is a composition in three voices (''tenor'', ''motetus'' and ''triplum''). Like all medieval motets, it has separate texts for each voice, which are sung simultaneously. All three texts are in Latin; the title under which the work is conventionally known in scholarship today consists of the opening words of each text. Their subject matter deals with music and musicians, following a tradition of similar "musician-motets" known from contemporary France.〔Bent, Margaret: ''Two 14th-century motets in praise of music.'' Lustleigh, 1977.〕 It includes a named reference to the composer of the work, making him one of the earliest named English composers, and a self-referential description of the work's own structure. The tenor text (together with its melody) is taken from an existing Gregorian chant: "''In omnem terram exivit sonus eorum, et in fines orbis terrae verba eorum''". This in turn is citing a verse from the Bible: "''Their voice has gone out through all the earth, their words to the end of the world.''" (Ps. 19.5 and Rom 10.18).〔Günther, Ursula: ''The motets of the manuscripts Chantilly, musée condé, 564 (olim 1074) and Modena, Bibl. estense, α.M. 5,24 (olim lat.568).'' American Institute of Musicology, 1965. (=''Corpus Mensurabilis Musicae, 39).〕 The motetus and triplum texts are newly composed for this piece. Both are written in Latin rhyming stanzas. The middle voice or motetus, which has six six-line stanzas, first contains the praise of a succession of biblical and historical figures, each of whom is credited with a founding role for music and composition: the biblical Jubal (here misspelled as ''"Tubal"''), the ancient philosophers Pythagoras and Boethius, Pope Gregory I, and the medieval music theorists Guido of Arezzo and Franco of Cologne. The fifth stanza then spells out a rule for the performance of the piece itself, describing its structural plan (see below for an in-depth analysis): Finally, the last stanza of the motetus names the composer of the piece himself, "J. Alanus", who introduces himself as ''"the humblest and most insignificant"'' and prays for protection against envy:〔 The third, upmost voice (triplum), in nine five-line stanzas, describes the flourishing of musical art at the contemporary English royal court, and contains the praise of a series of named English musicians of the composer's own time or recent past (thus contrasting with the motetus and its emphasis on ancient figures). It names fourteen individuals,〔 described as accomplished singers and composers, all apparently associated with the English court. Their Latinized names are: *J. de Corbe *J. de Alto Bosco *G. Martinus *Ricardus Blith *Johannes de Oxonia *G. Mughe *Edmundus de Buria *Blith G. *Episwich J. *Nicholaus de Vade Famelico *G. de Horarum *Symon *Clemens *Adam Levita The first words of the text refer to a ruler under the legendary name of "Arturus" (i.e. Arthur), apparently an allusion to king Edward III (reigned 1327 – 1377), who liked to see his role as the founder of the Order of the Garter likened to that of the legendary Arthur.〔 Another allusion to a "warlike prince" (''princeps bellicus'') among the musicians' royal patrons can easily be decoded as a reference to the king's famous son, Edward, the Black Prince. Historians who have researched the list of names, as well as that of Johannes Alanus himself, have been able to trace several of these individuals in historical sources, indicating that they were in fact all employed as musicians in either the Chapel Royal under Edward III, or in the private household chapel of the Black Prince, some time during the middle of the 14th century.〔Trowell, Brian: A 14th century ceremonial motet and its composer. ''Acta Musicologica'' 29 (1957): 65–75.〕〔Bowers, Roger: Fixed points in the chronology of English 14th-century polyphony. ''Music and Letters'' 71 (1990): 313–335.〕 The composer himself, identified as one John Aleyn, can be traced as the holder of various church offices ("''King's clerk''" at St. Paul's Cathedral, London, in 1361; a canon at Windsor, 1362; member of the Chapel Royal at least from 1364; died 1373).〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Sub Arturo plebs」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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