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 |
Te Deum
|
|
Anon
|
4 |
|
Te Deum
|
|
Anon
|
4 |
(P-Cug 7)
(Choirbook, MS)
#4
|
|
Attrib: Anon |
|
(P-Cug 7)
(Choirbook, MS)
#11
|
|
Attrib: Anon |
A legible and complete version of the same setting as above. |
|
Te Deum
|
|
Anon
|
4 |
(P-Cug 53)
c.1585-1600
(Choirbook, MS)
#37
|
|
Attrib: Anon |
|
|
Te Deum [I]
|
|
Pane, Domenico Dal
c.1630–1694
|
6 |
|
Te Deum [I]
|
|
Anerio, Giovanni Francesco
c.1567–1630
|
4 |
(I-Rn 143)
(Choirbook, MS)
#1
|
|
Attrib: Joannis Francisci Anerii |
|
|
Te Deum [II]
Francis Bevan (SATB)
|
|
Anerio, Giovanni Francesco
c.1567–1630
|
4 |
Corolla Musica Missarum XXXVII pro vi... (RISM 1628/2)
Corolla Musica Missarum XXXVII pro vivis ac defunctis, iuncto mortuali lesso &c. selectissimarum I. II. II. IV. et V vocibus cum basso continuo seu generali, organo applicato
Strasbourg: Zetzner, Lazarus, 1628
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#40
|
|
Attrib: Io. Franc. Anerii |
|
|
Te Deum [II]
|
|
Pane, Domenico Dal
c.1630–1694
|
8 |
|
Te Deum laudamus
|
|
Lassus, Orlande de
c.1532–1594
|
6 |
Selectissimae cantiones, quas vulgo m... (RISM L815)
Selectissimae cantiones, quas vulgo motetas vocant, partim omnino novae, partim nusquam in Germania excusae, sex & pluribus vocibus compositae per excellentissimum Musicum
Nuremberg: Gerlach, Dietrich, 1568
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#37
|
|
Attrib: Orlandum di Lassus |
|
Selectissimae cantiones, quas vulgo m... (RISM L915)
Selectissimae cantiones, quas vulgo motetas vocant, partim omnino novae, partim nusquam in Germania excusa, sex & pluribus vocibus compositae
Nuremberg: Gerlach, Katharina and Berg, Johann, 1579
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#43
|
|
Attrib: Orlandum di Lassus |
|
Magnum opus musicum ... Complectens o... (RISM L1019)
Magnum opus musicum ... Complectens omnes cantiones quas motetas vulgo vocant, tam antea editas quam hactenus nondum publicatas II. III. IV. V. VI. VII. IIX. IX. X. XII. vocum a Ferdinando serenissimi bavariae ducis maximiliani musicorum praefecto, & Rudolpho, eidem Principi ab Organis; Authoris filiis summo studio collectum, & impensis eorundem Typis mandatum
Munich: Heinrich, Nikolaus, 1604
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#463
|
|
Attrib: Orlandi de Lasso |
|
|
Te Deum laudamus
|
|
Kerle, Jacobus de
1531/1532–1591
|
5 |
Selectae quaedam cantiones sacrae mod... (RISM K447)
Selectae quaedam cantiones sacrae modis musicis quinque et sex vocum
Nuremberg: Gerlach, Dietrich, 1571
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#7
|
|
Attrib: Iacobum de Kerle |
|
Liber mottetorum, quatuor et quinque ... (RISM K451)
Liber mottetorum, quatuor et quinque vocum, adiuncto in fine, Te Deum laudamus, sex vocum
Munich: Berg, Adam, 1573
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#16
|
|
Attrib: Iacobi de Kerle |
|
Pars hiemalis officiorum divinorum fe... (D-As Tonk.Sch. 23)
Pars hiemalis officiorum divinorum festo natalis christi usque ad eucharistie solennitatem
1575
(Choirbook, MS)
#53
|
|
Attrib: Jacobi de Kerle |
|
Quatuor Missae suavissimis modulation... (RISM K454)
Quatuor Missae suavissimis modulationibus refertae, quarum una quatuor relique vero quinque vocibus concinendae
Antwerp: Plantin, Christophe, 1583
(Choirbook, Print)
RISM
#5
|
|
Attrib: Iacobo de Kerle Flandro Iprensi |
|
|
Te Deum laudamus
|
|
Colombani, Oratio
c.1550–1595
|
5 |
|
Te Deum laudamus
|
(Hymn) |
Maistre Jhan
c.1485–1538
|
5 |
|
Te Deum laudamus
Nancho Alvarez
|
|
Guerrero, Francisco
1528–1599
|
4 |
Liber vesperarum (RISM G4873)
Rome: Basa, Domenico, 1584
(Choirbook, Print)
RISM
#32
|
|
Attrib: Francisco Gverrero |
|
Mottecta que partim quaternis partim ... (RISM G4875)
Mottecta que partim quaternis partim quinis alia senis alia octonis concinuntur vocibus. Liber secundus.
Venice: Vincenti, Giacomo, 1589
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#36
|
|
Attrib: Francisci Gverreri |
|
Motecta (RISM G4877)
Venice: Vincenti, Giacomo, 1597
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#70
|
|
Attrib: Francisci Gverreri |
|
(V-CVbav Capp.Sist. 484-9)
Rome, c.1700-c.1800
(Partbook, MS)
#32
|
|
Attrib: Franci. Guerreri |
|
|
Te Deum laudamus
|
|
Guyot de Châtelet, Jean
1512–1588
|
6 |
(D-Mbs 515)
Munich: Fossa, Johannes de, c.1565-c.1585
(Choirbook, MS)
RISM
#2
|
|
Attrib: Ioannes Castileti |
d: et Magister meus d: et M. Ioannes Castileti, confecit [a]etatis suae 63 |
|
Te Deum laudamus
|
|
Vaet, Jacobus
c.1529–1567
|
8 |
|
Te Deum laudamus
|
|
Sweelinck, Jan Pieterszoon
1562–1621
|
5 |
|
Te Deum laudamus
|
|
Festa, Costanzo
c.1485-1490–1545
|
4 |
|
Te Deum laudamus
|
|
Silva, Andreas de
b.c.1475-1480
|
4 |
(I-Bc Q.20)
Bologna, c.1530
(Partbook, MS)
#30
|
|
Attrib: A de silva |
|
Novum et insigne opus musicum, sex, q... (RISM 1537/1)
Novum et insigne opus musicum, sex, quinque, et autuor vocum, cuius in Germania hactenus nihil simile usquam est editum
Nuremberg: Formschneider, Hieronymus and Ott, Hans, 1537
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#57
|
|
Attrib: Anon |
|
|
Te Deum laudamus
|
|
Anon
|
4 |
|
Te Deum laudamus
|
|
Potoletus, Claudius
|
4 |
Choirbook E (NL-Lml 1442)
Leiden: Blauwe, Anthonius de and Flamingus, Johannes, c.1550-c.1567
(Choirbook, MS)
#70
|
|
Attrib: Claudius Potoletus |
|
|
Te Deum laudamus
|
|
Tye, Christopher
c.1505–1573
|
6 |
|
Te Deum laudamus
|
|
Handl, Jacob (Gallus)
1550–1591
|
7 |
|
Te Deum laudamus
|
|
Stoltzer, Thomas
c.1480–1526
|
4 |
(A-Wn 15500)
Vienna, 1544
(Choirbook, MS)
#44
|
|
Attrib: Thomas Stolzer |
Fragment of Altus part on previous page |
|
Te Deum laudamus
|
|
Pacelli, Asprilio
1570–1623
|
8 |
|
Te Deum laudamus
|
|
Walliser, Christoph Thomas
1568–1648
|
8 |
|
Te Deum laudamus
|
|
Navarro, Juan
c.1530–1580
|
4 |
Psalmi hymn ac magnificat totius anni... (RISM N283)
Psalmi hymn ac magnificat totius anni secundum ritum Sanctae Romanae Ecclesiae quatuor quinque ac sex vocibus concinendi necnon Beatae Virginis Dei genitricis Mariae diversorum temporum antiphonae in finem horarum dicendae
Rome: Coattino, Francesco, 1590
(Choirbook, Print)
RISM
#39
|
|
Attrib: Ioannis Nauarro |
Te ergo: Canon in diatessaron |
|