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 |
Missa Quem dicunt homines
|
(Mass) |
Mouton, Jean
before 1459–1522
|
4 |
Liber decem missarum a praeclaris mus... (RISM 1532/8)
Liber decem missarum a praeclaris musicis contextus, nunquam antehac in lucem aeditus
Lyon: Moderne, Jacques, c.1532
(Choirbook, Print)
RISM
#7
|
|
Attrib: Ja. Mouton |
Agnus Dei super Kyrie |
(V-CVbav Capp.Sist. 13)
Rome: Parvus, Johannes and Raymond, Vincent, c.1536-c.1542
(Choirbook, MS)
RISM
#7
|
|
Attrib: Anon |
|
Liber decem missarum a praeclaris et ... (RISM 1540/1)
Liber decem missarum a praeclaris et maximi nominis musicis contextus: nuperrime adiunctis duabus Missis nunquam hactenus in lucem emissis, auctior redditus & accurate castigatus
Lyon: Moderne, Jacques, 1540
(Choirbook, Print)
RISM
#7
|
|
Attrib: Ja. Mouton |
|
Missa Joannis Mouton, super Quem dicu... (RISM M4016)
Missa Joannis Mouton, super Quem dicunt homines.
[Ronneburg], 1559
(Choirbook, Print)
RISM
#1
|
|
Attrib: Johannis Mouton |
No Agnus Dei |
|
Missa Quem dicunt homines
|
(Mass) |
Divitis, Antonius
c.1470–c.1530
|
4 |
(V-CVbav Capp.Sist. 55)
Rome: Gellandi, Claudius, Bouchet, Claudius, and Raymond, Vincent, c.1515-c.1527
(Choirbook, MS)
RISM
#7
|
|
Attrib: A. divitis |
|
Quintus liber tres missas continet (RISM 1532/5)
Paris: Attaingnant, Pierre, 1532
(Choirbook, Print)
RISM
#1
|
|
Attrib: Divitis |
|
Il primo libro a due voci de diversi ... (RISM 1543/19)
Il primo libro a due voci de diversi autori
Venice: Gardano, Antonio, 1543
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#18
|
|
Attrib: Divitis |
2vv Agnus Dei only |
Il primo libro a due voci de diversi ... (RISM 1543/19)
Il primo libro a due voci de diversi autori
Venice: Gardano, Antonio, 1543
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#66
|
|
Attrib: Divits |
2vv Crucifixus section only |
Il primo libro a due voci de diversi ... (RISM 1543/19)
Il primo libro a due voci de diversi autori
Venice: Gardano, Antonio, 1543
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#67
|
|
Attrib: Divitis |
2vv Pleni sunt caeli section only |
Il primo libro a due voci. de diversi... (RISM 1553/26)
Il primo libro a due voci. de diversi autori novamente ristampato & con ogni diligentia corretto
Venice: Gardano, Antonio, 1553
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#18
|
|
Attrib: Divitis |
2vv Agnus Dei only |
Il primo libro a due voci. de diversi... (RISM 1553/26)
Il primo libro a due voci. de diversi autori novamente ristampato & con ogni diligentia corretto
Venice: Gardano, Antonio, 1553
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#66
|
|
Attrib: Divitis |
2vv Pleni sunt caeli section only |
Il primo libro a due voci. de diversi... (RISM 1553/26)
Il primo libro a due voci. de diversi autori novamente ristampato & con ogni diligentia corretto
Venice: Gardano, Antonio, 1553
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#65
|
|
Attrib: Divitis |
2vv Crucifixus section only |
|
Missa Quem dicunt homines
Francis Bevan (AT(T)BarB)
The Davey Consort
|
(Mass) |
Palestrina, Giovanni Pierluigi da
c.1525–1594
|
4 |
Ioannis Petraloysii Praenestin Missar... (RISM P681)
Ioannis Petraloysii Praenestin Missarum cum quatuor, quinque & sex vocibus, liber octavus
Venice: Scotto, Girolamo, 1599
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#1
|
|
Attrib: Ioannis Petraloysii Praenestin |
|
Mißarum cum quatuor, quinque, & sex v... (RISM P682)
Mißarum cum quatuor, quinque, & sex vocibus. Liber octavus
Venice: Scotto, Girolamo, 1609
(Partbook, Print)
RISM
#1
|
|
Attrib: Ioannis Petraloysii Praenestin |
|
|
Missa Quem dicunt homines
|
(Mass) |
Ruffo, Vincenzo
c.1508–1587
|
5 |
|
Missa Quem dicunt homines
|
(Mass) |
Anon
|
4 |
(P-Ln L.C.57)
Lisbon, c.1610
(Choirbook, MS)
#2
|
|
Attrib: Anon |
No credo or benedictus |
|
Missa Quem dicunt homines
Francis Bevan (S(S)AT(T)BarB)
Nancho Alvarez
|
(Mass) |
Morales, Cristóbal de
c.1500–1553
|
5 |
|
Missa Quem dicunt homines
|
|
Raedt, Pierkin de
|
4 |
|
Missa Quem in caelo
|
(Mass) |
Hassler, Hans Leo
1564–1612
|
6 |
|
Missa Que n'ani je Marion
|
(Mass) |
Misonne, Vincent
c.1490–1550
|
4 |
|
Missa Que racon podeis vos tener para no me querer
|
(Mass) |
Vado y Gómez, Juan del
c.1625–1691
|
5 |
|
Missa Qui au conseil
|
(Mass) |
Colin, Pierre
fl.1538–1572
|
4 |
Liturgicon musicarum duodecim missaru... (RISM C3310)
Liturgicon musicarum duodecim missarum, decem quidem tetraphonon, duarum vero pentaphonon, autore P. Colinio virgineae puerore synodiae chorago, in D. Lazari apud antiquissimam H. duorum metropolin. augustodunum
Lyon: Moderne, Jacques, 1556
(Choirbook, Print)
RISM
#10
|
|
Attrib: Petrus Colinius |
Upon his own Psalm 1 |
|
Missa Quia vidisti me Thoma
|
(Mass) |
Palmarts, Godefridus
fl.1576–1602
|
4 |
(D-Mbs 54)
Munich, c.1560-c.1580
(Choirbook, MS)
#7
|
|
Attrib: Godefrido Palmarts |
|
|
Missa Qui dort ici
|
(Mass) |
Palmarts, Godefridus
fl.1576–1602
|
4 |
(D-Mbs 54)
Munich, c.1560-c.1580
(Choirbook, MS)
#9
|
|
Attrib: Godefridus Palmarts |
|
|
Missa Quiescat vox tua
|
(Mass) |
Dönerus, Joachimus
fl.1591
|
6 |
(D-Mbs 76)
Munich, c.1575-c.1599
(Choirbook, MS)
RISM
#25
|
|
Attrib: Ioachimo Dönero |
April 15th 1591. Upon the motet by de Wert |
|
Missa Qui habitat in adiutorio
|
(Mass) |
Daser, Ludwig
c.1526–1589
|
4 |
(D-Mbs 44)
Munich: Mayr, Hanns, c.1540-c.1560
(Choirbook, MS)
RISM
#1
|
|
Attrib: Lud: Daser |
|
|
Missa Qui ladira
|
(Mass) |
Animuccia, Giovanni
c.1520–1571
|
5 |
|
Missa Qui magna fecit
|
(Mass) |
Tamburini, Pietro Antonio
1589–1635
|
5 |
|
Missa quinta
|
(Mass) |
Monferrato, Natale
1603–1685
|
4 |
|
Missa Quis ut deus
|
(Mass) |
Marchand, Louis-Joseph
1692–1744
|
4 |
|
Missa Quo abiit dilectus tuus
|
(Mass) |
Manchicourt, Pierre de
c.1510–1564
|
4 |
|
Missa Quodcunque ligaveris
|
(Mass) |
Tamburini, Pietro Antonio
1589–1635
|
4 |
|
Missa quodlibetica
|
(Mass) |
Vaet, Jacobus
c.1529–1567
|
5 |
(A-Gu 11)
Graz, c.1560-c.1570
(Choirbook, MS)
#10
|
|
Attrib: Jacobus Vaet |
|
(SI-Lnr 341)
Ljubljana: Kuglmann, Georg, c.1600
(Choirbook, MS)
RISM
#23
|
|
Attrib: Jacobi Vaet |
|
|
Missa quodlibetica
|
(Mass) |
Luython, Carl
1557/1558–1620
|
6 |
|
Missa quodlibetica
|
(Mass) |
Luython, Carl
1557/1558–1620
|
4 |
|
Missa quodlibetica
|
(Mass) |
Luython, Carl
1557/1558–1620
|
3 |
|